The Center Theatre was not at 131 S. Main Street. That building, according to a document about Laurinburg from the North Carolina Department of Cultural Resources was built in 1938 as a department store. The Center Theatre was in an older building at the southwest corner of Main and Cronly Streets (301 through 311 S. Main:
“Large two- and three-story brick early-twentieth-century commercial design; two- story southern section is six bays wide; another two-story section attached to west side
facing Cronly Street is four bays wide; solid glass second-story windows in two-story
south section; three-story northern section is five bays wide with single and paired
windows (replacement glass) at second and third levels; recessed panels in upper facade; lower level altered with plate-glass display windows and replacement bulkheads; building originally occupied by McNair Buick automobile sales and showroom; later occupied by McLaurin-McArthur Chevrolet dealership; occupied by The Outlet Furniture Store from 1969 through 1983; central unit originally occupied by the Scotland Theater, later known as the Center Theater; corner unit was occupied by the Legion Drug Store for many years; currently divided into three commercial units with offices on the second level; Quick Copy Center in southern section since 1996; Bob’s Jewelers in corner unit for past decade.
As the Scotland Theatre occupied the center section of the building, its address was probably 305-307 S. Main. The building was built in 1924, and the Scotland Theatre was one of the original occupants. 1955 might have been the year it was renamed Center Theatre.
The marquee of the Scotland/Center Theatre can be seen at left in this vintage postcard probably dating from around 1930, when cars were becoming a bit streamlined.
The Strand Theatre was at the southeast corner of Person and Dick Streets. Due to street realignment, its site is now covered partly by the intersection of Person and Franklin Streets, and partly by a triangular park just west of the intersection.
The Strand opened as the New Auditorium in 1908, though it had the name Opera House on its parapet, and it was listed as the Opera House in the 1915-16 Fayetteville City Directory. Later it was known as LaFayette Auditorium, and it eventually became a movie house as the Strand Theatre. It was destroyed by a fire in 1950.
I’ve been unable to discover when it was renamed the Strand, but it must have been after an earlier Strand Theatre, opened on Hay Street in 1916, was either closed or renamed. It was listed as the Strand in both the 1943 and the 1948-49 city directories.
The Colony Theatre was designed by architect Erle G. Stillwell. DocSouth’s “Going to the Show” section has some of Stillwell’s plans and drawings of the Colony linked from this web page.
According to a document about Iowa’s opera houses from the NRHP,the original architect of the Grand Opera House in Dubuque was Willoughby J. Edbrooke. He also designed the Wheeler Opera House in Aspen, Colorado, and was co-architect of the Tabor Grand Opera House in Denver..
Harry W. J. Edbrooke was not involved in the design of the Tabor Grand Opera House. He was only 18 years old when it was built. His father, Willoughby J. Edbrooke, was one of the architects, and his uncle Frank E. Edbrooke served as supervising architect.
Harry Edbrooke was not the architect of the Wheeler Opera House. He was only 16 years old when it was built. It was actually designed by his father, Willoughby J. Edbrooke. Construction was probably supervised by W.J.’s brother, Frank E. Edbrooke, who performed that office for the Tabor Grand Opera House in Denver and later established his own practice in Denver.
An NRHP document about Iowa theaters says that the Grand Opera House at Perry was built in 1903, and was designed by a Chicago architect listed only as Col. E. Young. I’ve been unable to find anything else about him on the Internet.
The earlier Waterloo Theatre at 511-513 Lafayette Avenue did exist. It was designed by Chicago theater architect Sidney Lovell, and was built in 1907. I’ve been unable to discover whether or not it ever operated as a movie house, but it was dismantled in 1936.
According to a document prepared for the NRHP covering the history of Iowa opera houses from 1835 to 1940, the Midland Theatre was one of two Iowa houses designed by a St. Louis architect named George Johnston. He also designed the Grand Opera House at Muscatine, built around 1903. I’ve been unable to find any other information about George Johnston on the Internet.
According to a document prepared for the NRHP covering the history of Iowa opera houses from 1835 to 1940, the Grand Opera House in Muscatine was one of two Iowa houses designed by a St. Louis architect named George Johnston. He also designed the Midland Theatre in Fort Dodge, built in 1900. I’ve been unable to find any other information about George Johnston on the Internet.
As the earlier photo links are all dead, here are some photos of the Grand Opera House:
Exterior, October, 1901, which was probably around the time it opened.
The architect of the Grand Opera House in Story City was James S. Cox of Estherville, Iowa. He also designed the Windsor Theatre in Hampton, Iowa, which was built the same year as the Story City house.
The Windsor Theatre in Hampton was designed by Estherville, Iowa, architect James S. Cox. Cox also designed the Story Grand Opera House in Story City, Iowa, which was also built in 1913.
