The House of the Temple is a Masonic temple in Washington, D.C., United States, which serves as the headquarters of the Scottish Rite of Freemasonry, Southern Jurisdiction, U.S.A. – It is located at the corner of 16th Street and S Street in the northwest section of the city. The full and official name of Supreme Council is “The Supreme Council (Mother Council of the World) of the Inspectors General Knights Commander of the House of the Temple of Solomon of the Thirty-third degree of the Ancient and Accepted Scottish Rite of Freemasonry of the Southern Jurisdiction of the United States of America.”
The temple was modeled after the Mausoleum of Maussollos and designed by John Russell Pope. Ground was broken on May 31, 1911 and the cornerstone was laid on October 18, 1911. The building was dedicated four years later on October 18, 1915.
An alcove in the temple holds the remains of Confederate general and former Sovereign Grand Commander Albert Pike. Pike was the author of an 1871 book called Morals and Dogma of the Ancient and Accepted Scottish Rite of Freemasonry, a voluminous tome that describes the 33 ranks of Freemasonry in detail, the stories and teachings associated with each rank, the rituals connected to each rank, and other lodge proceedings. The temple also holds one of the largest collections of Masonic books and minutes, with over 250,000 titles in its library.
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