Our final lodge for this Midwestern chapter of our project is located in Upper Sandusky, Ohio, and its 20-mile distance only seemed like a stone's throw away from the Marion lodge. Positioned at the top of a hill near the edge of downtown, No. 83 has been a fixture in the town since the 19th century. 

While in town, we saw some area claims-to-fame, including the courthouse where the opening scenes of The Shawshank Redemption were filmed and a spring from which Charles Dickens once drank. The Dickens spring has since been covered by a retaining wall on the Elks property, marked boldly by the painted words “Hello Bill”; the Elks’ national greeting.

While the lodge’s location has remained the same, the look of it changed when it was remodeled several decades ago, keeping only the footprint of the original clubroom. Home of five district deputies, this split-level lodge has been particularly active in the organization’s state level and, by opening its doors seven days a week, is active locally as well.

After concluding our visit, we took some time off to get an oil change and, while the tires on the van cooled off, examined the stories and pictures we have collected in a little over a month’s time. Our perceptions of the BPOE—both as an organization and a community—have changed significantly, but our interest has not waned in the least. And while the eventual scope is as daunting as our pending film processing bill, we can’t wait to see what we have so far.

Rachel Gargiulo is a current student of the Museum School. Matthew Gamber (MFA '04) is currently Editor-in-Chief of Big RED and Shiny, an online arts journal for the visual arts in New England.