Capitol Theatre
112 W. Morgan Street,
Meridian,
TX
76665
112 W. Morgan Street,
Meridian,
TX
76665
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It appears possible that the Capitol Theatre that opened in November, 1946 was a new building. A brief item in The Meridian Tribune of February 8, 1946, said: “Hall again planning new theatre building, having repurchased lot adjoining cafe on north side of square.” The Capitol building is located on the north side of the square. February to November is plenty of time to get a theater built, so we can’t rule out a replacement for the 1934 house unless we find that it was at the same address as the 1946 Capitol.
Another thing I came across is an article in the September 6, 1946 Tribune announcing that the Circle Theatre at the circle in West Meridian would open on September 11. The $45,000 house had been built by D.C. Caraway, former owner/operator of a theater at Clifton. There is no town called West Meridian, and I can’t find anything that looks like a circle on the map. A later issue of the paper had a congratulatory ad on the opening of the Circle, so it did operate at least for a time, though I can’t find any other mentions of it on the Internet.
The Capitol Theatre was opened on November 14, 1934, by independent exhibitors Charles M. Gandy and Harvey R. Harwell. The November 16 issue of The Meridian Tribune said that the opening had been a great success, attracting a full house.
The Capitol must have undergone renovations in 1946, when the October 11 issue of The Meridian Tribune carried a number of ads congratulating Curtis & Hall on their New Capitol Theatre, which was set to open the following day. As different owners were named in this item, it’s likely that the house had recently changed hands.