Building date: 1846
Original use:
Corner structures:
Mortar application and content: The mortar in the front wall appears to have been handled by at least two masons. At the bottom of the wall toward the door, the mortar, both horizontal and vertical, is drawn up to a sharp edge. The verticals are heavier at the lower horizontal and taper toward the upper horizontal. As one proceeds outward from the door and upward, the mortar becomes more flattened and the verticals do not touch the horizontals, but are cut off. No other building has been seen with similar mortar structure.
Types and uses of stones:
Types and choice of windows:
Structures with similar masonry details:
Masons who worked on building:
Unique features: Mortar tapered to a sharp outer edge.
Map views courtesy Google Maps. Address is Google Earth confirmed; 42°44'19.67"N 78°07'59.33"W. Current owner of record, Masonic Temple Association as of the 2019 Tax Roll.
Town of Warsaw and Wyoming County Maps
The mortar in the front wall appears to have been handled by at least two masons. At the bottom of the wall toward the door, the mortar, both horizontal and vertical, is drawn up to a sharp edge. The verticals are heavier at the lower horizontal and taper toward the upper horizontal. As one proceeds outward from the door and upward, the mortar becomes more flattened and the verticals do not touch the horizontals, but are cut off. No other building has been seen with similar mortar structure. Roudabush Survey page 120
Article by Richard Palmer
The old Warsaw Academy building at 73 South Main St., is the only cobblestone structure in the village of Warsaw. It is a Greek Revival public building that served as a school for Warsaw from 1846 until 1873. Chester Hurd built the Warsaw Academy from stones supplied by local boys from the East Hill for the price of a circus ticket.
The Western New-Yorker newspaper in April, 1846 stated the building was to be built of cobblestones 67 by 35 feet, two stories high, surmounted by a cupola for a bell. "It will contain three departments, one above and two below; sufficiently spacious to accommodate in all about two hundred scholars. This building, when completed, will be an ornament to our village an honor to the district, and a blessing to the children."
William Henry Merrill was seven years old when his family moved to Warsaw. He said in his reminiscences at the Centennial Celebration of the Town of Warsaw in 1903, "The academy on South Main street was then in the process of building, and the older boys utilized some of their vacation days and earned the price of a 'caravan,' circus ticket picking up cobblestones on the fruitful East Hill to help forward the work of construction."
The cobbles range from one-half to two inches in height and from two to four inches in length. The cobblestones are laid five to a quoin. Warsaw voters authorized $1,500 for its construction including windows six lights wide and three lights high. The cobbles range from one-half to two inches in height and from two to four inches in length. The cobblestones are laid five to a quoin. Warsaw voters authorized $1,500 for its construction including windows six lights wide and three lights high. The cupola has been removed.
The academy opened in November, 1846 with 70 students. This is the only cobblestone structure in the village. It is a Greek Revival public building that served as a school for Warsaw from 1846 until 1873 when it was discontinued. The building was sold to Ambrose Armstrong for $3,000 in 1877, but the school district foreclosed on the mortgage in 1881. In 1883 it became a canning factory for fruits and vegetables. It was sold to Warsaw Lodge No. 547, F. &A.M. (Masons) in 1907 for $2,500 who then rented it for use as a general store, machine shop and garage.
Eventually the Masons transformed it into their temple. In 1928 a new addition was built across the rear of the building for a bowling alley. The property is now owned by the Warsaw Temple Association and used for Masonic activities and social events. Richard Palmer blog.
The Cobblestone Society & Museum Tours:
Masonic Temple 18th Annual 06/03/1978
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National Register of Historic Places Registration
- "Cobblestone Masonry", 1966, Carl Schmidt: Name reference, Schoolhouse
- Page 205
¹ Photography courtesy Wyoming County Historian.
² Photography by Helen M. Hastings (1871-1953) from her photograph album, date unknown. Caption stated "Old court house, Warsaw, built of cobblestones. It was last used as academy". Courtesy Emily L. Knapp Museum And Library of Local History, Brockport NY.
³ Photography courtesy Martin and Sheila Wolfish.
4 Photography courtesy Richard Palmer.
