Calumet Theater
5622 Calumet Avenue,
Hammond,
IN
46320
5622 Calumet Avenue,
Hammond,
IN
46320
3 people
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The Calumet Theater was built in 1930. By the early-1980’s it was operating as an adult movie theatre. I happened to notice this theater as I was driving through Hammond. The building’s windows were boarded and there was a “For Sale” sign posted. It looked like it’s been closed for quite some time. The marquee was still there.
The Calumet Theater was demolished in December 2011.
Contributed by
Bill Morse
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Recent comments (view all 29 comments)
Thanks for the info. If I were to own a theater such as The Calumet I would show public domain oldies movies and have a live show, perhaps a talent contest. If BMI and ASCAP were too expensive I would have a talent show with public domain songs and novelty acts. At $40,000 for a price tag I would imagine the taxes would be low.
2008 photo of the Calumet Theatre.
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A 2010 newspaper article said that the City of Hammond now owns the Calumet Theatre and intends to demolish it. The building’s cornerstone gives the construction date as 1930, and names the architect as Louis C. Hess. Local resident Debbie Thill petitioned the city to preserve the cornerstone to use as a headstone for Hess’s grave.
The article is here, for the time being. There are four photos and a three-minute video of Ms. Thill talking about Louis Hess.
Calumet Theater cornerstone may be used to mark grave By Jeff Burton (219) 933-3246 Monday, July 26, 2010 12:00 am
HAMMOND | The designs for some of Hammond’s most prominent buildings and majestic homes started with a simple stroke of his pencil, but more than 20 years after his death, Louis Hess doesn’t have but a simple stone to mark his final resting place.
That’s something Debbie Thill is hoping to change. The Schererville resident and fan of Hess' work became pen pals and friends with the noted architect in his later life and is petitioning the city to save the cornerstone of the Calumet Theater building, designed by Hess in 1930, for use as a headstone.
“To have a marker with his name and profession is all he could ask for,” Thill said. “It’s always bothered me all these years that there’s nothing there.”
City Planner Brian Poland said the Historic Preservation Commission was set to discuss the proposal earlier this month, but due to a lack of quorum, that discussion now will happen in August.
The Calumet Theater, currently owned by the city and slated for eventual demolition, was just one of the many Hammond buildings Hess designed from his Hohman Avenue office.
Hess built palatial homes on Forest and Moraine avenues, introducing to the region the sloping mansard roof and the use of natural stone in exterior construction.
He also designed the original Woodmar Country Club building and George Rogers Clark High School in Robertsdale.
His work as an associate architect of Hammond City Hall is also noted, not because of any design he did, but that city council members refused to accept any plans from a Chicago-based firm without the involvement of a Hammond architect on the project.
“He really was the Frank Lloyd Wright of the Calumet Region,” Thill said.
A championship sailor who lived life to the excess, Hess lost most of his wealth in the 1929 stock market crash and lost what little was left on homes he designed and built in Munster that wouldn’t sell during the Great Depression.
Although his career bounced back, he was later involved in a serious car accident and spent his later years bouncing around nursing homes and residential hotels, relying on public assistance. Hess died penniless in 1988 at age 86.
The city of Hammond provided financial assistance for his burial at Hessville Cemetery, where he lies near the grave of his grandfather Joseph Hess, founder of Hessville.
In a 1982 interview with The Times, Louis Hess said while his designs had their detractors, he felt they would stand the test of time.
“Someone once told me, ‘Hess, you could make a new house look 100 years old,’ and they were right,” he said. “I had a flair for the romantic. I would put in a little round window or a turret. A house must look like a home. You should be able to put a picture of it on a Christmas card with the snow falling around it.”
Take a couple photos of the cornerstone and the theatre. I’m 2 hrs away and do not have time, unfortunally. Do you know when demolition is slated to start?
That article was from 2010 so I’m guessing demolition is on hold
The Calumet Theater is in the process of being demolished. The entire seating area and stage have been destroyed. The marquee still stands for now; but it’ll probably be down before the new year. I’m in the process of updating my Webshots photos. The updates will be here: http://travel.webshots.com/album/570553428XGRCVr
How sad. I see a lot of things in your album that would be very worthwhile to salvage, given the chance.
Oh, I see that they did that. http://www.nwitimes.com/news/local/lake/hammond/calumet-theater-being-readied-for-demolition/article_54f25eff-cabf-5831-a593-d03134b9e56d.html
The theater has been completely demolished. http://travel.webshots.com/album/570553428XGRCVr