The Red Men Hall, later known as Century Hall, is a historic four-story building located in
Reading, Pennsylvania
Reading ( ; Pennsylvania Dutch: ''Reddin'') is a city in and the county seat of Berks County, Pennsylvania, United States. The city had a population of 95,112 as of the 2020 census and is the fourth-largest city in Pennsylvania after Philade ...
.
Red Men
The building originally served as a meeting place for the local lodge or "wigwam" of the
Improved Order of Red Men
The Improved Order of Red Men is a fraternal organization established in North America in 1834. Their rituals and regalia are modeled after those assumed by men of the era to be used by Native Americans. Despite the name, the order was formed ...
. The Red Men are a fraternal organization which imitate perceived Native American customs. However, this location consisted exclusively of German Americans. The organization had numerous chapters in Pennsylvania beginning in the nineteenth century.
Building
Constructed by the Red Men in 1900, the four-story brick facade building displays
American Craftsman
American Craftsman is an American domestic architectural style, inspired by the Arts and Crafts movement, which included interior design, landscape design, applied arts, and decorative arts, beginning in the last years of the 19th century. Its ...
style architectural designs with Renaissance Revival elements, and includes decorative tiles by
Henry Chapman Mercer
Henry Chapman Mercer (June 24, 1856 – March 9, 1930) was an American archeologist, artifact collector, tile-maker, and designer of three distinctive poured concrete structures: Fonthill, his home; the Moravian Pottery and Tile Works; and th ...
. Later, the structure served as a rental hall called Century Hall, capitalizing on the building being built at the turn of the century.
The National Register of Historic Places added the structure in 2000. The building now consists of 15 low-income senior housing units.
See also
*
Red Men Hall Red Men Hall may refer to:
* Red Men Hall (Brunswick, Maryland), now houses a model train museum
* Red Men Hall (Essex, Connecticut), listed on the National Register of Historic Places in Middlesex County, Connecticut
* Red Men Hall (Index, Washing ...
, for other buildings with the name in the United States
*
GoggleWorks
GoggleWorks Center for the Arts is a community art and cultural resource center located in Reading, Pennsylvania. The mission of the GoggleWorks is “to transform lives through unique interactions with art.”
Located in the former Willson Gogg ...
: Another Reading building designed by the Muhlenberg Brothers.
*
References
Improved Order of Red Men
Buildings and structures in Reading, Pennsylvania
Cultural infrastructure completed in 1900
Clubhouses on the National Register of Historic Places in Pennsylvania
American Craftsman architecture in Pennsylvania
National Register of Historic Places in Reading, Pennsylvania
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