Thanks. I know where that was. I’ll list the Sprague, and you can help with dates/history. I can see why it would have had superior sightlines to someplace with a row of columns down the middle.
The only candidate I see is 133-141 N Clark, where three wooden storefronts were replaced by the brick storefronts that are still there. The central storefront, which is labeled ‘Shoes & Dry Goods’ on the 1907 map, was the largest and deepest of those, and could have held a small early theater. If anyone can confirm, we can list it.
Wherever the Scenic/Gem was, it fell in the gap between the 1907 map and the 1913 map, which is from November. I might be able to locate it by seeing what’s missing between those two.
This can’t be the Gem, since it was still open in 1916, and hasn’t been torn down. The opera house was a wooden thing that was right about where the chiropractor is now. It was gone sometime after 1913, but before 1916.
We might have to remove/revise some of the info. I did use the NRHP listing as one source. The manager or owner (or both?) at the time of the fire was a Mr. Birum.
This theater seems to have been built before the Lyric burned. In the same issue of the Mitchell County Press that covered the fire, there is an article about the local power company having refused to connect a new theater and some other businesses, due to a rate dispute. It’s possible it was intended to replace the Lyric?
The third floor was apparently called Fraternity Hall, and was used by various orders. Found a newspaper article about the fire: http://osage.advantage-preservation.com/viewer/?k=fire&t=26993&i=t&d=01011918-12311923&m=between&ord=k1&fn=mitchell_county_press_usa_iowa_osage_19201006_english_1&df=1&dt=10
Lyric cannot have been an aka, as it was destroyed in a fire in 1931. It was located one block south. Garner may well have been this one, and Electric clearly was at some point. Based on the cars we can see, this photo must date to sometime around 1910-1920.
The theater was closed in 1970 and remodeled very soon after into a pharmacy. It wasn’t called Tanny’s, but Tammy’s, and that wasn’t until 2003, when she purchased the business.
The original First National Bank building burned January 1901, so this was constructed shortly afterward. This theater must have been closed before 1930, as the Lyric, which was apparently one block to the south, was the only theater in town when it closed late that year.
Very lazy listing with no information. The address was 260 State St. This was located in a large building containing a bank and two storefronts, with an opera house on the second floor. It’s likely the theater operated in that space. The building was constructed sometime between 1900 and 1907, replacing a three-story opera house, perhaps after a fire.
The building is in decent shape today, although recently a huge chunk of the parapet on the south side was removed. This part of the ground floor was a Chinese restaurant, but it seems to have closed.
I very stupidly did not walk down to this block when I passed through, so I can’t supply a photo, but I have attached a Sanborn view showing the arrangement. The 1926 and 1934 maps are not available online, so I can’t say how long this might have operated.
The NRHP listing for the Avery makes reference to a Lyric at 4th and State. It’s possible that was a wooden building on the SW corner. The Lyric apparently closed in October 1930. Construction of the Avery began shortly thereafter.
What Cheer was a coal mining area, and has had a rather catastrophic decline. Downtown is quite attractive, but things are falling apart, and there are a lot of vacant lots. It was never very large, but I think it was the ‘market town’ for the area.
Pretty poor listing with almost no information. The address was 409 N Main, and this huge complex is obviously much older than 1929. It was built in 1893 by Azro Benjamin Franklin (A.B.F.) Hildreth who was a successful entrepreneur and member of the Iowa State Board of Education and the Iowa General Assembly.
It consisted of the Hildreth Hotel and the Hildreth Opera House. It had its own electric light plant, located behind the theater. The capacity listed may be from a later cinema remodeling, but the 1905 Cahn guide gives it a capacity of 1,000. It’s not clear when it began showing films, but it was destroyed in a fire in February 1935. The Charles theater replaced it on the same site. I’ve added a Sanborn view to show the plan.
Address is wrong, this is at 125 E Elmore St. About 2/3 of downtown is gone, but this is just hanging on. Looks like it was converted into a garage. Built sometime after 1914, but architecturally appears to be about that date.
SethG
commented about
Normandieon
Oct 19, 2023 at 9:33 am
Not sure why this is listed as demolished, the building is still there.
SethG
commented about
Theatreon
Oct 19, 2023 at 8:38 am
This must have been the 1913 Cozy, which would make this the Ahlers building. The other building does not appear on the 1914 map, but it’s so old-fashioned that it must be the second Cozy, from 1916. I may just add it. I think the newspaper article must have goofed on the address.
SethG
commented about
Theatreon
Oct 19, 2023 at 8:33 am
I’ve added a photo of this theater. There is another building at 109? Riverview that obviously was a theater, and looks very old. That is the building pictured in the article. I didn’t mess with the paywall, but 118 S 2nd is just a cruddy little shed building which houses the newspaper. This whole part of Iowa has uselessly bad streetview coverage, which makes it a little harder to figure things out.
SethG
commented about
Theatreon
Oct 19, 2023 at 8:23 am
Main became Federal. 119 is sort of hard to pin down. On the 1913 map, there is no 119, and it would have been a house. On later maps, 119 is part of what used to be Harriman’s Opera Hall. That building burned in 1945-6. The 1913 and 1921 maps show that part as a pool hall, but it was certainly large enough to have served as a theater. The opera house itself reportedly closed when the Windsor opened.
SethG
commented about
Theatreon
Oct 18, 2023 at 10:42 pm
Yes, Federal was Main. It’s crazy how many names changed. Delaware used to be Michigan, all the numbered streets dropped by 4 or 5 at one point, and before Federal was Main, it was Commercial. Thanks for the ID.
