Starr Theatre
120 W. 5th Avenue,
Arkansas City,
KS
67005
120 W. 5th Avenue,
Arkansas City,
KS
67005
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This theater opened on May 11, 1931 under the ownership of Starr Wetmore. It was located in an old two story brick building which dated to sometime between 1886 and 1890. The section where the theater was located held a restaurant on the 1920 map.
Conversion to a theater involved the application of a rather basic plaster front with vaguely Moderne style accents. Despite the opening date (taken from the KHRI entry for the structure), this theater does not appear in the 1932 Yearbook, and is listed as closed in 1933.
Sometime between 1936 and 1940, the capacity was reduced from the initial 400 seats. The theater is listed in the 1946 Yearbook, but seems to have closed by 1952.
The space was later used by a furniture store, but the entire building has been vacant for many years, and is in poor condition. Much of the plaster has fallen off or been removed from the front, revealing an earlier facade which seems to be from the 1910’s.
Contributed by
Seth Gaines
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Recent comments (view all 1 comments)
Note that the Yearbooks all list this incorrectly as the ‘Star’ (the Burford is also rendered ‘Burkford’ for much of the ‘30s). The KHRI entry is here, with some historic photos: https://khri.kansasgis.org/index.cfm?in=035-0210-00081