I’m also a little confused how the building next door could have been 108. Maybe they were renumbered at some point? The fire station would presumably be 100, and likely occupies the lots for 102-106. My photo of the theater entry clearly shows a very old ‘108’ affixed above a door to the left of the entry. It can’t be seen here, and may have led to an apartment above, or the projection booth.
Not sure why a theater of the same name and identical capacity would show up in 1939, but I would expect that the article was correct, and this would then have opened in 1947. I’m not sure how four years of operation qualifies as ‘many’. Perhaps it reopened at some point? The building to the south must have been the store. It was a little taller, but that same Western Plains style of flat fronted white plaster.
I suspect this was the building at 118-120 W 4th St (also called W Bressler St). It had a recessed double door on the 120 side. Seemed derelict in 2010. Still there in 2012, but now gone, although the one story storefronts to the west remain. Looked like your typical modest 1920-30 commercial structure.
This building was much expanded sometime after 2008. I didn’t bother with an unattractive newer theater like this on my 2010 visit, but the original theater section was on the right. The very blurry 2008 streetview gives some idea of the original appearance. The county parks department still lists the theater and bowling alley, but the FB links provided are dead. The bowling alley was definitely still open in late 2023 (based on a Google review).
I bet the original Lyric was the old ‘Electric’. It’s possible that the new Lyric was extensively remodeled or replaced (although the capacity is consistent both before and after 1941). There’s a 1928 map, but of course it’s not available online. The newer building does have those steel frame windows, which are about right for 1941. It is odd that the Lyric and Colby were right next to each other for so many years.
I’d love to see a historic picture before they applied the horrible trashy facade. I can’t imagine someone thinking that sheet metal and a cheap brick veneer with aluminum doors looked better than whatever was there before.
This seems to have originally been a garage/dealership, which was built sometime between 1907 and 1918. It is located next door to an older theater, the Lyric, which also had a horrible remodel, which is now removed.
The nasty ‘70s trash on the front of the building is now gone. The facade is sort of a mess, and shows evidence that the theater was likely a remodeled storefront. It is covered by a mural.
This entry is a bit garbled, and could use a re-write to drop the irrelevant sentences about a different theater. I assume this theater and the other were somewhere on Main St. There is almost nothing on the side streets. It’s possible one or both buildings are still there.
Western Kansas is a black hole. There are almost no Sanborn maps of any towns, and the KHRI coverage is very poor. If it’s not the high school or the courthouse, it doesn’t have an entry.
SethG
commented about
Theatreon
Dec 15, 2025 at 2:38 pm
So the address was a bit wrong, because the Odd Fellows was at W 9th and Main. The correct address was either 828 or 830 Main. Since they say corner room, I assume that means 830. The building was a three story brick building, built sometime before 1885. It had a repulsive 1960s slipcover, and was torn down sometime around 2015. There’s now a sad little park there. The building definitely did not ‘burn down’. That seems to be a common exaggeration for older theaters.
It seems that this theater was extensively remodeled sometime between 1926 and 1935. The footprint appears unchanged, but it went from a one story brick building to a two story concrete block building with a brick facade. Retail spaces were created on either side of the entrance.
The opera house building is still there, minus the fly tower, and it certainly might have showed movies. The opera house itself still appears on the 1922 map.
This theater was probably built in 1933 or ‘34. It first appears in the 1934 Yearbook as the Morris, with 350 seats. By 1939, the capacity is down to 300. It was renamed the Cimarron in 1941. The capacity had increased to 370 by 1946, and it is still listed in the 1956 Yearbook with 370 seats. The building has been vacant for at least the past few years.
KHRI entry here: https://khri.kansasgis.org/index.cfm?in=039-4100-00004
I’m also a little confused how the building next door could have been 108. Maybe they were renumbered at some point? The fire station would presumably be 100, and likely occupies the lots for 102-106. My photo of the theater entry clearly shows a very old ‘108’ affixed above a door to the left of the entry. It can’t be seen here, and may have led to an apartment above, or the projection booth.
