The Benevolent and Protective Order of Elks is an American fraternal order founded in 1868, originally as a social club in NYC.

The Elks Club Lodge No. 501 is a historic Elks Lodge located at Joplin, Jasper County, Missouri. It was built in 1904–1905, and is a two-story brick and stone hip roofed building designed in Colonial Revival / Georgian Revival architectural styles. It measures 102 feet by 62 feet and features a columned portico flanked by two slightly projecting bays accentuated by limestone quoins.[2]: 2 

It was listed on the National Register of Historic Places in 1985.

Joplin Lodge #501 was instituted May 15, 1899, and remains committed to serving the needs of the "four-state" area. As members of the premier charitable organization in our nation, we offer scholarships to area High School Seniors, support our Veterans, and participate in the other charitable programs of the Grand Lodge. When the May 22, 2011 tornado struck Joplin, the Elks Lodge was among the first buildings to be destroyed. Of the six people who took refuge in the building, only one survived. For Mike Sweeton and other members of Joplin Elks Lodge 501, the property on West 26th Street became hallowed ground.

K.D. Stafford, paranormal investigator and inventor, was demonstrating one of his spirit boxes outside the facility at The First Haunted History Paracon Oct 7-8, 2022. He picked up a young male voice looking for his mommy. He turned the box off and went back inside.

These google images are the original Lodge, the destroyed Lodge, and the new Lodge.