Roy's Hall Historical

Roy's Hall Historical (HM1UDC)

Location: Blairstown, NJ 07825 Warren County
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Country: United States of America
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N 40° 58.983', W 74° 57.673'

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Inscription
The year 1913 was another special one for Blairstown as it witnessed the opening of a theatre. On April 2,1913 Robert Roy and Raymond Smith opened a community hall and theatre named Roy's Hall. The first floor was utilized for dances and similar activities, while the second floor featured an auditorium with a balcony all around with seating for 400 people.
At the beginning, shows were shown Saturdays only then, because of demand, twice a week on Wednesday and Saturday. People loved the movies and craved more. Finally, showings were provided every night of the week. There were matinees and evening showings with live music at each. Past advertisements publicized music played by the "Blair Academy Orchestra" during the performance. Matinees commenced at 3:00 p.m. at a cost of 10 to 15 cents with a notice that the show would conclude in time for the train leaving Blairstown at 4:50 p.m. Evening commenced at 8:00 p.m. and admission was from 11 to 17 cents. "Talkies" made their debut to the delight of everyone in the 1930s.
Everything went smoothly for a few years, than tragedy struck in February of 1917 in the form of a fire of unknown origin. It was said to have started in the dressing rooms of the theatre. The Blairstown Press reported that an estimated S20,000 fire occurred between two and four o'clock
in the morning consuming not only the theatre but also, a three-story apartment building, two shops, a barn, and other nearby buildings. The theatre owners were not deterred and rebuilt, modernized and reopened for business on July 17,1917
It has been said that the theatre was always crowded, even by moviegoers who admitted to not knowing if they would like the picture, but it would be nicer to spend the evening there than at home. Change, in the form of television, resulted in a decline of moviegoers with some showings having only one or two patrons. The original Roy's closed its doors on November 2,1961.
Since that fateful day in November of 1961, the building has been home to many uses: antique shop, auction house, community arts center and children's play house, just to mention a few.
In January of 2005, the theatre was purchased and given a complete theatrical renovation and it has seen a rejuvenation with quality entertainment offerings. Maybe, just maybe, "Friday the 13th" had something to do with this!
Details
HM NumberHM1UDC
Tags
Marker ConditionNo reports yet
Date Added Tuesday, September 13th, 2016 at 9:02pm PDT -07:00
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Locationbig map
UTM (WGS84 Datum)18T E 503262 N 4536876
Decimal Degrees40.98305000, -74.96121667
Degrees and Decimal MinutesN 40° 58.983', W 74° 57.673'
Degrees, Minutes and Seconds40° 58' 58.98" N, 74° 57' 40.38" W
Driving DirectionsGoogle Maps
Area Code(s)908, 201
Which side of the road?Marker is on the right when traveling West
Closest Postal AddressAt or near 30 Main St, Blairstown NJ 07825, US
Alternative Maps Google Maps, MapQuest, Bing Maps, Yahoo Maps, MSR Maps, OpenCycleMap, MyTopo Maps, OpenStreetMap

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