Not sure why a theater of the same name and identical capacity would show up in 1939, but I would expect that the article was correct, and this would then have opened in 1947. I’m not sure how four years of operation qualifies as ‘many’. Perhaps it reopened at some point? The building to the south must have been the store. It was a little taller, but that same Western Plains style of flat fronted white plaster.
The nasty false front was gone by 2010, but of course they also replaced the neon marquee with some cheap trash.
I suspect this was the building at 118-120 W 4th St (also called W Bressler St). It had a recessed double door on the 120 side. Seemed derelict in 2010. Still there in 2012, but now gone, although the one story storefronts to the west remain. Looked like your typical modest 1920-30 commercial structure.
Victim of a hideous dryvit brutalist makeover by some misbegotten criminal.
This building was much expanded sometime after 2008. I didn’t bother with an unattractive newer theater like this on my 2010 visit, but the original theater section was on the right. The very blurry 2008 streetview gives some idea of the original appearance. The county parks department still lists the theater and bowling alley, but the FB links provided are dead. The bowling alley was definitely still open in late 2023 (based on a Google review).
I bet the original Lyric was the old ‘Electric’. It’s possible that the new Lyric was extensively remodeled or replaced (although the capacity is consistent both before and after 1941). There’s a 1928 map, but of course it’s not available online. The newer building does have those steel frame windows, which are about right for 1941. It is odd that the Lyric and Colby were right next to each other for so many years.
I’d love to see a historic picture before they applied the horrible trashy facade. I can’t imagine someone thinking that sheet metal and a cheap brick veneer with aluminum doors looked better than whatever was there before.
Was open by 1951 at the latest.
This seems to have originally been a garage/dealership, which was built sometime between 1907 and 1918. It is located next door to an older theater, the Lyric, which also had a horrible remodel, which is now removed.
The nasty ‘70s trash on the front of the building is now gone. The facade is sort of a mess, and shows evidence that the theater was likely a remodeled storefront. It is covered by a mural.
It seems the address may originally have been 108, but 110 is now two or three doors south.
This entry is a bit garbled, and could use a re-write to drop the irrelevant sentences about a different theater. I assume this theater and the other were somewhere on Main St. There is almost nothing on the side streets. It’s possible one or both buildings are still there.
Western Kansas is a black hole. There are almost no Sanborn maps of any towns, and the KHRI coverage is very poor. If it’s not the high school or the courthouse, it doesn’t have an entry.
That sounds like a pretty firm ID. Thanks!
So the address was a bit wrong, because the Odd Fellows was at W 9th and Main. The correct address was either 828 or 830 Main. Since they say corner room, I assume that means 830. The building was a three story brick building, built sometime before 1885. It had a repulsive 1960s slipcover, and was torn down sometime around 2015. There’s now a sad little park there. The building definitely did not ‘burn down’. That seems to be a common exaggeration for older theaters.
Thanks, Joe! I think we can be pretty sure of our ID here.
It seems that this theater was extensively remodeled sometime between 1926 and 1935. The footprint appears unchanged, but it went from a one story brick building to a two story concrete block building with a brick facade. Retail spaces were created on either side of the entrance.
The opera house building is still there, minus the fly tower, and it certainly might have showed movies. The opera house itself still appears on the 1922 map.
I’ve added a 1914 Sanborn view, which still has the airdome at 110. Again, either the address or chronology is off.
This theater was probably built in 1933 or ‘34. It first appears in the 1934 Yearbook as the Morris, with 350 seats. By 1939, the capacity is down to 300. It was renamed the Cimarron in 1941. The capacity had increased to 370 by 1946, and it is still listed in the 1956 Yearbook with 370 seats. The building has been vacant for at least the past few years.
Reminder that the address is wrong, and that the comment about the corner is of course wrong.
Nice article! The status needs to be updated.
It might have been, or it was an ephemeral storefront operation somewhere.
Correct address was 120 W 8th. The original opera house apparently dated to 1910. Currently some cheap prefab buildings occupy the site.