The Humboldt Project: Eureka’s Masonic Temple

The Humboldt Project is more than an Instagram archive—it’s an unfolding history lesson, told one postcard at a time. For several years, Steve Lazar has been sharing his vast collection, timing each post to the anniversary of its original postmark. But, we hope for for more than just glimpses into the past; We’re hoping you see them as invitations to uncover stories, decipher handwriting, and connect the dots between then and now.

Postmarked in Eureka at 6 p.m. on April 21, 1932, this postcard shows one of the city’s largest buildings just a few years after it opened.

At the time this photo was taken, the Masonic Temple at Fifth and G Streets had only recently been built. Construction began in 1921, the cornerstone was laid in 1922, and the building was first occupied in 1923–making the building 103 years old this year! And Humboldt Lodge No. 79, the county’s oldest fraternal organization (173 years!) for which it was built, still occupies it above Vern’s Furniture. (Vern’s has been there since 1976.)

As an article in The Humboldt Historian states, membership had expanded dramatically over time, “from 13 in 1855, to 53 in 1871, to 323 in 1910,” so lodge members wanted a larger and more impressive home for their organization.

But what they built was more than a meeting hall.  The building was created to have retail space on the lower floors, with lodge rooms, offices, and gathering spaces above. The building quickly became a hub not just for Masons, but for a wide range of community activity.

From the beginning, according to The Humboldt Historian article,  “dozens of men’s, women’s and young people’s fraternal groups used the building,” along with conventions, school events, and public gatherings.

The structure itself was the product of a lot of local investment. Designed by architect Franklin Georgeson, engineered by Clarence Tabor, and built by Mercer-Fraser, the project was largely carried out by members of the lodge itself. Financing came through a combination of member subscriptions and loans, with hundreds of local participants contributing to make the building possible.

Inside, the main lodge room was described as “one of the most impressive public rooms on the North Coast,” a 42-by-86-foot space with columns, drapery, and detailed craftsmanship. Above it, a large ballroom and banquet hall hosted dances, celebrations, and civic events for decades. (See here for one picture of the impressive interior. We’d love to see more photos if others have some to share.)

The postcard image above shows the building in its early years—storefronts active at street level, early automobiles lined along the curb, and the structure itself still crisp and new against the Eureka streetscape.

Today, the structure still stands on the corner of Fifth and G. Though the businesses that occupied it’s lower floors have shifted over time, the building remains one of the few large, early-20th-century landmarks in Eureka to persist largely intact and it still houses the local Mason fraternity that it was built for.

The building pictured on the front of the postcard is large and lasting. The message on the back is brief and fleeting—just a note home, a line about “having a good time.” But both provide a glimpse of the Eureka and the North Coast that existed 100 years ago. See more postcards showing the street and building from Lazar’s collection here.

If anyone knows who Pearl and Warren are or more about the historic Masonic building, please speak up in the comments.

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