Martin Theatre
Forsyth Street,
Americus,
GA
31709
Forsyth Street,
Americus,
GA
31709
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Joe, the architect was R.N. McEachern.
I found a note saying that construction on the Martin Theatre in Americus began on April 17, 1941. I’ve been unable to find anything about when it was completed. The note also said that the architect was named McArchen and was from Valdosta, but I’ve been unable to find anything about an architect of that name, so I think it might have been a typo.
The Martin Theatre was the scene of a civil rights march by 15 teenage girls challenging its segregation policy. They were arrested and held for 45 days in the Leesburg Stockade. This was the beginning of the Americus movement that lasted until 1965.
Trolleyguy-but property records show this as a 1980 build, and it looks like it. Theatre in question was around in the early 1940s.
The Wells Fargo bank building at 217 W Forsyth appears to have been a good-sized theatre previously. Blank sides and ground level exit doors are a clue.