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From the Gowanda PennySaver News "Reflections" series compiled by Mary Pankow. issue date - April 21, 2002

c. 1929

Phoenix Lodge #262, F&AM, part 1 - The official establishment of the Phoenix Lodge dates from 1851, but its charter was granted June 16, 1852. Meetings were held at first in a third-story room of the Kimble building, next to the Crawford House. Organizers of the Phoenix Lodge were William Herrick of Collins, David Parker of Versailles, Elias Hall of Gowanda, James Locke, a Western New York native; and Amasa Chaffee, originally from Vermont. The "Great Fire" of 1856 destroyed nearly every place of business in Gowanda, including the lodge rooms. The building was rebuilt and occupied until 1884, when the lodge moved into the newly completed Enoch Taylor building on Main Street. Time passed and, in 1911, the lodge purchased a lot on the corner of Walnut and Jamestown streets, where the new temple was constructed. Right Worshipful Ira W. Livermore, local physician, laid the cornerstone. The new temple was formally dedicated the next year by Grand Master Charles Smith. The photo postcards above show the lot before and during the main construction phase. (The building today is the location of Housing Options Made Easy.) (Photos courtesy of Phoenix Lodge #262, F&AM.)