Imperial Theater - 348 French Hill Street

Constructed in 1872, the Imperial began its life as a vaudeville theater primarily catering to the immigrant residents of the French Hill neighborhood. The theater replaced live performance with films in 1916, but it could not compete with the larger Manley or Amherst theaters; a fire in the projection room helped spur its closure in 1924. Those attempting to discover who owns the property can find out that the theater is owned currently by Whipple, Craft, & Collins, a property holding company based in Boston. Research reveals that the majority stockholder of that shell company is New Jerusalem native Edwin White Perkins III.
The theater was built in imitation of the Rococo style (modeled after Vienna’s Schönbrunn Palace). Years of neglect have done much to dim its former beauty. The paint, what has not already peeled off, is soot-stained. Mobs of pigeons have turned the uneven exterior into their private rookery, and local children have busied themselves in breaking its windows. The New Jerusalem Chamber of Commerce and the New Jerusalem Historical Society have held informal talks about either having the theater restored or demolished, though so far such actions have been delayed, some say by powerful voices in city politics.

Maps

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  Imperial Theatre

RUINED STRUCTURE
1924

Founding Date

1872

Type

Theatre / Concert hall

Parent Location

French Hill