A.  In 1859, the Balsar House was constructed by a local butcher named Joseph Olmstead.  He built a magnificent hotel for his new bride, Eliza Balsar, a widow, who was the niece of the first Governor of Calif., Peter Burnett.
     B.  There was three stories of brick, and walls 2 ft. thick.  It had a 1st floor restaurant and lounge.
There were guest rooms on the 2nd floor, accessed by a veranda porch that ran the perimeter of the building.
On the 3rd floor was a dance hall which required a good warm-up for dancing after negotiating three flights of stairs.
     C.  After a decade, the business fell on hard times, and in 1870, it was sold to a businessman named Joseph Whiteside.
     D.  Whiteside, in what must have been a huge undertaking, had the top two floors of the building removed, and built a barrel-vaulted ceiling under a gable roof.
By doing all this, he created a most impressive hall—said to be one of the finest in the state.
It had a stage, dressing rooms.  On the stage, there was an orchestra pit, box seats, two elevated, sloped seatings rising to the rear. There were some seats still in building.  upstairs, there was a heavy stage curtain that would be raised by hand that portrayed a young beautiful girl in a blue dress afloat in a boat on a blue lake.
Traveling troupes of actors and musicians would bring entertainment to the town on a weekly basis.
     E.  By 1877 the hall proved financially unsuccessful and was sold to partners Harmon Sornberger and William Lane.
It was converted into a mercantile store which also housed a post office, and Wells Fargo stage stop.
     F.  In 1881, the building was bought by the Odd Fellows.  They we concerned about the threat of the town burning down since the town had already ...threat having burned the town already several times. The bell would also toll for many funerals, as the procession would make its way down Main St., the bell-ringer would call the people to the gathering.
The floor was built of thick sugar pine boards laminated together attached to a floor joist system, supported mid-span on metal leaf-type springs under a brick wall under. These springs are now nonfunctional and flat after well over a hundred years of dancing and the “Be Jazzed” fitness classes.
     G.  After a long delay in construction, the first meeting in their new hall took place on June 22, 1889.
     H.  In 1930 the bell tower was condemned and the bell removed and placed in town. It is still used for fire call.  It was later moved to a historical display--now in front of the firehouse.
     I.  Also in the early 1930s a dining hall and kitchen was added with volunteer labor. This now allowed for dinners to be offered for the weekly dances said to have been served late during intermission giving the crowd a second wind to continue
late into the night.
     J. The improvements have continued over the years both structural and cosmetic. All improvements have been either paid for from the coffers of the lodge, money raised by fundraisers, or by the generosity of organizations and individuals that realize the importance of this cornerstone of our community.
The brick walkway in front was a multi-sponsored project involving Oddfellows, Native Sons Of The GW, Music on the divide, and the public with a buy a brick donation program.
The covered entry was added in early 1990s to alleviate the problem of standing under a waterfall while trying to unlock the door and prevent the threat to life and limb from th avalanche of snow sliding off roof and falling some 30 plus feet upon ones head.
     The last time the hall had exterior paint was by a donation of $ 10,000 from Liela Mather, a local resident with the means, need for a tax write-off, and a desire to improve the aesthetics of the downtown. This was some thirty years ago and we wish she was still here.
     The Rotary has stepped up big recently with receiving grants through their organization to install acoustic improvements to the walls of the main hall and the new sidewalk and railing for ease and safer entry.
     We are currently raising funds to rebuild our kitchen and hopefully make it a functional commercial kitchen along with refurbished restrooms.

     Odd History
     Oldest written record of Odd Fellows is from 1745 in England but it is widely believed that its origin goes back to much earlier times.  In 1819 in Baltimore the first charter of Odd Fellows was instituted in the United States by Thomas Wildey.  Eventually many other lodges popped up throughout the east. 
     The gold rush in 1848 brought a huge migration of people from all over the country and the world for that matter. Many of these people were “odd fellows”. There were attempts to establish a first lodge in SF in 1848 but SF was in such transition with most people on their way to the gold fields. It wasn't until many returned with or without success that the first California lodge was established on September 9, 1849 in SF.
     Two years, later a Texas Odd Fellow, Albert Winn, created the Sacramento Lodge #2.  In later years, he created The Native Sons Of The Golden West, a Fraternal Order dedicated to the preservation of California History.  Georgetown Parlor # 91 (NSGW) still meets here today.
     Lodges sprung up throughout the state prevalent in cities but well represented throughout the mining towns throughout the foothills. We are Memento Lodge # 37.
     In the beginning of many mining towns an unruliness prevailed. The Odd Fellows are credited with helping to bring law and order to their communities.
     The mission of the OF is to improve and elevate the character of mankind by promoting the principals of Friendship, Love, and Truth, Faith, Hope, Charity, and Universal Justice.