The Wisconsin Consistory Building, also known as the Humpfrey Scottish Rite Masonic Center, is a historic structure in Milwaukee, Wisconsin that was built as a Romanesque-style Congregational church in 1889, then bought by a Masonic order and remodeled to an Art Moderne style in 1937. In 1994 it was listed on the National Register of Historic Places. The frame of the Consistory building was built by Plymouth Congregational Church. Plymouth had roots in First Congregational Church, organized in 1841. In 1847 part of that congregation split off into a separate congregation which became Plymouth Congregational. By 1861 the congregation was large and wealthy, including businessmen and professionals like architect

E. Townsend Mix Edward Townsend Mix (May 13, 1831 – September 2, 1890) was an Americans, American architect of the Gilded Age who designed many buildings in the Midwestern United States. His career was centered in Milwaukee, Wisconsin, and many of his design ...

. Under Pastor Judson Titsworth, Plymouth aimed to be a "people's church," ministering to the community with social programs like the Third Ward Mission, a boy's club, adult education, a reading room, and the Milwaukee Rescue Mission. with In 1888 Plymouth undertook the building of a new church, the frame of the current building at Van Buren and Wells. Member Mix designed a

Richardsonian Romanesque Richardsonian Romanesque is a style of Romanesque Revival architecture named after the American architect Henry Hobson Richardson (1838–1886). The revival style incorporates 11th and 12th century southern French, Spanish, and Italian Romanesque ...

-styled building. To serve the community, the building included a 1200-seat auditorium, reading rooms, a parlor, classrooms, a gym and dining facilities. Typical of the style, the foundation is rough limestone, many openings are round-arched, and chimneys were tall and ornate. (A photo of the old building is at the MPL link below.) The large corner tower was not typical of the style, and the design was criticized. By 1912, many in the congregation were moving and the congregation moved to a new building near modern UW-Milwaukee. They sold the building to the Scottish Rite Masons. These masons initially called the building ''the Consistory Building'', for the Consistory - a body within the Scottish Rite organization. Later, that body's pre-eminence declined, the building was shared equally by other Scottish Rite bodies, and the building was called the ''Scottish Rite Masonic Center''. The building worked well for the masons, but by the 1930s they needed more space. When other plans fell through, they hired

Herbert Tullgren Herbert Wallace Tullgren (July 5, 1889 - February 23, 1944) was an American architect active from the 1910s-1944. He was centered in Milwaukee, Wisconsin, but his work can be seen in different locations throughout Wisconsin, such as Whitefish Ba ...

, a Mason himself, to design an overhaul of the exterior. Tullgren re-clad the old building with a new roof and Art Deco styling. The facade was extensively remodeled including the removal of chimneys flanking the corner dome. It covers an entire city block and contains approximately . It has a chapel, an auditorium, a reception hall and a pub. In addition to Masonic purposes, it is used as a rental wedding and banquet hall. As membership and general needs changed over the past decade, the building was eventually put up for sale and sold to a development company in October 2017 closing a 106-year history of Scottish Rite occupancy and ownership of the historic site.

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* {{National Register of Historic Places Art Deco architecture in Wisconsin Masonic buildings completed in 1936 Buildings and structures in Milwaukee Masonic buildings in Wisconsin Clubhouses on the National Register of Historic Places in Wisconsin National Register of Historic Places in Milwaukee