The Plymouth Theatre was still listed in the Plymouth city directory in 1962, the most recent edition available on the Internet. It was the only theater listed.
The Clayton looks like it would have been built in the 1950s. I wonder if it was a replacement for the Clay Theatre, which was about a block east?
Here is a Street View of 419 E. Main Street, since Google Maps insists on fetching a view of E. 2nd Street instead.
The 2nd Street view does show the back of the building, though, if you swing it around to the opposite side of the street from where it is currently fixed. The Clay was awfully narrow for a theater with 350 seats, and they’d have had a hard time squeezing a CinemaScope screen into that space.
Here is another vintage photo of the Mars Theatre from Mars Theater District’s Facebook photo album. The movies Above and Beyond and Battle Zone, displayed on posters above the marquee, were both released in 1952.
The Street View currently on display dates from 2007, four years before the Mars Theatre building suffered a major fire which is depicted on this web page. The Mars Theatre opened in 1931, and closed in the 1950s.
An outfit called Mars Theatre District maintains a a Facebook page with numerous photos of the renovations which have been undertaken since the fire. There is also this vintage photo showing the Mars Theatre sometime around 1940.
I’ve been unable to find a Clay Theatre in Clayton, but I did find a Clayton Theatre, operating in the 1950s at 321 E. Main Street. DocSouth’s Going to the Show lists several theaters at Clayton, but the Clay is not among them, nor is the Clayton, though two are listed as “Name Unknown”. Three are listed as being on Railroad Street, which does not appear on Google Maps. I wonder if Main Street used to be called Railroad Street?
This web page (which I believe you need a Google account to see) says that the Ritz Theatre was twinned. This was probably done around 1970, when the building was remodeled, losing its sleek, Streamline Modern Vitrolite to a skin of that fake stone which was so popular during that architecturally challenged decade. The Ritz closed in 1982, a couple of years after the Quin Theaters opened in the East Sylva Shopping Center.
The page has a downloadable digital model of the Ritz which you can apparently print out, cut, and assemble. I haven’t bothered to do so as I don’t have a printer.
Here is a photo of the Ritz from September 3, 1942, with a group of Army recruits posing in front of it.
The Center Theatre was not at 131 S. Main Street. That building, according to a document about Laurinburg from the North Carolina Department of Cultural Resources was built in 1938 as a department store. The Center Theatre was in an older building at the southwest corner of Main and Cronly Streets (301 through 311 S. Main:
As the Scotland Theatre occupied the center section of the building, its address was probably 305-307 S. Main. The building was built in 1924, and the Scotland Theatre was one of the original occupants. 1955 might have been the year it was renamed Center Theatre.The marquee of the Scotland/Center Theatre can be seen at left in this vintage postcard probably dating from around 1930, when cars were becoming a bit streamlined.
The Strand Theatre was at the southeast corner of Person and Dick Streets. Due to street realignment, its site is now covered partly by the intersection of Person and Franklin Streets, and partly by a triangular park just west of the intersection.
The Strand opened as the New Auditorium in 1908, though it had the name Opera House on its parapet, and it was listed as the Opera House in the 1915-16 Fayetteville City Directory. Later it was known as LaFayette Auditorium, and it eventually became a movie house as the Strand Theatre. It was destroyed by a fire in 1950.
I’ve been unable to discover when it was renamed the Strand, but it must have been after an earlier Strand Theatre, opened on Hay Street in 1916, was either closed or renamed. It was listed as the Strand in both the 1943 and the 1948-49 city directories.
This is an early photo of the New Auditorium from the New York Public Library digital image collection. The view is south across Person Street, with Dick Street at the right.
Here is the modern Street View of the theater’s location.
The Boxoffice article Tinseltoes linked to earlier says that the Miracle Theatre was designed by the architectural firm of Wooten, Wooten & Crosby.
Three of architect Erle G. Stillwell’s plans and drawings of the Broadway Theatre are linked from this page at DocSouth’s “Going to the Show” section.
The Colony Theatre was designed by architect Erle G. Stillwell. DocSouth’s “Going to the Show” section has some of Stillwell’s plans and drawings of the Colony linked from this web page.
According to the NRHP registration form for the Cascade Theatre, the United Artists triplex at Mount Shasta Mall was opened in 1975.
The Regal St.Louis Mills Stadium 18 was designed by Kansas City architectural firm TK Architects.
Edwards Fresno Stadium 22 was designed by the Kansas City architectural firm TK Architects, headed by Ted Knapp, AIA.
Fridley opened a new, 10-screen multiplex in Muscatine on March 14, 2013, and the Plaza 4 Theatre was closed on May 2.
