Dedication of the Masonic Hall in the Batesville Institute
Framed and mounted lithograph of the Dedication of the Masonic Hall in the Batesville Institute. The dedication for the building was held in 1858, but it burned in January of 1859 and was rebuilt in a simpler style without a cupola. The lithograph shows the names on the building: Masonic Hall, Town Hall, and I.O.O.F. A large number of Masons are on the platform outside the building with a large crowd gathered to hear the dedication. The building was used as the headquarters for the U.S. Army Quartermaster during the Federal occupation during the Civil War. There is a story that President Warren G. Harding, a Mason, found the print in an Ohio junk shop and returned it back to Mt. Zion Lodge #10. It was then restored and framed by Dr. Wesley Ketz. The lithograph is part of the Sheffield Collection at Old Independence Regional Museum.
