Arcade Theatre
136 E. Main Street,
Van Wert,
OH
45891
136 E. Main Street,
Van Wert,
OH
45891
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The 1907 Sanborn shows an ‘Electric Theater’ operating in a 2-story commercial building. It is likely this was simply the surveyor’s designation for the type of business. The building is the typical narrow commercial building of the period. It appears on the 1884 map as a saloon, and by 1901 was a bookstore/stationers. By March 1908 it was operating as the Arcade Theatre, with an address given as 138 E. Main Street. Operated by Gayle Allen, it had 8-shows a day.
The theatre appears on the 1914 map, but by 1924, had reverted to use as a store. The building has the same general form on the 1948 map, but today is extended all the way to the rear of the lot. The current structure may be the original building, heavily remodeled with a moderne vitrolite storefront, or it may be a replacement from perhaps the early-1950’s. It is used by a local non-profit.
Contributed by
Seth Gaines
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Recent comments (view all 1 comments)
Odd that they gave the address as 138. Street addresses appear on the 1895 map, when the building was 36 E Main. The address had changed to 136 by 1901, although the old numbers are in parentheses for each address. 138 was a small one story building. It is a candy store on the Nov. 1907 map.