Property Record
314-322 W WISCONSIN
Architecture and History Inventory
| Historic Name: | FISCHER PARAMOUNT THEATRES CO. |
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| Other Name: | PORTAGE THEATRE |
| Contributing: | Yes |
| Reference Number: | 30168 |
| Location (Address): | 314-322 W WISCONSIN |
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| County: | Columbia |
| City: | Portage |
| Township/Village: | |
| Unincorporated Community: | |
| Town: | |
| Range: | |
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| Year Built: | 1927 |
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| Additions: | |
| Survey Date: | 1992 |
| Historic Use: | theater |
| Architectural Style: | Colonial Revival/Georgian Revival |
| Structural System: | Masonry |
| Wall Material: | Brick |
| Architect: | |
| Other Buildings On Site: | |
| Demolished?: | No |
| Demolished Date: |
| National/State Register Listing Name: | Portage Retail Historic District |
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| National Register Listing Date: | 4/27/1995 |
| State Register Listing Date: | 10/24/1994 |
| National Register Multiple Property Name: |
| Additional Information: | Facade composed of evenly spaced pilasters carrying a swag design; rosette and floral design along pilaster. Above entrance: double pilasters flanking a pedimented window with consoles and a swag beneath a round arch with keystone. Entrance area altered; addition in similar material at north elevation; interior altered. Sanborn-Perris Map Co.: 1929: Fisher Paramount, dressing rooms, stage, and scenery with asbestos curtains, concrete floors, tile and brick faced, steel truss roof. 1918: theater is not present. There is a vacant marble shop (Stotzer) which is present on the 1885 Sanborn Map. Columbia Co. Treasurer 1863- 1930: Portage Theater Corp replacing the Fischer Paramount Theater. 1927-1929: Fischer Paramount Theater Corporation. 1926: Commercial Realty and Investment Co. The shift in valuation indicates that the theater was completed in 1927. Directories: 1955: (322) Portage Theater (Johnson Printing Co.). 1948: (322) Portage Theater (Commonwealth Telephone Co.). 1937: Portage Theater Co., W. Wisconsin (Commonwealth Telephone Co.). 1929: (322) Brin's Portage Co., Brin's Theater Co. (Smith-Baumann Directory Co.). Stotzer Granite Co. Plant, cor. of Dodge and Wisconsin Its office: 216 E. Wisconsin. 1910: Stotzer Marble and Granite Co., 317 Wisconsin (Voshardt). The Fisher Paramount Theater Company erected the Portage Theaer at 314-322 W. Wisconsin (31/20) in 1927. The brick veneer, tile Classical Revival building included a stage, scenery with asbestos curtains, and dressing rooms. It opened as Brin's Theater Company. During the Depression, the theater closed for several years until purchased by F.J. McWilliams of the Portage Theater Corporation. When it opened, it provided live entertainment with the Barton Organ. Over the years, the theater played not only movies but Vaudeville Acts and live stage performances and provided space for community activities. In 1985, the interior was divided into three theaters and the exterior was enlarged along its northwest elevation using a similar size and color brick and similar detailing as the original building (Murtagh 1989; Columbia County Treasurer 1863- [1927]; Sanborn-Perris Map Co. 1929). Although this theater appears more elegant than its predecessors, the Portage Theater was still a movie theater rather than a movie palace. "The Fischer-Paramount Theater Company erected this building in 1927 under the name of Brin's Theater Company. It was built in tandem with the Raulf Hotel. One of Fischer-Paramount's operating officers, Frank J. McWilliams, purchased the theater in the depression, at an auction on the Court House steps in 1930. F.J. McWilliams formed the Portage Theater Corporation and ran the establishment until it was taken over by his son, John E. McWilliams, this third generation business remains in its original building. Rehabilitated for modern use, theaters 1 and 2 were installed in 1985, and theater 3 in 1987. The original facade remains unchanged. The inside originally contained a stage, scenery with asbestos curtains, and dressing rooms as well as the movie screen and projections booth. When the theater opened, the company produced live entertainment accompanied by the "Barton Organ." Its shows featured Vaudeville acts and live stage performances along with movies. This Period Revival Commercial building with its classical ornament, as shown beneath in the line drawing, was designed to attract the public to its doors through its elegance." Historic Portage, WI: Downtown & Waterfront Walking Tour, 1995. |
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| Bibliographic References: | (A) PORTAGE 1989 LANDMARKS CALENDAR. (B) SANBORN-PERRIS MAPS. (C) COLUMBIA COUNTY TREASURER 1863- (D) CITY DIRECTORIES. Historic Portage, WI: Downtown & Waterfront Walking Tour, 1995. |
| Wisconsin Architecture and History Inventory, State Historic Preservation Office, Wisconsin Historical Society, Madison, Wisconsin |