Princess Theatre

21 Seventh Street East,
St. Paul, MN 55101

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The Princess was notable because it was the first theater of the Finkelstein & Ruben chain of movie houses, which would eventually be comprised of almost 150 theaters not only in the Twin Cities and Minnesota, but also the Dakotas and Wisconsin, as well.

The Princess was built in 1909, at a cost of over $50,000 by architect Mark Fitzpatrick, and seat around 800. The theater’s Beaux-Arts facade, of ornate terra cotta, stained glass and a simple-but-elegant iron and glass canopy marquee brought a feel of sophistication to Seventh Street. Early newspaper ads boasted the Princess was “the safest, coolest and best ventilated theater in the state”.

Opening night including three vaudeville acts and short and feature length movies.

Two years after opening, Finkelstein & Ruben added a 400-seat balcony and twelve boxes, bringing the Princess' total seating to over 1200, due to the increased popularity of the theater. However, the Princess was already becoming outdated by the mid-20s, and was closed in 1926. Five years later, it was torn down.

Contributed by Bryan Krefft