Litchfield Opera House
About this property
The Litchfield Opera House is a community building in Litchfield, Minnesota, United States, listed on the National Register of Historic Places for its significance to the community. A committee of businessmen organized in 1899 with the intention of providing a place to hold meetings and theatrical performances. The previous town hall, built in 1871, was obsolete. The government of Litchfield Township, Minnesota paid for construction of the building, which was designed by architect W.T. Towner and built by N.P. Franzen. The city bought the building from the township in 1911. The opera house was listed on the National Register of Historic Places in 1983. The building is a well-preserved example of Renaissance Revival architecture, which is otherwise rare in Litchfield and Meeker County. Most of the façade is yellow clay brick, manufactured locally, and accented with red brick and red terra cotta patterns. The opera house opened on November 8, 1900, with the play "The Marble Heart" starring William Owen. Besides operas and performances, the auditorium housed town meetings, elections, military recruitment, and other government functions. Somewhere between 1930 and 1939, the interior was remodeled for use as city offices. In 1983, when the building was nominated to the National Register, it housed civic offices and organizations, and it was used as a meeting place for senior citizens, the Girl Scouts, and community education. Public officials and the Litchfield Police Department also used some of the rooms. In 2002, the city removed its offices from the building and moved its offices to trailers in the parking lot. This move was made because mold was found in the building. The city completed its new city hall in 2006, but the fate of the building had not been decided yet. In 2008, the city sold the building to the Greater Litchfield Opera House Association, Inc. for $100,000. The city accepted a 1900 silver dollar for payment and specified that the balance of the purchase price would be invested in the building to renovate it for the community. Between 2008 and 2023 the building's roof, brickwork, windows and interior were restored through a series of grants from the Minnesota Historical Society funded by the 2008 Clean Water, Land, and Legacy Amendment. The building is available for rental for parties, weddings, dinners, funeral, bar mitzvahs, and other personal events.
Location
Categories
Property data from the National Register of Historic Places, National Park Service (public domain).
Description adapted from Wikipedia under the Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 4.0 International License.
Everything a full report reveals about Litchfield Opera House
This page lists Litchfield Opera House. A full Aubrey report for an address near it pulls together this listing alongside battlefield records, land patents, and every other historical record within a chosen radius:
Every location is different. Not every section appears for every place, only what the historical record actually holds turns up in a report.
Questions about this property
When was Litchfield Opera House listed on the National Register?
Litchfield Opera House was listed on the National Register of Historic Places on October 3, 1984.
What type of historic resource is Litchfield Opera House?
Litchfield Opera House is classified as a building in the National Register of Historic Places.
What is the period of significance for Litchfield Opera House?
The period of significance for Litchfield Opera House is recorded as the industrial era.
Can I research the history near Litchfield Opera House?
Yes. Aubrey Research reports search National Register listings, battlefield records, land patents, and other primary historical sources within any radius of a US address. A report for an address near Litchfield Opera House will include this listing and all other historical records in the area.
More in Meeker County
Historic places, battles, and census history across Meeker County.
Explore MeekerCounty ›More historic places in Minnesota
Browse all historic places in Minnesota.
View Minnesotahistoric sites ›Minnesota history
Colonial settlement, territorial period, and statehood narrative.
Minnesotahistory ›Research the history near this site
An Aubrey US report for an address near Litchfield Opera House will include this listing alongside battlefield records and other historical sources within your chosen radius.