Merrimack Square Theatre
146 Paige Street,
Lowell,
MA
01852
146 Paige Street,
Lowell,
MA
01852
1 person
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Additional Info
Previously operated by: M & P Theaters, Paramount Pictures Inc.
Architects: Harry Prescott Graves
Styles: Spanish Colonial
Previous Names: Scenic Theatre
Nearby Theaters
The 1,676-seat Scenic Theatre was opened August 20, 1910. By October 1910 it had been renamed Merrimack Square Theatre. I was never in the Merrimack Square Theatre, but I do remember it being torn down when I was in junior high school. Across the street from RKO Keith’s Theatre, the Merrimack Square Theatre had been carved out of corporation boarding houses associated with the Boott Cotton Mills, as I understand it. I also understand that it shared a manager with the other M & P property in Lowell, the Strand Theatre.
The Merrimack Square Theatre was still open in 1952, but had closed by 1955. It was one of the first major venues in downtown Lowell to be torn down in the name of urban renewal. It was replaced by, what else? A parking lot.
Contributed by
Robert Provencher
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Recent comments (view all 19 comments)
Prov. and J.V. Roy- for some discussion about the Hathaway’s Theatre in Lowell, see the Page here in CT for the Hathaway’s Theatre in New Bedford MA. The Hathaway’s in Lowell was part of the Keith vaudeville circuit as of 1909. There was also a Hathaway’s Theatre in Brockton MA. Apparently, the 3 theaters were related.
All I know of Hathway’s in Lowell is what I listed. If its the same hathaway as the other cities then he didn’t build it in Lowell, he bought it and renamed it. The next time I go back to the libraries there I’ll see what else they have on it since I didn’t really look in any detail.
Here, though, is a 1906 obit in the Sun about a policeman who worked the beat at Hathaway's
View link
Hello all.
The Casto Theatre was originally The Shattuck Street Universalist Church. It underwent a series of uses, including dance hall and theater, after the congregation had moved elsewhere. I just found a photo of it in my search for images of Lowell’s nineteenth century dance destinations. J.V., you make absolutely the only reference to the Casto Theatre that a web search turns up. You seem so well informed, I have to ask, do you have any more tidbits of info on Lowell’s social scene a hundred years ago that you’d like to share? I’d be happy to trade research info!
Hi Ruth,
I don’t have much that isn’t available in the photo books of Lowell and what I got out of the directories in the library there. I’d love to see that photo and possibly add it to the galleries crediting you if you’re willing. Did I get the proper corner?
you can contact me through http://scottymoore.net/contact.htm
Cool 1941 photo.
I’ve added Hathaway’s as the Playhouse Theater
/theaters/32544/
Here you’ll find the picture that Ruth had and some others
http://www.pbase.com/jroy/low_casto
Thanks Ruth
The Merrimack Square is listed under Lowell in the 1927 Film Daily Yearbook as having 1,676 seats and open daily.
The March 11, 1940 obituary of Lowell architect Harry Prescott Graves in The Lowell Sun mentioned the Merrimack Square Theatre as one of his works. An announcement about the new theater then nearing completion at 146 Paige Street appeared in the August 18, 1910 Sun, but it called the house the Scenic Theatre. It was under lease to Jennings and Bradstreet, Boston-based operators of a chain of New England movie theaters. This article also noted Graves as the architect.
The Scenic Theatre opened on August 20, 1910, but the name did not last long. The name Merrimack Square Theatre was appearing in the paper by October 8. The management of the house apparently remained the same, however, as this notice appeared in the March 25, 1911, issue of The Nickelodeon:
September 24, 1929 photo with Merrimack Square Theatre background left of center, from John Street looking down Paige Street via Facebook link below. 3 images including one enlargement. Current POV below that.
https://www.facebook.com/photo/?fbid=6166559196689877&set=pcb.10159628978623740
https://pbase.com/image/173471825
Great information here about the Merrimack Sq. Theatre. I tracked down the 1910 Lowell Sun article mentioned above. It explains about the separate projection booth structure (visible in one of the photos available on this site) and says that that arrangement was to avoid the noise from the projector disturbing the audience and then adds “it also minimizes the danger in case of the machine exploding or catching fire.”