Uptown Theater
116-118 N. Main Street,
Fort Atkinson,
WI
53538
116-118 N. Main Street,
Fort Atkinson,
WI
53538
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The Uptown Theatre was opened in November 1937. The seating capacity was 484, with 392 in the orchestra and 92 in the balcony. It was closed in 1974 and converted into retail use.
Contributed by
Lost Memory
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Recent comments (view all 5 comments)
Wasn’t there a theatre in Fort Atkinson named “The Fort”? It was just off Main Street.
There was indeed a Fort Theatre in Fort Atkinson. The May 15, 1937, issue of Boxoffice said “Walter Baier has constructed a penthouse atop his Fort Theatre in Fort Atkinson.” Then the June 25, 1938, issue says that plans were being drawn for a complete remodeling of the Fort Theatre, including a new front and marquee. Boxoffice mentions the Fort frequently, with references to it as late as 1978, when it was being operated by a small regional chain called Genoa Theatres. A 1974 item about another remodeling said that it had 450 seats.
As for the Uptown, the December 4, 1937, issue of Boxoffice ran this item datelined Fort Atkinson: “The new Uptown Theatre was opened here last week, with Herb Barrett as manager.” The Uptown was probably the subject of a brief item in the June 5, 1937, Boxoffice, datelined Fort Atkinson, which said “I.J. Crait, of Horicon Wis., has started building a new theatre here, to be 110x31 feet.” In 1938 Walter Baier, of the Fort Theatre, took control of the Uptown. Walter Baier is mentioned as operator of both the Uptown and Fort in Boxoffice items into the 1950s.
The March 11, 1974, issue of Boxoffice ran an item datelined Fort Atkinson and headed “Theatre Building Conversion.” A Mr. and Mrs. Reuben Gartman had purchased the Uptown Theatre from its last operator, National Theatres, and were converting the building for retail use. The item added that National Theatres had also sold the Fort Theatre less than two years earlier.
Fort Atkinson was also the site of the Highway 18 Drive-In, opened by Walter Baier in 1953 and first managed by his son, Robert.
Status should be changed to closed/demolished. This theater has been completely gutted between the outside walls and converted to retail space on the first floor, with apartments above. Compare the picture below to the black and white one posted above and look at the buildings flanking the center one, which is the former Uptown Theater. The parapets and roof lines are relatively unchanged, as well as the window configuration.
View link
The address is 116-118 North Main St.
The link does not seem to be working; based on the error message, I think that the picture may be in an archive generates URLs that expire when the user signs out or a session times out.
A book published by the Dwight Foster Public Library in 1986, on the occasion of Fort Atkinson’s 150th anniversary, has a brief paragraph about the Uptown Theatre: