Burning of the Ripon Opera House
| Text on front reads: "Burning of the Ripon Opera House, Ripon Wis." A dramatic scene at night, with flames consuming an Opera House which is silhouetted against an orange background. |
| Image ID: | 148699 |
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| Creation Date: | after 1904 |
| Creator Name: | E.C. Kropp Co. |
| City: | Ripon |
| County: | Fond du Lac |
| State: | Wisconsin |
| Collection Name: | Wisconsin postcard collection, circa 1860s?-circa 1990s |
| Genre: | Postcard |
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| Undivided back. 1¢ stamp. Dated by the burning of the first Opera House. Information from the Ripon Historical Society Facebook page, "In the late 1800s Downtown Historic Ripon had two opera houses - the Grand Opera House located in the 100 Block (town square) plus the Pedrick Opera House located in the 200 Block of Watson Street. The Grand Opera House was designed by Oshkosh Architect William Waters in 1881. This was a three story building complete with two story annex and space for three retail stores on the first floor. The entertainment stage and opera hall was on the second floor while the third floor housed the balcony section. This building burned in 1906. The Pedrick Opera House was owned and built by stone mason and lumber dealer Marcellus Pedrick. Marcellus had many business and personal interests in Ripon including operating his entertainment venue. This building had space for retail shops on the first floor. The second story opera house seated hundreds of guests. This building burned in 1904. Early opera houses offered a variety of acts including live theatre groups, musicians, singers, acrobats, speakers/orators and traveling shows that stopped over in Ripon." |
| This image is issued by the Wisconsin Historical Society. Use of the image requires written permission from the staff of the Collections Division. It may not be sold or redistributed, copied or distributed as a photograph, electronic file, or any other media. The image should not be significantly altered through conventional or electronic means. Images altered beyond standard cropping and resizing require further negotiation with a staff member. The user is responsible for all issues of copyright. Please Credit: Wisconsin Historical Society. |
| Location: | Wisconsin Historical Society Archives, 4th Floor, Madison, Wisconsin |
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