Wareham Theatre
Main Street,
Wareham,
MA
02571
Main Street,
Wareham,
MA
02571
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Additional Info
Architects: William C. Riseman
Firms: William Riseman Associates
Previous Names: Warr Theatre
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The Warr Theatre was opened prior to 1927. It was a free-standing three-story theatre building in downtown Wareham, on Cape Cod. In 1948 it was remodelled to the plans of architectural firm William Riseman Associates and was renamed Wareham Theatre.
Contributed by
Ron Salters
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Recent comments (view all 5 comments)
There was a MGM Theatre Photograph and Report form for the Wareham Theatre but no one bothered to fill it out. It has an exterior photo taken in June 1950. This was 9 years after most of the photos in the other reports were taken. It was a free-standing building about 3 stories high located in a business district. It had a rain canopy over the sidewalk with the theatre name on it. High up on the facade there was a very small verticle sign. The facade has some modest decoration. I don’t know when the theater closed. (This info replaces postings here which have become deleted.)
The 1927 Film Daily Yearbook lists a Warr Theatre for Wareham, with 637 seats, open 5 days per week. Is that this theater?
From Wareham a postcard image of the Warr Theatre.
The Massachusetts building inspection report for the year ending November 30, 1919, said that as of January that year the Warr Theatre in Wareham was in good condition. It was operated by William E. C. Warr, who also operated two public halls in Wareham: Colonial Casino and Colonial Hall. Our photo shows that the Warr Theatre was in a three-story building, so maybe the two public halls were upstairs.
The October 28, 1927, issue of Motion Picture News reported that William Waugh of Waugh’s Theatre in Wareham had recently visited Film Row in Boston. Who else besides me thinks that Mr. Warr’s New England accent might have made somebody mis-hear his name as Waugh?
The only theater in Wareham that I’ve seen listed in the Julius Cahn guides is the Odd Fellows Hall, a 400-seat, ground-floor house. It is listed in 1906 and 1909, but the 1912-1913 guide carries only the note “No corrected details at hand,” with no name given for the theater. I suppose it’s possible that Mr. Warr took over the hall and renamed it, but didn’t bother to keep it listed in the Cahn guides.
The Warr Theatre in the old postcard view of Main Street in Wareham is definitely the same theater as pictured on the June 1950 MGM Theatre Report. Some of the detail on the facade was removed by 1950. As for “Warr” vs. “Waugh”, Joe Vogel’s theory is probably correct, familiar as I am with Boston-area accents.