Park Theatre
S. Champion Street and E. Federal Plaza,
Youngstown,
OH
44502
S. Champion Street and E. Federal Plaza,
Youngstown,
OH
44502
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Located in Youngstown, Ohio the once proud Park Theatre was opened in 1901. By the 1970’s it was running X-rated fare, usually a double feature. The Park Theatre billed itself, "Youngstown’s most unusual Theatre".
Contributed by
MikeRogers
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Recent comments (view all 11 comments)
The address currently given for the Park Theatre can’t be correct. 446 W. Federal is on the edge of an industrial district just outside downtown, and is across the street from a pair of railroad tracks that run along the river. This would have been an odd location for a major theater.
I also found a 1904 reference to a proposed project on Champion Street which was on a lot said to be adjacent to the Park Theatre. Champion Street crosses East Federal Plaza, though not at the 400 block. I think the theater building was at the southeast corner of Federal and Champion. A 1948 Youngstown Vindicator item about the sale of the Park Theatre by Shea Theatre Corp. said that it had begun operating under lease as a burlesque house earlier that year, and that it was located on Champion Street. It might have had an entrance on Federal Plaza earlier in its history.
Early 20th century editions of The New International Encyclopaedea say that the Park Theatre was one of Youngstown’s prominent buildings. A 1910 book called History of the Western Reserve says that it was built in 1901. The Park Theatre was designed by Cleveland architect William S. Lougee, according to a 1918 book called A History of Cleveland and its Environs.
The Park ran movies as early as 1903, but offered primarily live theater during its early years, and continued to present plays at least as late as 1946. During its later years it had both a movie season and a theater season. It also presented vaudeville, concerts, and other live events at various times in its history.
Joe, the Park Theater was indeed located on South Champion Street and was for a time owned by George M Cohan.
It had a versital schedule of shows ranging from plays to vaudeville, ballet, grand opera, burlisque and films.
My webshots site has an album devoted to the theater with not only pictires of the theater but a group of ads.
The Park did have an East Federal Street entrance early on with the box office located inside the building until the East Federal entrance was closed.
This Park Theater is not to be confused with the “New Park Theater” that was located on West Federal and Belmont Avenue. The “New Park Theater” was built and run by a group of local mobsters, and had a sorted history until it was burned down by a disgruntled performer.
The original Park Theater was nationally known in theater circles and many major performers appeared there.
In the early 1950’s its location proved to be a disadvantage and when attenance started to decline its new owners turned it into a burlisque house under the management of Al Baker.
The Palace Theater replaced it as Youngstown’s major house. Its story is plsted elsewhere here at Cinema Treasures. It was both a live and movie theater.
When it finally closed its doors an auction was held that drew theater buffs from all over the country to buy literally tons of theater materials including posters, contracts from its early years, photographs and other theater materials
Two local articles on the Park Theatre:
George M Cohan on Youngstown
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Park Theater Opening
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October 22, 1948
Park Is Leased For Burlesque
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Here is a rather description of the Park Theater at its opening.
2/3/1901
Park Theater Opening
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2/5/1901
Description and data.
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In a search of The Vindicator, the last stage production at the Park was the road company production of “Oklamoma” before it dropped movies and plays and became a burlesque house in 1948.
Can anyone tell me about a lady who housed the girls between the late 1940’s to the 1950’s? And where the house was located. I live in Beaver township, and I was told that it was mine. My house is over 100 years old, and I’m trying to find more history. I have history back to 1965. I am a Youngstown native, and I love the history. Hope someone can help. Thanks
As far as I know, the folks that performed at both the Park and Palace Theaters stayed at the Tod Hotel.
Park Theater remodeled in 1937 when the main entrance on South Champion was modernized. While the makeover was being completed, the East Federal entrance was used. The contractors for the job was Heller-Murray Company. Once the work was completed, the East Federal entrance was closed and no longer used.
I remember seeing a few great movies (musicals generally) with an older sister, probably back in the early/middle 1940’s. Later the Park starting showing live burlesque. And as fate would have it, as a very young teenager, helped my older brother who had a contract to repair the metal doors in the back, access in through the alleyway. I never remember the Park having any frontage to East Federal street. In those days, say 1940, 1950 & 1960’s. the three top movie theatres in Youngstown were the Palace, the Warner, and the Paramount. Second line were the State Theatre and the Park. Then there was the Strand, next to the Isaly’s on the Public Square, which was on it’s way out. The Strand showed second rate cowboy movies in those days, and apparently was more in vogue years earlier.