The old Masonic Building in Springfield, around 1910, from The View Book of Springfield (1910).
The same building in 2012:
The old Masonic Building at the corner of State and Main was built around 1893, and was used by the Masons until 1924, when they built a new temple further up State Street. At some point, the ornate sandstone facade was replaced with a more bland brick appearance, and the clock tower was either moved back or replaced entirely. However, there is a small surviving part of the original facade – the sandstone arch above the doorway on the left-hand side is still there, complete with a Masonic symbol above it.
Far more interesting in the original!
I used to work in the building in the early 1990s (before Shawmut sold out), on the fifth floor on the far right hand corner in this shot, facing Main Street.
It’s amazing how they stripped this building of all its beauty unbelievable