Knights of Pythias Building

334 NE 3rd Street  |  Built 1886

Stand on the NE Third Street sidewalk in front of the Knights of Pythias Building in downtown
McMinnville and look up at one of the city’s oldest surviving structures. Constructed in 1886 during the
town’s energetic early growth, this square brick building features a five-bayed façade with graceful
Italianate touches. One-over-one double-hung sash windows on the second-floor rise in segmental
arches beneath continuous labels. Stucco now covers much of the front, yet original brick remains
exposed on the west elevation. Modern storefronts line the ground floor, blending seamlessly with
neighboring buildings.

In its earliest years, Shoppers stepped inside to the rich scent of coffee beans and spices, the creak of
wooden floors underfoot, and the friendly banter of clerks helping families stock their pantries or hunt
for practical treasures. In an era when every nickel counted, locals relied on the store’s dependable
shelves and secondhand offerings.

In October 1894, the Knights of Pythias formed Diana Lodge No. 63 in McMinnville. They gathered in
the spirit of Friendship, Charity, and Benevolence, recording their earliest meetings in leather-bound
minutes books, which survive today. The lodge made the upper floor of this building its permanent
home around 1912. Diana Lodge No. 63 still occupies the upstairs hall today, continuing more than 130
years of fraternal tradition.

Over the decades the ground floor has featured a colorful parade of local businesses, including a meat
market, physicians’ offices, a boot repair shop, the beloved Third Street Books, and the McMinnville
Antiques Mall, which once again provides shoppers with secondhand offerings like those sold in this
very space during the building’s early years. As you pause before its brick façade, the Knights of Pythias
Building quietly reminds passersby of the generations who built McMinnville.

For images of the the property, and further details, check out the link below:

Historic Resources Inventory Documentation