Pictorium
522 E. Main Street,
Richmond,
IN
47374
522 E. Main Street,
Richmond,
IN
47374
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The Pictorium was opened by March 1908 when it was operated by F.W. Garland. This ‘5¢ Theatre’ appears on the 1909 Sanborn in the western half of the ground floor of a three-story brick building constructed sometime before 1886.
This space was shown as vacant on the 1901 map. By the time of the next update (a rather confusing 1937-50 pastiche over a 1920’s map), it had reverted to retail.
The building remains on the 1955 map, but what was once one of several densely packed blocks of commercial buildings west of downtown is now a wasteland of asphalt and grass, with a few ugly modern structures sprinkled about.
Contributed by
Seth Gaines
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Recent comments (view all 1 comments)
To be fair to Richmond, this theater was likely badly damaged in a huge gas explosion that took place under a sporting goods store located on the SE corner of 6th and Main. The gas explosion was followed by the gunpowder stored in the basement of Marting Arms. The local gas company had been grossly negligent, as had the sporting goods store, and 41 people died. 21 buildings near the site were condemned. This took place April 6, 1968.
While the building remains in an aerial photo of the aftermath, at the very least all the windows would have been broken. Only the solidly built little ‘50s office building on the corner seems to have escaped being condemned.