Ridgway Opera House

Ridgway Opera House. Ridgway "Lily of the Valley". , "Ridgway...is a gem in its setting among the hills that surround it. Our public schools give us transcendent educational privileges; the churches, a high tone of morals, and society exemplifies the democratic dictum of equality, so that to be a citizen of Ridgway is a distinction to be proud of. Shall these things remain forever? I hope so." -J.D. Fullerton, Ridgway Advocate, 1896, By 1896, Ridgway's prosperity, reaped from the region's forests, waters, and land, had transformed the community. The town was home to 2500 residents, three newspapers, abundant stores and hotels, eight churches, and 24 manufacturing businesses producing lumber, leather, heavy machinery, millwork, ice cream, bricks, flour, medicines, carriages, and candy., Twenty years earlier, Joseph Smith Hyde had opened Ridgway's first opera house on the third floor of the Hall, Kaul, and Hyde Store, and in the years that followed several other performance halls sprang up. But the Ridgway Opera House designed by Walter P. Murphy and H. C. Park and meticulously crafted by the Hyde-Murphy Company in 1897-was the grandest of them all. Though J.S. Hyde's son William H. Hyde and O. B. Grant owned the opera house, Walter P. Murphy is remembered as "Father of the New Opera House" for his vision that shaped the beautiful building., Culture and Community , The Ridgway Opera House seated 1,163 people for plays, vaudeville acts, musicals, and operas, and concerts. Eight years after the grand opening, an arsonist set fire to the opera house, destroying it. Undaunted, the owners rebuilt it. In 1926, the Opera House became known as the Strand Theatre, a show house for silent movies and, by the early 30s, "talkies.", A Grand Opening , On opening night, April 20, 1897, the Ridgway Opera House was stunning to behold. Sagegreen French brocade framed an intricately hand painted stage curtain, and salmon-colored French damask softened the tiered box seats. Light olive velours draped the entrance and promenade. A $1,500 Chickering piano awaited its first performance. An eager audience watched the popular play, "A Texas Steer," the first of many productions staged in that exquisite setting., (Photo Captions):, Ridgway Opera House, The Strand Theatre, Interior of the Ridgway Opera House, Bicycle built for two, All photos courtesy Elk County Historical Society