Thanks. I know where that was. I’ll list the Sprague, and you can help with dates/history. I can see why it would have had superior sightlines to someplace with a row of columns down the middle.
The only candidate I see is 133-141 N Clark, where three wooden storefronts were replaced by the brick storefronts that are still there. The central storefront, which is labeled ‘Shoes & Dry Goods’ on the 1907 map, was the largest and deepest of those, and could have held a small early theater. If anyone can confirm, we can list it.
Wherever the Scenic/Gem was, it fell in the gap between the 1907 map and the 1913 map, which is from November. I might be able to locate it by seeing what’s missing between those two.
This can’t be the Gem, since it was still open in 1916, and hasn’t been torn down. The opera house was a wooden thing that was right about where the chiropractor is now. It was gone sometime after 1913, but before 1916.
We might have to remove/revise some of the info. I did use the NRHP listing as one source. The manager or owner (or both?) at the time of the fire was a Mr. Birum.
Despite the sun shining right on the front, I was too dumb to get a picture of this during my 2009 visit.
This theater seems to have been built before the Lyric burned. In the same issue of the Mitchell County Press that covered the fire, there is an article about the local power company having refused to connect a new theater and some other businesses, due to a rate dispute. It’s possible it was intended to replace the Lyric?
The third floor was apparently called Fraternity Hall, and was used by various orders. Found a newspaper article about the fire: http://osage.advantage-preservation.com/viewer/?k=fire&t=26993&i=t&d=01011918-12311923&m=between&ord=k1&fn=mitchell_county_press_usa_iowa_osage_19201006_english_1&df=1&dt=10
Lyric cannot have been an aka, as it was destroyed in a fire in 1931. It was located one block south. Garner may well have been this one, and Electric clearly was at some point. Based on the cars we can see, this photo must date to sometime around 1910-1920.
The theater was closed in 1970 and remodeled very soon after into a pharmacy. It wasn’t called Tanny’s, but Tammy’s, and that wasn’t until 2003, when she purchased the business.
The original First National Bank building burned January 1901, so this was constructed shortly afterward. This theater must have been closed before 1930, as the Lyric, which was apparently one block to the south, was the only theater in town when it closed late that year.
Very lazy listing with no information. The address was 260 State St. This was located in a large building containing a bank and two storefronts, with an opera house on the second floor. It’s likely the theater operated in that space. The building was constructed sometime between 1900 and 1907, replacing a three-story opera house, perhaps after a fire.
The building is in decent shape today, although recently a huge chunk of the parapet on the south side was removed. This part of the ground floor was a Chinese restaurant, but it seems to have closed.
I very stupidly did not walk down to this block when I passed through, so I can’t supply a photo, but I have attached a Sanborn view showing the arrangement. The 1926 and 1934 maps are not available online, so I can’t say how long this might have operated.
The NRHP listing for the Avery makes reference to a Lyric at 4th and State. It’s possible that was a wooden building on the SW corner. The Lyric apparently closed in October 1930. Construction of the Avery began shortly thereafter.
What Cheer was a coal mining area, and has had a rather catastrophic decline. Downtown is quite attractive, but things are falling apart, and there are a lot of vacant lots. It was never very large, but I think it was the ‘market town’ for the area.
For what it’s worth, the 1909 map shows the opera house, but the 1916 map shows only stores on the ground floor.
It’s hard to imagine what would be considered wide in such a narrow building.
Built to replace the Hildreth theater which was previously located here, and burned in February 1935.
Pretty poor listing with almost no information. The address was 409 N Main, and this huge complex is obviously much older than 1929. It was built in 1893 by Azro Benjamin Franklin (A.B.F.) Hildreth who was a successful entrepreneur and member of the Iowa State Board of Education and the Iowa General Assembly.
It consisted of the Hildreth Hotel and the Hildreth Opera House. It had its own electric light plant, located behind the theater. The capacity listed may be from a later cinema remodeling, but the 1905 Cahn guide gives it a capacity of 1,000. It’s not clear when it began showing films, but it was destroyed in a fire in February 1935. The Charles theater replaced it on the same site. I’ve added a Sanborn view to show the plan.
Definitely open by the mid ‘20s. Before the marquee was installed, it had a metal canopy fringed with small glass panels.
Address is wrong, this is at 125 E Elmore St. About 2/3 of downtown is gone, but this is just hanging on. Looks like it was converted into a garage. Built sometime after 1914, but architecturally appears to be about that date.
Not sure why this is listed as demolished, the building is still there.
This must have been the 1913 Cozy, which would make this the Ahlers building. The other building does not appear on the 1914 map, but it’s so old-fashioned that it must be the second Cozy, from 1916. I may just add it. I think the newspaper article must have goofed on the address.
I’ve added a photo of this theater. There is another building at 109? Riverview that obviously was a theater, and looks very old. That is the building pictured in the article. I didn’t mess with the paywall, but 118 S 2nd is just a cruddy little shed building which houses the newspaper. This whole part of Iowa has uselessly bad streetview coverage, which makes it a little harder to figure things out.
Main became Federal. 119 is sort of hard to pin down. On the 1913 map, there is no 119, and it would have been a house. On later maps, 119 is part of what used to be Harriman’s Opera Hall. That building burned in 1945-6. The 1913 and 1921 maps show that part as a pool hall, but it was certainly large enough to have served as a theater. The opera house itself reportedly closed when the Windsor opened.
Yes, Federal was Main. It’s crazy how many names changed. Delaware used to be Michigan, all the numbered streets dropped by 4 or 5 at one point, and before Federal was Main, it was Commercial. Thanks for the ID.