Saturn Club is a private social

club Club may refer to: Arts, entertainment, and media * ''Club'' (magazine) * Club, a '' Yie Ar Kung-Fu'' character * Clubs (suit), a suit of playing cards * Club music * "Club", by Kelsea Ballerini from the album '' kelsea'' Brands and enterprise ...

, founded in 1885, in Buffalo in

Erie County, New York Erie County is a county along the shore of Lake Erie in western New York State. As of the 2020 census, the population was 954,236. The county seat is Buffalo, which makes up about 28% of the county's population. Both the county and Lake Eri ...

that currently operates out of an

National Register of Historic Places The National Register of Historic Places (NRHP) is the United States federal government's official list of districts, sites, buildings, structures and objects deemed worthy of preservation for their historical significance or "great artist ...

-listed building at 977 Delaware Ave. in

Buffalo, New York Buffalo is the second-largest city in the U.S. state of New York (behind only New York City) and the seat of Erie County. It is at the eastern end of Lake Erie, at the head of the Niagara River, and is across the Canadian border from Sou ...

History

In 1885, The Saturn Club was founded by thirteen young men who wanted to congregate in a less formal setting than their father's traditional clubs. The first three founders were: Carlton Sprague, William F. Kip, and Francis Almy. They recruited the ten others including John B. Olmsted and Ansley Wilcox. They first congregated on Saturdays, hence the name, to socialize and play cards. Dues were a month, and the initiation fee was a chair. With a nod to the many " University Clubs" of the time, Saturn's founders patterned their board of directors after that of a small college, including: *Faculty *Dean *Registrar *Bursar Initially, the members met in a house owned by Sprague's grandfather but by 1886, the members decided to rent three rooms at the rear of a dwelling at 640 Main Street. In 1887, they moved to another rented house, a small Second Empire style home at 331 Delaware Avenue, before relocating to a larger,

Italianate The Italianate style was a distinct 19th-century phase in the history of Classical architecture. Like Palladianism and Neoclassicism, the Italianate style drew its inspiration from the models and architectural vocabulary of 16th-century Italia ...

cottage at 393 Delaware Avenue, opposite the Buffalo Club. In 1889, the club and its 150 members formally incorporated in Erie County and decided to construct their own building. By February, the directors had purchased a lot, 417 Delaware Avenue, at the southeast corner of Delaware Avenue and Edward Streets, not far from the Buffalo Club. On this site, they constructed a three-story brick building, designed by

Herbert C Burdett Herbert Channing Burdett (1855–1891) was an American architect trained in the office of Henry Hobson Richardson who, in a brief career, established himself as a successful designer of Shingle Style and Richardsonian Romanesque buildings in ...

of the Buffalo firm of Marling & Burdett. The building was dedicated on December 13, 1890. Beginning in the 1890s, the club added

baseball game Baseball is a bat-and-ball sport played between two teams of nine players each, taking turns batting and fielding. The game occurs over the course of several plays, with each play generally beginning when a player on the fielding tea ...

lecture A lecture (from Latin ''lēctūra'' “reading” ) is an oral presentation intended to present information or teach people about a particular subject, for example by a university or college teacher. Lectures are used to convey critical infor ...

costume ball A costume party (American English) or fancy dress party (other varieties of English) is a type of party, common in contemporary Western culture, in which many of the guests are dressed in costume, usually depicting a fictional or stock char ...

s, and

vaudeville Vaudeville (; ) is a theatrical genre of variety entertainment born in France at the end of the 19th century. A vaudeville was originally a comedy without psychological or moral intentions, based on a comical situation: a dramatic compositio ...

shows to the club's programming. A library was initiated and debates were held on the important issues of the time. These debates often included participation with other area clubs, including the Buffalo Club, the University Club, and the Garret Club. In 1900, then Gov.

Theodore Roosevelt Theodore Roosevelt Jr. ( ; October 27, 1858 – January 6, 1919), often referred to as Teddy or by his initials, T. R., was an American politician, statesman, soldier, conservationist, naturalist, historian, and writer who served as the 26t ...

visited and had dinner at the club during his visit to Buffalo. In 1985, women were officially admitted as full members, however, in the immediate years preceding the change, women had full use of the club, through a relationship with the Garret Club, as well as through their spouses or other connections.

1922 building

In December 1920, only 30 years after the original buildings dedication, a new building committee suggested selling the existing clubhouse and erecting a new building elsewhere. Club member

Duane Lyman Duane Lyman (1886–1966) was an architect based in Buffalo, New York, known for his prolific career which included 100 school buildings, many churches, and numerous large homes both in the city and suburban communities. At the time of his death, ...

