Hawkeye Theatre
205 W. Robins Street,
Graettinger,
IA
51342
205 W. Robins Street,
Graettinger,
IA
51342
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Additional Info
Previous Names: Opera House
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Graettinger’s Opera House was a fine two story brick building in a rather blocky style. It was constructed in 1911-12, opening on January 30, 1912.
It’s unknown exactly when movies began to be shown, but by 1927, it was listed as operating with 400 seats. By 1934, the capacity had been reduced to 250, likely by the closure of a balcony. Although it appears to have been called the Hawkeye Theatre from the beginning, it is listed as the Opera House through 1934. From 1935 onward, Yearbooks list it as the “Hawk Eye” (sic). Despite appearing in listings through 1950, the theater was actually closed on March 27, 1946, when the new Watson Theater was opened.
It seems to have later become the Hawkeye Apartments, but it has been gone for many years. The site is now a park.
The historical address seems to have been 107-109, but the addresses were later switched to increase west from the railroad tracks, rather than increase towards them. Many thanks to Ken Roe for providing the listings.
Contributed by
Seth Gaines
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Recent comments (view all 2 comments)
I think you’ve conflated two different buildings. The new opera house building was built in 1911. Upon opening it was known as the Hawkeye Theatre on January 30, 1912 with “A Messenger Boy” with dance after. A number of locals bought stock in the theatre to help ensure its completion. It was the town’s second opera house. The theatre was transitioned to sound to remain commercially viable.
When the Watson Theatre was built in 1946, it was to replace the 24-year old Hawkeye. It closed on March 27, 1946 with “Wadnerer of the Wasteland” and “Senorita from the East.” Franz Fletter took on the Hawkeye / old Opera House for a conversion to apartments.
Sam Watson built the Watson Theatre. It was a $15,000, new-build facility that replaced a cabinet maker’s shop. It opened on a 25-year leasing agreement on March 29, 1946, two days after the Hawkeye had closed. The 406-seat theatre closed in January of 1955 to install widescreen projection for CinemaScope titles.
In December of 1956, the theatre’s was taken over by a consortium of business owners. It became the Graettinger Theatre under their watch. The Graettinger Theatre closed at the end its lecense on March 21, 1971 with “On a Clear Day You Can See Forever.”
Thanks! I’ve corrected the listing. We’ll need a listing for the Watson, with an address if you know it.