6. The Mechanics Temple used to house the exclusive Lincoln Club
At 65 Putnam Avenue lies the Mechanics Temple, which previously housed the exclusive Lincoln Club, Built between 1886 and 1889, the Queen Anne-style masonry building was built of Roman brick and brownstone with terracotta ornaments. The building is notable for its four distinctive facade arches, and it was added to the National Register of Historic Places in 1983. It was designed by Rudolphe L. Daus, who designed the 13th Regiment Armory in Brooklyn and rowhouses and libraries in Brooklyn.
According to the Landmarks Preservation Committee report, the building is “one of a number of large, sumptuous clubhouses erected in Brooklyn in the last two decades of the 19th century, and it is one of the few to retain its architectural integrity.” The Lincoln Club was founded in 1878 by a group of Clinton Hill residents who wanted to advance the interests of the Republican party, though it dropped its political activities a year later. The club opened in the building in 1889, establishing stringent rules for admission and member behavior. Only 400 men could become members, and each paid an admission fee of $50 and annual dues of $40. The Club was dissolved in 1931, though the building still remains as it was in the late 1800s.