Colonial Theatre

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Uploaded on: December 11, 2019

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Congress Hall was built circa 1870 after the July 4, 1866 fire destroyed the previous buildings here. It had a theatre on the second and third stories called Congress Theatre, showing motion pictures in 1908, and later named Greely’s in 1913, apparently the Gayety in the mid-20s (it suffered a massive fire in 1922), and rebuilt and renamed the Colonial Theatre in 1926. During 1942-43, the Colonial Theatre flirted with adult films and exotic stage shows. In March of 1943, 750 shipyard workers staged the “worst” riot in Portland’s history and the Colonial Theatre suffered devastating damage to its interior; the resultant scandal and law violations closed down the operation by 1946.

Congress Hall was torn down in 1954, replaced with an addition to Union Mutual’s (now UNUM) offices to the left in the former Fluent Block. The addition was also occupied by First Portland National Bank (originally Portland National, later Maine National then Fleet Bank), and is now the location of the Downtown Station Post Office.