, of Bley & Lyman, was asked to develop new plans for a clubhouse along with Ralph Plumb, a club member. The club purchased property at 977 Delaware Avenue and approved Lyman's plans for the present day Tudor style building, by February 1921. On October 21, 1921, the cornerstone of the new building was laid and exactly one year later, on October 21, 1922, the clubhouse was dedicated. The

Tudor Revival Tudor Revival architecture (also known as mock Tudor in the UK) first manifested itself in domestic architecture in the United Kingdom in the latter half of the 19th century. Based on revival of aspects that were perceived as Tudor architectur ...

structure featured an enclosed open courtyard. ''Note:'' This includes an
''Accompanying eight photographs''
/ref> By completion, the project ended up totaling . The building was listed on the

in 2005.

Renovations

In 2002, the club underwent a $1 million () renovation that added two

squash court Squash is a racket-and-ball sport played by two or four players in a four-walled court with a small, hollow, rubber ball. The players alternate in striking the ball with their rackets onto the playable surfaces of the four walls of the court. Th ...

s as well as general upgrades to its athletic facilities. The Saturn Club already had one international regulation doubles court and two singles courts. The new courts allow the club to host competitions. The other renovation work includes improvements to both the men's and women's locker rooms and the addition of exercise equipment. Hamilton Houston Lownie Architects, PC designed the additions and Integrated Realty & Development Corp. served as construction manager. In 2014, the interior was remodeled by Michael Donnelly Interiors and focused on two rooms: The Delaware Room and The Red Room. The Red Room features a fireplace and is accented by dark wood paneling along with a rich red covering. Panel draperies with 12-inch-wide, red fabric bands were added to frame the leaded windows. New furniture,

chandelier A chandelier (; also known as girandole, candelabra lamp, or least commonly suspended lights) is a branched ornamental light fixture designed to be mounted on ceilings or walls. Chandeliers are often ornate, and normally use incandescent ...

covers and brown paisley carpeting with a red background were also added. The Delaware Room has a more clean look showcasing the oversized historic wall panels that depict seaside life. The fabrics are striped with blues and

beige Beige is variously described as a pale sandy fawn color, a grayish tan, a light-grayish yellowish brown, or a pale to grayish yellow. It takes its name from French, where the word originally meant natural wool that has been neither bleached nor ...

s that are intended to complement the murals.

Prohibition

During the early years of

Prohibition Prohibition is the act or practice of forbidding something by law; more particularly the term refers to the banning of the manufacture, storage (whether in barrels or in bottles), transportation, sale, possession, and consumption of alcoholic ...

, Saturn had a bar and a bartender, but did not provide drinks. On advice from its lawyers, members could keep items, unquestioned, in private

locker A locker is a small, usually narrow storage compartment. They are commonly found in dedicated cabinets, very often in large numbers, in various public places such as locker rooms, workplaces, elementary schools,middle and high schools, transp ...

s and order all the ingredients for a drink, without spirits, to be passed into the club's rooms through a small

sliding door A sliding door is a type of door which opens horizontally by sliding, usually horizontal to a wall. Sliding doors can be mounted either on top of a track below or be suspended from a track above. Some types slide into a space in the parallel w ...

. On August 29, 1923, Federal agents under

William J. Donovan William Joseph "Wild Bill" Donovan (January 1, 1883 – February 8, 1959) was an American soldier, lawyer, intelligence officer and diplomat, best known for serving as the head of the Office of Strategic Services (OSS), the precursor to the Bu ...

, who himself was a member of the club, raided both the Saturn Club and the

Country Club of Buffalo A country is a distinct part of the world, such as a state, nation, or other political entity. It may be a sovereign state or make up one part of a larger state. For example, the country of Japan is an independent, sovereign state, whil ...

. Agents found at least sixty quarts of

whisky Whisky or whiskey is a type of distilled alcoholic beverage made from fermented grain mash. Various grains (which may be malted) are used for different varieties, including barley, corn, rye, and wheat. Whisky is typically aged in wooden ca ...

, a similar amount of gin, five gallons of

moonshine Moonshine is high-proof liquor that is usually produced illegally. The name was derived from a tradition of creating the alcohol during the nighttime, thereby avoiding detection. In the first decades of the 21st century, commercial dist ...

, bottles of

champagne Champagne (, ) is a sparkling wine originated and produced in the Champagne wine region of France under the rules of the appellation, that demand specific vineyard practices, sourcing of grapes exclusively from designated places within it, ...

vermouth Vermouth (, ) is an aromatized fortified wine, flavoured with various botanicals (roots, barks, flowers, seeds, herbs, and spices) and sometimes colored. The modern versions of the beverage were first produced in the mid- to late 18th cent ...

, and other liquors inside the organization's lockers, according to court documents. The chair of the club's house committee told reporters the night of the raid that the liquor “evidently was smuggled in by bootlegging employees of the club.” A listing of those charged with

dry law Prohibition is the act or practice of forbidding something by law; more particularly the term refers to the banning of the manufacture, storage (whether in barrels or in bottles), transportation, sale, possession, and consumption of alcoholic be ...

violations was published in the newspaper After the names were published, the members and the club had little option but to agree to a settlement and do away with the sliding doors.

Notable members

Notable former members of Saturn Club include: *Robert B. Adam, founder of AM&A's department store * John J. Albright, industrialist, philanthropist, and namesake of the Albright Knox Art Gallery *Owen Augspurger, civic leader *George K. Birge, owner of M. H. Birge & Sons Co., director of the 1901 Pan-American Exposition, and president of

Pierce-Arrow Motor Car Company The Pierce-Arrow Motor Car Company was an American motor vehicle manufacturer based in Buffalo, New York, which was active from 1901 to 1938. Although best known for its expensive luxury cars, Pierce-Arrow also manufactured commercial trucks ...

*Lawrence Bell, aerospace entrepreneur, founder of

Bell Aircraft The Bell Aircraft Corporation was an American aircraft manufacturer, a builder of several types of fighter aircraft for World War II but most famous for the Bell X-1, the first supersonic aircraft, and for the development and production of many ...

* Edward H. Butler, Jr., publisher of the

Buffalo Evening News ''The Buffalo News'' is the daily newspaper of the Buffalo–Niagara Falls metropolitan area, located in downtown Buffalo, New York. It recently sold its headquarters to Uniland Development Corp. It was for decades the only paper fully owned by W ...

* Stephen Merrell Clement, president of Marine Bank *William J. Conners II, publisher of the

Buffalo Courier-Express The ''Buffalo Courier-Express'' was a morning newspaper in Buffalo, New York. It ceased publication on September 19, 1982. History The ''Courier-Express'' was created in 1926 by a merger of the ''Buffalo Daily Courier'' and the ''Buffalo Morning ...

*William J. Conners III, publisher of the

, soldier, lawyer, intelligence officer and diplomat *

Robert Donner Robert Donner (April 27, 1931 – June 8, 2006) was an American television and film actor. Early life and career Donner was born in New York City and raised in New Jersey, Michigan and Texas. He spent four years in the United States Navy ...

, Donner Steel Company *

John T. Elfvin John Thomas Elfvin (June 30, 1917 – January 6, 2009) was an American lawyer and jurist who served as a United States district judge of the United States District Court for the Western District of New York. Early life and education Born in M ...

, federal judge * E.B. Green, Jr., architect * George A. Forman ■ * Burt P. Flickinger, Jr., entrepreneur, philanthropist, organizer of the 1993 World University Games *William A. Gardner ■ *Bradley J. Gaylord ■ *

Anson Goodyear Anson Conger Goodyear (June 20, 1877 – April 24, 1964) was an American manufacturer, businessman, author, and philanthropist and member of the Goodyear family. He is best known as one of the founding members and first president of the Museum of ...

, founder and first president of the

Museum of Modern Art The Museum of Modern Art (MoMA) is an art museum located in Midtown Manhattan, New York City, on 53rd Street (Manhattan), 53rd Street between Fifth Avenue, Fifth and Sixth Avenues. It plays a major role in developing and collecting modern art, ...

, president of Great Southern Lumber, director of

Paramount Pictures Paramount Pictures Corporation is an American film and television production company, production and Distribution (marketing), distribution company and the main namesake division of Paramount Global (formerly ViacomCBS). It is the fifth-oldes ...

* Charles W. Goodyear, founder and head of numerous rail lines *George F. Goodyear, board president of the

Buffalo Museum of Science The Buffalo Museum of Science is a science museum located at Martin Luther King Jr. Park in Buffalo, New York, United States, northeast of the downtown district, near the Kensington Expressway. The historic building was designed by August Ese ...

, founder of

WGRZ-TV WGRZ (channel 2) is a television station in Buffalo, New York, United States, affiliated with NBC and owned by Tegna Inc. The station's studios are located on Delaware Avenue in downtown Buffalo, and its transmitter is located on Warner Hill Ro ...

, Saturn Club historian * William B. Hoyt, politician *

Thomas B. Lockwood Thomas Brown Lockwood (February 7, 1873 – August 19, 1947) was an American lawyer, banker, politician, and philanthropist from Western New York. Early life Lockwood was born in Buffalo, New York on February 7, 1873 and grew up in his parents' ...

, candidate for Lt. Governor in 1914 *

, architect ■ *Edward A Kent, owner of Flint & Kent *Irvine J. Kittinger, Jr., proprietor of the

Kittinger Company The Kittinger Company is an American maker of traditional colonial reproduction furniture that was founded in 1866. Today Kittinger is known for the high-quality furniture it produces that is featured prominently in the White House. History The ...

