Barre City Hall and Opera House

Barre City Hall and Opera House is a historic government building at 6 North Main Street in downtown Barre, Vermont. Built in 1899, it houses the city offices, and its upper floors have served for much of the time since its construction as a performing arts venue. The building was listed on the National Register of Historic Places in 1973.[1]

Barre City Hall and Opera House
City hall is at the far right in this photo
Location6 N. Main St., Barre, Vermont
Coordinates44°11′48″N 72°30′10″W
Arealess than one acre
Built1899 (1899)
Built byMason & Company
ArchitectAdams, George G.
Part ofBarre Downtown Historic District (ID73000198)
NRHP reference No.73000198[1]
Significant dates
Added to NRHPJanuary 18, 1973
Designated CPSeptember 4, 1979

Description and history

Barre City Hall stands near the eastern end of the city's commercial business district, on the west side of Vermont City Park, a triangular park formed by North Main, Church, and Washington Streets. It is a four-story brick and stone building with Beaux Arts styling. The main feature of its facade is a three-story recessed arch, flanked by pilasters and topped by a gabled pediment. Within this recess, the main entrance is framed by ironwork and topped by a series of arcaded windows. Above these windows a wrought iron arched balcony spans the arch, whose interior is capped by a large half-round fanlight. The interior of the building houses city offices on the ground floor, and the facilities of the opera house on the upper three floors.[2]

The city hall was built in 1899 to a design by George Adams, a native of Lancaster, New Hampshire. Its theater was used until World War I for all manner of performances, meetings, and lectures, and fell into decline with the advent of motion pictures. Although it was modified to show films, the decline continued, and the theater was closed in 1940.[2] Community support led to the theater's reopening in 1982, and by the 2000s it had been fully restored with updated amenities. It is one of northern New England's best-preserved theatrical spaces of the turn of the 20th century.[2]

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See also

References
  1. "National Register Information System". National Register of Historic Places. National Park Service. July 9, 2010.
  2. Chester Liebs (1973). "NRHP nomination for Barre City Hall and Opera House". National Park Service. Retrieved 2016-10-02. with photos from 1973
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