Copyright © 2020 by Wendy Waszut-Barrett
Evelyn E. Livingston Furman credits J. B. Lamphere, as creating the Tabor Opera House drop curtain in 1879. In her publication, “The Tabor Opera House, a Captivating History,” she notes that Lamphere was a prominent New York and Philadelphia artist, writing that he was “one of the most prominent artists in the west.” I have not been able to uncover any mention of a scenic artist named J. B. Lamphere, and Furman did not credit her source. However, there was a James E. Lamphere working as a fresco artist in Denver during 1879. This is probably the same Lamphere mentioned by Furman. Lamphere likely decorated the Tabor Opera House, but I question whether he painted the scenery.
The 1879 Denver Directory lists James E. Lamphere as a frescoe painter and grainer. The listing records his working for C. A. Treat, a wallpaper and sign works company located at 306 15th St. in Denver (Western Magazine, Vol. 4, 1880, page 5). That year, Lamphere was residing at the West Lindell Hotel. All things considered, Lamphere’s connection to Leadville remained strong and he even married a local girl. On January 1, 1881, the “Leadville Daily Herald” reported that a James E. Lamphere married Mary S. Faxon (nee Ainsworth) in 1880; they were listed with all the other couples married that year (1 Jan. 1881, page 5). It is possible that Furman conflagrated Lamphere and Burcky, as both Lamphere and Burcky had Denver and Leadville connections.
In regard to the new Tabor Opera House in Leadville, it is possible that Lamphere solely decorated the auditorium of the Tabor Opera House and Henry E. Burkey painted the scenery for the stage; Burcky was later credited with the Tabor Opera House scenery in Harry Miner’s Directory (1884).
Lamphere was a regional decorator and Burcky was a well-known itinerant scenic artist. As theaters popped up across the western plains, scenic artists followed an unending source of income, as these new performance venues always demanded stock scenery. Although Leadville was beyond the reach of any railroad line in 1879, the owner, Horace Tabor, enjoyed ample funding to transport any good or service to this remote mountain theater.
Most stock scenery collections were manufactured on site over the course of weeks in the 1870s, if not a full month. In many cases, the scenic artist was also a stage carpenter or mechanic who designed and installed the stage machinery. A scenic artist could complete the entire project with the help of an assistant, even an enthusiastic and talented local. The first aspect to any project on site was the construction of a paint frame, and then scene after scene was rapidly produced.
I cannot imagine that Horace Tabor would have hired a local fresco painter from Denver and not a professional scenic artist, especially when other Leadville theaters were hiring and crediting new scenes to well known scenic artists. By 1881, a scenic artist named Carter was involved in a deadly attack in Leadville (13 Jan 1881). That same year, scenic artist George Heiman created the stage scenery for Leadville’s Academy of Music; he was also a nationally acclaimed scenic artist. The local paper referred to Heiman in Leadville as “a gem,” adding, “and in fact so are all his designs about the building. He is evidently the man for who Colorado has been waiting for years” (Leadville Daily Herald, 20 March, 1881). Heiman was also credited as being the scenic artist for the Madison Square Theatre in New York (Leadville Daily Herald, 25 March 1881).
Burkey [sic.] was listed as the scenic artist at Leadville’s Tabor Opera House in “Harry Miner’s American Dramatic Directory” for the 1884-1885 season. He was also noted as the scenic artist for the Tabor Grand Opera in Denver and Denver’s Academy of Music. I am sure that these three listings, despite slight spelling variations are the same artist, Henry E. Burcky. Burcky was not a Leadville local; he was an itinerant scenic artist, well travelled and well known across the country by 1879.
Theatrical guides are tricky, as there is no distinction between a scenic artist that worked at one theater, versus one that was credited with delivering stock scenery to several theaters. If a scenic artist is listed at more than one venue, especially in different states, it is likely that he delivered stock scene to that venue instead of working at the venue. I believe that Burcky painted the roll drops, borders, wings and shutters for the first stage at the Tabor Opera House, and that Lamphere decorated the Tabor Opera House’s auditorium. We learn much by just looking at the 1879 photograph and interior set. Both the skills of a fresco artist and scenic artist are featured in this photo.
To be continued…