Northrup R. Knox Northrup Rand Knox (December 24, 1928 – July 23, 1998), was a Buffalo banker, sportsman, and community leader who, along with his brother Seymour H. Knox III, Seymour, brought the National Hockey League to Buffalo, New York, as founders of the ...

, co-founder of the

Buffalo Sabres The Buffalo Sabres are a professional ice hockey team based in Buffalo, New York. The Sabres compete in the National Hockey League (NHL) as a member of the Atlantic Division (NHL), Atlantic Division in the Eastern Conference (NHL), Eastern Conf ...

* Seymour H. Knox, businessman ■ * Seymour H. Knox III, co-founder of the

*Dr. Baldwin Mann ■ * Edward McGinley III,

Wharton Wharton may refer to: Academic institutions * Wharton School of the University of Pennsylvania * Wharton County Junior College * Paul R. Wharton High School * Wharton Center for Performing Arts, at Michigan State University Places * Wharton, Che ...

graduate *

John R. Oishei John R. Oishei (18 January 1886 – 27 January 1968) was a businessman who founded Trico products and became one of Buffalo’s wealthiest citizens and philanthropists. Early life John R. Oishei was born in Buffalo in 1886 to Charles Humbert Ois ...

, founder of

Trico Trico is an American company that specializes in windshield wipers. Trico, then known as Tri-Continental Corporation, invented the windshield wiper blade in 1917. Its original Trico Plant No. 1 is listed on the National Register of Historic P ...

* John Olmsted, landscape architect, nephew and adopted son of

Frederick Law Olmsted Frederick Law Olmsted (April 26, 1822August 28, 1903) was an American landscape architect, journalist, social critic, and public administrator. He is considered to be the father of landscape architecture in the USA. Olmsted was famous for co-d ...

Roswell Park Roswell Park (May 4, 1852 – February 15, 1914) was an American physician, best known for starting Gratwick Research Laboratory in 1898, which is now known as Roswell Park Comprehensive Cancer Center. In 1900, the Gratwick family of Buffalo help ...

, founder of

Roswell Park Comprehensive Cancer Center Roswell Park Comprehensive Cancer Center is a cancer research and treatment center located in Buffalo, New York. Founded by surgeon Roswell Park in 1898, the center was the first in the United States to specifically focus on cancer research. The c ...

*Ralph Plumb ■ *Theodore M. Pomeroy ■ * Peter A. Porter, Jr. ■ * Ansley Wilcox Sawyer, industrialist ■ * George F. Rand, president of

Marine Midland Bank Marine Midland Bank was an American bank formerly headquartered in Buffalo, New York, with several hundred branches throughout the state of New York. In 1998, branches extended to Pennsylvania. It was acquired by HSBC in 1980, and changed its na ...

*Ira G. Ross, scientist, engineer, leader of Calspan *Dexter P. Rumsey, tannery owner, real estate entrepreneur *William G. Schoellkopf ■ *Ralph H. Sidway ■ *

Frank St. John Sidway Frank St. John Sidway (December 15, 1869 – January 17, 1938), was a Buffalo, New York lawyer and National Guard leader. He also served as chairman of the Erie County Republican Party, and was a candidate for lieutenant governor in 1914. Earl ...

, lawyer and National Guard leader and candidate for Lt. Governor in 1914 *John E. Selkirk ■ *Clarence Sidway ■ * Carlton Sprague, lawyer, politician, and chancellor of the

University of Buffalo The State University of New York at Buffalo, commonly called the University at Buffalo (UB) and sometimes called SUNY Buffalo, is a public university, public research university with campuses in Buffalo, New York, Buffalo and Amherst, New Yor ...

*Harlan J. Swift, president of Erie County Savings Bank *George P. Urban, miller, entrepreneur and director of numerous Buffalo corporations *Henry Z. Urban, publisher of the

Buffalo News ''The Buffalo News'' is the daily newspaper of the Buffalo–Niagara Falls metropolitan area, located in downtown Buffalo, New York. It recently sold its headquarters to Uniland Development Corp. It was for decades the only paper fully owned by W ...

* James D. Warren, publisher of the Buffalo Commercial Advertiser *Shelton Weed ■ * Ansley Wilcox, scholar, Oxford graduate, lawyer, and civil service reform commissioner *Harry D. Williams ■ *Seymour White ■ ■ ''Indicates that the individual was named in the newspaper during the 1923 raid''One Hundred Years, 1985, George F. Goodyear, Partners Press

References

External links

Saturn Club - U.S. National Register of Historic Places on Waymarking.com

{{National Register of Historic Places in New York Clubhouses on the National Register of Historic Places in New York (state) Buildings and structures completed in 1922 Buildings and structures in Buffalo, New York National Register of Historic Places in Buffalo, New York