Langer's Airdome
S. Genesee Street and W. Water Street,
Waukegan,
IL
60085
S. Genesee Street and W. Water Street,
Waukegan,
IL
60085
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Additional Info
Previous Names: Ned Langer's Airdome
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Located at the corner of S. Genesee Street and W. Water Street, Waukegan’s own airdome was owned and operated by Ned Langer, who first had his career working at the Waukegan Theatre right when the Waukegan (later the New Barrison, the Orpheum, and lastly the Rialto) Theatre opened its doors under the management of William A. Haas on July 4, 1910. Less than a year later while still working in the New Barrison Theatre, Ned Langer had decided to build the first airdome for the city of Waukegan, which he did.
Langer’s Airdome opened its gates on June 3, 1911 with H.C. Wiess in “Which Geraldine”. However, if severe weather strikes the area, residents were invited to attend the nearby Schwartz Theatre (which happens to be operated only until October 4, 1913 when it was renamed Majestic Theatre).
Just like the Schwartz Theatre, Langer’s Airdome didn’t operate too long at all, and may’ve closed right after the season. Later that July, reports from the Waukegan News-Sun said that Langer left for Dayton, Ohio (yet again) three months after he took over operations at the Schwartz Theatre and two months after he opened the Airdome.
The reason why (yet again) was pronounced is that he has been traveling to Dayton a lot. One of which is a funeral for one of his brothers, 26-year-old Charles F. Langer, the youngest of the three brothers, who was killed two days prior to the funeral after a car was hit by Langer’s locomotive, and Langer was later pronounced dead on January 16, 1911. Charles F. Langer was an engineer of the Cleveland, Cincinnati, Chicago and St. Louis Railway (known as the defunct Big Four Railroad).
Langer had travelled a lot of places since his childhood. He was originated outside Houston, Texas, and went to New York for theatrical profession adoption, Dayton for his family among other places, and Waukegan for a successful theatre business. But on September 26, 1912, reports say that Langer would later take operations in Wisconsin as the manager for the Neenah Theatre in the city of Neenah, Wisconsin.
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50sSNIPES
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Recent comments (view all 1 comments)
Correction: The Schwartz Theatre Became The Majestic Theatre On October 4, 1913, After A Nine-Year Run As The Schwartz Theatre. It Operated More Than A Few Years.