October
12, 1895
– Duluth’s Temple Opera House was reduced to rubble within 30 minutes after
flames were first discovered pouring out of the roof by a city detective at
about 12:15 a.m. The highest water stream thrown by the fire department fell
two stories short of the roof, and before 12:45 only the front and alley wall
of the theater was standing, the rear wall having fallen out at 12:30. The
stage and auditorium had fallen into the basement even earlier than this, and
the interior was a veritable furnace, the flames being fanned by a strong wind
blowing from the west.1
Local newspapers reported that the “’interior of the building was like a hell. The flames were a perfect cyclone. They shot nearly 200 feet into the air.’ A firewall prevented the fire from damaging the Temple Opera Block. The Temple Opera House was not rebuilt, and the building’s ruins sat empty for ten years.
In 1905 the Temple
Opera House ruins were converted into the Temple Rink, a roller skating
facility designed by J. J. Wangenstein boasting
a skating surface 140 feet long and 70 feet wide. In 1910, Guilford Hartley purchased the property, demolished the
rink, and built the Orpheum Theatre on the lot.”2Local newspapers reported that the “’interior of the building was like a hell. The flames were a perfect cyclone. They shot nearly 200 feet into the air.’ A firewall prevented the fire from damaging the Temple Opera Block. The Temple Opera House was not rebuilt, and the building’s ruins sat empty for ten years.
1St. Paul Daily Globe; “Theater in Ashes. Zenith City Suffers a Severe Loss by Midnight Flames. Temple Theater Burns. Causing Destruction of Over $100,000 in Less Than Half an Hour. Masonic Orders Suffer. They Lose Heavily on Paraphernalia – Flames Soon Under Control.”; October 13, 1895; p. 1.
2http://zenithcity.com/zenith-city-history-archives/duluth-architecture/temple-opera-hous/
Duluth’s Temple Opera House
http://zenithcity.com/zenith-city-history-archives/duluth-architecture/temple-opera-hous/
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