Right in front of you is a striking three-story brick building with elaborate white-trimmed windows and two large green onion domes on the roof-just look for the building that looks like it teleported straight out of an Arabian Nights story!
Picture this: It’s 1908, and you’re strolling down Sabattus Street, when suddenly you glimpse a building unlike any other in Lewiston-its flat roof is crowned by twin onion domes, and its front is bursting with Moorish flair, from pointed arches to delicate terra cotta filigree. This is the Kora Temple, the pride and joy of the Shriners, a group known not just for their fezzes and parades, but for their immense charity-imagine hospitals for children rising from their efforts, where little ones are treated for free. The Shriners started meeting here in 1908, after years in a humble wooden lodge, finally investing a whopping $100,000-more money than you’d want to fit in your pocket, I promise! Designed by George M. Coombs, this ornate masterpiece soon became the most mysterious looking spot in town.
But if you think the outside is magical, wait till you peek inside in your imagination. Murals stretch from floor to ceiling, painted by a Shriner named Harry Cochrane, who spent years covering the walls with scenes of dazzling deserts, mystic rivers, and legends from Arabic history-talk about commitment! Golden filigree sparkles in the light, and Tiffany chandeliers hang overhead, swaying whenever a draft sneaks in. Restored in the 1970s, this building has watched generations come and go, standing guard as a monument to the Shriners’ mission and a swirl of architectural intrigue. So, next time you see a building with onion domes, remember: in Lewiston, it’s not a mirage-it’s the marvelous Kora Temple!
