Yale Theatre
327 S. Main Street,
Anna,
IL
62906
327 S. Main Street,
Anna,
IL
62906
1 person
favorited this theater
The Main Theatre opened on Main Street in 1914. In 1922 it was renamed Yale Theatre. In 1933 it was taken over by I.W. Rogers, along with the Lyric Theatre on Vienna Street. During this time, the Yale Theatre was remodeled and enlarged as well as acquiring an ornate marquee and vertical signage. (Rodgers demolished the Lyric Theatre in the late-1930’s, and built a new theater on its site, named after himself, which was razed in 2006).
The Yale Theatre operated until at least the mid-1950’s. It is currently home to a local Moose Lodge.
Contributed by
Bryan Krefft
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Recent comments (view all 6 comments)
Need some info please. This site has the address as 226 S Main and demolished while other sources list it at 327 S Main and the building being occupied by the local Moose lodge. I went by Monday night and it looked like it might have been a theater in a prior life. Hopefully someone from the area can help out.
Chuck, I agree with you that the building doesn’t look like a 1914 building, but it looks like the facade was completely overhauled by the owner. The back of the building looks as old as the rest of the downtown area of Anna and looks like it could have been a 1930’s small town theater. I’m just not completely convinced either way that this is or isn’t the Yale.
There is no such address as 226 S. Main Street in Anna. Street View shows that addresses go from 214 on one side of the alley (King’s Wok Chinese Restaurant) to 300 on the other side (This N That Flea Market and Resale Shop.) Given that fact, it seems more likely that the Yale Theatre was indeed at 327 S. Main.
A book called 100 Years of Progress: The Centennial History of Anna, Illinois, published in 1954, says that when the Yale opened in 1914 it was called the Main Theatre. It was renamed the Yale in 1922, the year before I. W. Rodgers took over the lease. In 1933 Rodgers bought the theater and had it remodeled and enlarged. The Yale Theatre was still in operation at the time the book went to press.
The old Yale Theater in Anna was purchased by the Moose. I can remember going with my parents to the Moose when I was a little girl. My friends and I would set in the balcony and play. However, it burnt down in 1967. A very sad day. Our Teen Town burnt down along with some other businesses. The Moose built a new building on that spot after the fire. The map on this site has it located too far north on the street. It was in the 300 block of S. Main Street. Hope this information helps.
Thanks for the update, Terri51. I did think that the Moose Lodge seen in the Street View was too modern to have been the Yale Theatre.
It turns out that CinemaTour has a very small, very contrasty photo of the Yale Theatre on this page I don’t know why I never thought to check CinemaTour’s listing before.