Red Men Hall (Reading, Pennsylvania)

The Red Men Hall, later known as Century Hall, is a historic four-story building located in Reading, Pennsylvania.

Red Men Hall
U.S. National Register of Historic Places
The front of Red Men Hall
Show map of Pennsylvania Show map of the United States
Location	831 Walnut Street Reading, Pennsylvania 19601
Coordinates	40°20′21″N 75°55′21″W
Built	1900
Architect	Muhlenberg Brothers
Architectural style	American Craftsman, Renaissance Revival
NRHP reference No.	00000843[1]
Added to NRHP	July 27, 2000

Red Men

The building originally served as a meeting place for the local lodge or "wigwam" of the Improved Order of Red Men. The Red Men are a fraternal organization which imitate perceived Native American customs.^[2] However, this location consisted exclusively of German Americans.^[3] The organization had numerous chapters in Pennsylvania beginning in the nineteenth century.^[4]

Building

Constructed by the Red Men in 1900, the four-story brick facade building displays American Craftsman style architectural designs with Renaissance Revival elements, and includes decorative tiles by Henry Chapman Mercer. Later, the structure served as a rental hall called Century Hall, capitalizing on the building being built at the turn of the century.^[5]

The National Register of Historic Places added the structure in 2000. The building now consists of 15 low-income senior housing units.^[6]

See also

• GoggleWorks: Another Reading building designed by the Muhlenberg Brothers
• List of Improved Order of Red Men buildings and structures
• National Register of Historic Places listings in Berks County, Pennsylvania

References

1. "NPS Focus". National Register of Historic Places. National Park Service. Retrieved May 8, 2011.
2. Deloria, Philip J. (1998). Playing Indian. New Haven, Connecticut: Yale University Press. pp. 59–65.
3. Lindsay, George W; Conley, Charles C; Litchman, Charles H (1893). Official History of the Improved Order of Red Men. Boston: Fraternity Publishing Company. p. 334. Retrieved May 8, 2011.
4. Knobel, Dale T (1984). "To Be An American: Ethnicity, Fraternity and the Improved Order of Red Men". Journal of American Ethnic History.
5. Clouse, Carol (November 30, 1999). "National Register of Historic Places Registration Form: Red Men Hall". National Archives. National Register of Historic Places. Retrieved May 2, 2024.
6. "Joint Consolidated Plan FFY2004–FFY2008, Reading FFY2004 Acionn Plan, Berks FFY2004 Action Plan: Citizen's Summary" (PDF). Berks County Redevelopment Authority. 2004. p. 7. Retrieved May 8, 2011.