{"nrhp_refnum":"87001343","name":"Paris Elks Lodge No. 812 Building","other_names":["Francis Associates Consulting Engineers"],"category":"building","location":{"address":"111 E. Washington St.","address_restricted":false,"city":"Paris","county":"Edgar County","state":"IL","lat":39.61063857200003,"lon":-87.69360017399998,"geom_source":"nps_gis"},"listed_date":"1987-08-06","is_nhl":false,"nhl_designated_date":null,"areas_of_significance":["Architecture","Social History"],"significance_levels":["local"],"summary":{"what_it_is":"A three-story and basement red brick lodge building with Moorish or Mission flavor at 111 East Washington Street in Paris, Edgar County, Illinois. It was built in 1927 for Elks Lodge #812, designed by Everett Blackman.","why_significant":"The nomination argues the building exemplifies the ambitious social programs of early twentieth-century Elks lodges in small Central Illinois towns. It is also notable for an unusual partnership between the Elks and the adjoining France Hotel, which made a three-story lodge possible. Its Mediterranean design, with Prairie-style touches and subtle elk motifs, is uncommon in the region, and it retains full exterior integrity.","narrative":"Built in 1927 at 111 East Washington Street in Paris, Illinois, this three-story red brick building was erected for Elks Lodge #812, chartered in 1902. Architect Everett Blackman, a Paris native and lodge member, gave it a Mediterranean character with an arcaded loggia, deep bracketed roof overhangs, white stone rondelles and an asymmetrical tower whose corbeled projections suggest elk antlers. Horizontal brickwork and a band of windows add a Prairie Style note. The lodge was funded entirely by member contributions. It was joined to the neighboring France Hotel by an enclosed walkway, and its third floor held hotel rooms leased and managed by the hotel. That arrangement allowed a three-story lodge in a small town. The building housed meeting rooms, a ballroom and basement bowling lanes, and served as a social center and a base for community welfare work. Its exterior remains unaltered. Today it holds offices and a public social hall.","period_of_significance":"1927","architect_builder":"Everett Blackman","architectural_style":"Vernacular with Moorish or Mission (Mediterranean/Spanish Colonial) flavor and Prairie School influence","criteria":["A"],"status_note":"First floor is used as offices for a consulting engineering firm; second floor is a social hall with bar and catering open to the public; basement and third floor are not in use.","vacant_flag":false,"machine_generated":true,"model":"claude-sonnet-5-5","prompt_version":"v1.0-2026-10-29","generated_at":"2026-10-29 02:55:35.543902-05","source_pdf":"https://s3.amazonaws.com/NARAprodstorage/opastorage/live/23/8928/28892823/content/electronic-records/rg-079/NPS_IL/87001343.pdf"},"photo":{"url_800":"https://nationalhistoricalregister.com/media/87001343/e5d1a22064-800.webp","url_1600":"https://nationalhistoricalregister.com/media/87001343/e5d1a22064-1600.webp","licence":"CC BY-SA 3.0","author":"Dclark","credit_html":"<a href=\"https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:111_E._Washington_St.,_Paris,_IL.JPG\" rel=\"noopener\">Dclark</a>, <a href=\"https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/3.0\" rel=\"license noopener\">CC BY-SA 3.0</a>, via Wikimedia Commons","source_page":"https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:111_E._Washington_St.,_Paris,_IL.JPG"},"district":null,"sources":{"nps_snapshot_date":"2026-05-22","nara_catalog":"https://catalog.archives.gov/id/28892823","wikipedia":"https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Paris_Elks_Lodge_No._812_Building","wikidata":"https://www.wikidata.org/wiki/Q7137282"},"indexable":true,"url":"https://nationalhistoricalregister.com/illinois/edgar-county/paris-elks-lodge-no-812-building-87001343/"}