Main Street

The west side of Main Street has a number of mid- to late nineteenth-century structures. Among these, the two-story brick Masonic Hall (1862), 2286 Main Street, commands a prominent spot at the intersection of Main and Nixon streets and Genoa Lane. The facade is a simple and symmetrical gabled rectangle; two doorways covered with iron shutters pierce the first story. A one-story, full-length porch, supported by three square posts, shelters the entrances. The one-story stone building (1870s), 2284 Main Street, abutting the Masonic Hall was built for use as a store and now contains an antique shop. The walls of rough-cut stone rise to a false front. Large iron shutters protect the entrances on the first floor. The wooden cornice along the roofline and the porch covering the first floor are recent additions. The brick of the Genoa Bar (1850s), 2282 Main Street, was made in a kiln north of town. The false front rises to a decorative brick cornice that hides the building's gable roof. A shed-roofed porch resting on four square posts protects three pairs of French doors, of which the central pair leads into the bar. The wood-frame addition to the north of the bar is a recently built structure intended to give the bar an “old West” look. Despite some modern alterations, this block remains the oldest and best preserved in Genoa.