According to a document about Iowa’s opera houses from the NRHP,the original architect of the Grand Opera House in Dubuque was Willoughby J. Edbrooke. He also designed the Wheeler Opera House in Aspen, Colorado, and was co-architect of the Tabor Grand Opera House in Denver..
Harry W. J. Edbrooke was not involved in the design of the Tabor Grand Opera House. He was only 18 years old when it was built. His father, Willoughby J. Edbrooke, was one of the architects, and his uncle Frank E. Edbrooke served as supervising architect.
Harry Edbrooke was not the architect of the Wheeler Opera House. He was only 16 years old when it was built. It was actually designed by his father, Willoughby J. Edbrooke. Construction was probably supervised by W.J.’s brother, Frank E. Edbrooke, who performed that office for the Tabor Grand Opera House in Denver and later established his own practice in Denver.
An NRHP document about Iowa theaters says that the Grand Opera House at Perry was built in 1903, and was designed by a Chicago architect listed only as Col. E. Young. I’ve been unable to find anything else about him on the Internet.
The earlier Waterloo Theatre at 511-513 Lafayette Avenue did exist. It was designed by Chicago theater architect Sidney Lovell, and was built in 1907. I’ve been unable to discover whether or not it ever operated as a movie house, but it was dismantled in 1936.
According to a document prepared for the NRHP covering the history of Iowa opera houses from 1835 to 1940, the Midland Theatre was one of two Iowa houses designed by a St. Louis architect named George Johnston. He also designed the Grand Opera House at Muscatine, built around 1903. I’ve been unable to find any other information about George Johnston on the Internet.
According to a document prepared for the NRHP covering the history of Iowa opera houses from 1835 to 1940, the Grand Opera House in Muscatine was one of two Iowa houses designed by a St. Louis architect named George Johnston. He also designed the Midland Theatre in Fort Dodge, built in 1900. I’ve been unable to find any other information about George Johnston on the Internet.
As the earlier photo links are all dead, here are some photos of the Grand Opera House:
Exterior, October, 1901, which was probably around the time it opened.
Auditorium, around 1905.
A street scene with the Grand at right, taken in 1911.
Another exterior view from around 1910.
An exterior view from 1930.
The architect of the Grand Opera House in Story City was James S. Cox of Estherville, Iowa. He also designed the Windsor Theatre in Hampton, Iowa, which was built the same year as the Story City house.
The Windsor Theatre in Hampton was designed by Estherville, Iowa, architect James S. Cox. Cox also designed the Story Grand Opera House in Story City, Iowa, which was also built in 1913.
The Plymouth Theatre was still listed in the Plymouth city directory in 1962, the most recent edition available on the Internet. It was the only theater listed.
The Clayton looks like it would have been built in the 1950s. I wonder if it was a replacement for the Clay Theatre, which was about a block east?
Here is a Street View of 419 E. Main Street, since Google Maps insists on fetching a view of E. 2nd Street instead.
The 2nd Street view does show the back of the building, though, if you swing it around to the opposite side of the street from where it is currently fixed. The Clay was awfully narrow for a theater with 350 seats, and they’d have had a hard time squeezing a CinemaScope screen into that space.
Here is another vintage photo of the Mars Theatre from Mars Theater District’s Facebook photo album. The movies Above and Beyond and Battle Zone, displayed on posters above the marquee, were both released in 1952.
The Street View currently on display dates from 2007, four years before the Mars Theatre building suffered a major fire which is depicted on this web page. The Mars Theatre opened in 1931, and closed in the 1950s.
An outfit called Mars Theatre District maintains a a Facebook page with numerous photos of the renovations which have been undertaken since the fire. There is also this vintage photo showing the Mars Theatre sometime around 1940.
I’ve been unable to find a Clay Theatre in Clayton, but I did find a Clayton Theatre, operating in the 1950s at 321 E. Main Street. DocSouth’s Going to the Show lists several theaters at Clayton, but the Clay is not among them, nor is the Clayton, though two are listed as “Name Unknown”. Three are listed as being on Railroad Street, which does not appear on Google Maps. I wonder if Main Street used to be called Railroad Street?
When the Ritz Theatre opened in 1942, the Lyric was renamed the Rodeo Theatre and operated until about 1948 with a policy of western movies.
This web page (which I believe you need a Google account to see) says that the Ritz Theatre was twinned. This was probably done around 1970, when the building was remodeled, losing its sleek, Streamline Modern Vitrolite to a skin of that fake stone which was so popular during that architecturally challenged decade. The Ritz closed in 1982, a couple of years after the Quin Theaters opened in the East Sylva Shopping Center.
The page has a downloadable digital model of the Ritz which you can apparently print out, cut, and assemble. I haven’t bothered to do so as I don’t have a printer.
Here is a photo of the Ritz from September 3, 1942, with a group of Army recruits posing in front of it.