Alameda Lodge No. 1015 of the Benevolent and Protective Order of Elks was formed by 25 Alameda residents who were members of Oakland Lodge No. 171. The Lodge was instituted on March 17, 1906 and it received its charter from the Grand Lodge on July 20, 1906. The original Lodge building which the members built on September 27, 1908, still stands behind the southeast corner of this building. This current Lodge building was designed by Lodge member Charles E.J. Rogers, Exaulted (sic) Ruler W.O. Smith laid the cornerstone on October 17, 1909.
Inside the cornerstone is a brass box containing Lodge artifacts from the period the building was dedicated on May 15, 1910. Thomas Lennon, later Justice of the California Supreme Court, delivered the dedicatory oration. The members held their first regular meeting in the Lodge room the next day.
One unique feature of the building is the Tiffany glass dome in the Lodge Room on the upper floor. The dome depicts an Elk superimposed on a clock set at 11 o'clock, the time at which Elks recall and toast to their absent members.
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