Historic Treasure of the Week - January 23, 2000
By Betty Stroup Wright
Vigo County Historical Society
Historic Treasure of the Week -
January 23, 2000
By Betty Stroup Wright
Vigo County Historical Society
Theaters provided much entertainment
I was child of the ‘30s and ‘40s, therefore I was a Saturday afternoon cowboy.
In the front room of the Vigo County Historical Museum is a small newspaper clipping about Gene Autry, his horse Champion and his sidekick, Smiley Burnett. The American Theater at 819 Wabash Ave. charged a dime for the Saturday afternoon show during the Great Depression.
There would be numerous bikes parked in the bike rack outside the American. Youngsters would pack a sack lunch and stay for the movie twice.
Gene, Smiley and Shirley Temple helped people through the Depression. The majority of people weren’t making much money, so they could only afford to attend the theater for a dime.
At one time there were several theaters in Terre Haute, besides the American, such as the Indiana Theatre at Seventh and Ohio. The Indiana was purchased and restored by William and Reta Decker in 1990. The Indiana is the only theater still in downtown Terre Haute.
There were also the Liberty, Rex, Grand, Crescent, Fountain, Orpheum and Hippodrome, used by the Shriners today. There were the Princess, Savoy, the Swan (which opened in 1915 at 1220 Lafayette Ave.) and the Garfield, which became Harmony Hall in 1988 and is now home of the Banks of the Wabash Barbershop Chorus.
How many of these, and their locations do you do you remember?
Autry enlisted in the military during World War II and the newcomer Roy Rogers entered the movies and became a hero to young people during the rest of the war.
The Historical Museum of the Wabash Valley, 1411 S. Sixth St., is open from 1 to 4 p.m. Tuesday through Sunday.