Council Lodge No. 979 and Council-Hillside: Two Histories, One Number
Council Lodge No. 979 was chartered in Richmond Hill in 1921, but its independent history remains sparsely documented in the available research. Follow its 1963 consolidation with Hillside, the combined Council-Hillside Lodge No. 894, and the later union that carried both institutional histories into Springfield Gardens Lodge No. 1057.
Hillside Lodge No. 894: The Woodhaven Lodge That Outgrew Its Temple
Hillside Lodge No. 894 began with about thirty charter members and reported nearly five hundred by 1920. Its rapid growth transformed a young Woodhaven institution, forced an enlargement of its temple and brought members together for a dinner with name cards. Follow Hillside’s beginnings in Brooklyn Manor, its union with Council Lodge and its lineage’s continuation in Springfield Gardens.
The Hillside Temple in Woodhaven
Hillside Lodge began building its Woodhaven temple in 1913, using a member’s architectural firm and a neighborhood fundraising campaign. Within seven years, the lodge needed more space. Explore the building’s windowless lodge room, its connection to Arthur E. Wenige’s Astoria work, and its later life as Queens Tabernacle—with Masonic carvings still visible on 96th Street.