Kenova Theatre
1315 Chestnut Street,
Kenova,
WV
25530
1315 Chestnut Street,
Kenova,
WV
25530
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This photo from the Historic Wayne County Facebook page shows the Kenova Theatre on Chestnut Street, across the street from the Post Office. The Post office is still standing, but the theater building has been demolished and replaced by a senior citizens housing project called Roxanna Booth Manor, located at 1315 Chestnut Street.
Undated photo added courtesy of Courtesy of the Ceredo Museum via the Historic Wayne County, WV Facebook page below.
https://www.facebook.com/historicwaynecountywv/timeline
Is this theater still around? I am in the process of buying and rehabbing the Philippi Grand and if it proves profitable I want to work on reopening other theaters in WV, KY, OH, PA, MD, and VA. There are so many wonderful old theaters with more character than any modern cookie cutter places.
After the theater closed the theater equipment was stored in the basement of the main offices of the Booth Coal Company which was next to the theater.
The speaker behind the screen was an Altec Lansing “Voice of the Theater” and appeared to be a 15 inch speaker. There was also a tube amp in the projection booth, but I don’t remember the make. The popcorn popper was a gas flame under the kettle and electric motor on the kettle to stir the corn. There were stained glass lights on the walls that were ½ round with pointed tops.
The theater started out life as Cookeys or Cooksies Department Store as the name was painted on the side of the building and was faded out in the 1950’s. Later it became the Strand Theater before becoming the Kenova Theater (my dad is 92 and went to the theater as a boy. It was later converted to Loar’s Furniture and the floor was leveled with wood. The theater had a balcony and there were two carbon arc projectors that were manually adjusted.