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After completing the scenery for the Marquam Theatre in Portland, Thomas G. Moses, Howard Tuttle, and Ed Loitz tackled two other painting projects, one in Spokane Falls and one in Corvallis. Loitz went to paint in Spokane Falls, while Moses and Tuttle traveled to Corvallis, Oregon.

Corvallis is eighty miles from Portland and fifty miles from the Oregon Coast. Originally called Marysville, the town was renamed Corvallis to avoid any confusion with Marysville, California. Corvallis derived from a Latin word meaning “heart of the valley.” The first settlers arrived in the early 1840s. This was after devastating outbreaks of malaria depleted most of the Native American population – the Kalapuya – between 1830 and 1833. A flood of immigrants arrived in the area and established their homes along the west side of the Williamette River. Throughout the 1850s the town continued to grow and even briefly served Oregon’s territorial capitol during 1855.

Between 1860 and 1900, the Corvallis’ population dramatically increased from 531 to 1819 inhabitants. A steady stream of steamboat traffic brought both people and products to this remote area. By 1873 the Army Corp of Engineers completed a canal and locks at Williamette Falls that enabled a variety of goods to pass up and down the river without having to portage any items over the falls.

The railroad also arrived in Corvallis by 1880, encouraged by merchants who sought to provide competition with the river transportation.

Moses’ project in Corvallis was to paint scenery for a small hall. Although he doesn’t mention the name of the venue, it is likely that his work was for one of the recently constructed college halls. Dramatic productions in Corvallis began at the Oregon Agricultural College in the 1890. The first standard theatre did not appear in Corvallis until 1913, so there was at least one stage somewhere else in the town.

Tuttle and Moses checked into an unnamed hotel for the duration of their stay in 1890. Moses recorded that there were cake dishes filled with candy on each of the dining room tables. Whether the tablecloth was linen, cotton, or oilcloth, each table had a dish of candy that never seemed to diminish. Moses wrote, “One day Tuttle and I took all the candy at the table (as no one ever ate it) and gave it to the children on the street. We found the dishes filled up again at night.” This story just warmed my heart as I can see the two artists distributing treats to local children. I have to wonder if those working at the hotel made the connection.
Nearing the end of their stay at the hotel, a salesman was also checking out and handed his luggage to a porter. The porter put the salesman’s trunk onto a wheelbarrow and trotted it down to the steamboat. As the bank of the river was so high, a long chute had been constructed to get the baggage down onto the boat. The porter dumped the trunk into the chute; it bounced off to one side and went directly into the river. The poor salesman had to stay in town an additional three days to dry all of his products. This story made me laugh as it must have been a sight to see – impressive enough for Moses to include it in his typed manuscript.

During the time of Moses’ visit in 1890, another artist was gaining recognition in Corvallis. In 1889 Emile F. Pernot and his brother Eugene, started a photography business. They taught both photography and art classes at Oregon Agricultural College in Corvallis. There are a number of Pernot’s photographs that date from 1893-1895 when he recorded the interiors of many establishments, especially the college halls. It is possible that Moses’ painting was and any early performance stages are pictured in his photographs. Unfortunately, I would have to schedule an appointment to examine Pernot’s collection at the Oregon State University Special Collections and Archives Research Center. The collection is the “Emile Pernot Photographs, 1893-1895” if you happen to be in the area. Here is the link: http://scarc.library.oregonstate.edu/findingaids/…

To be continued…

In addition to painting the scenery for the Marquam’s theatre in Portland, Oregon, Thomas G. Moses also painted at the Arion Hall. Moses recorded that the scenery for the hall was “a nice quick job.” Portland’s Arion Hall was located on the corner of Second and Oaks Streets. It was constructed for the primary use of the Arion Society, an American-German Singing organization. The Arion Society was founded in January 1854 to promote “the perpetuation of love for some of the characteristic elements of German civilization.” Music and theatre.

It was founded by former members from another singing group called Liederkranz, the oldest vocal society in New York organized in 1847. Munsey’s Magazine (vol. 10, 1894) examined the histories of many musical societies in America, noting that the Arion Society in New York owned one of the finest clubhouses of any existing musical society at the time. Past conductors for the Arion Society venue included “Meyerhofer, Bergmann, Carl Anshütz, Dr. Ritter, Dr. Damrosch and Frank Van der Stucken.” The article also published that Wagner’s Tannhäuser was performed for the first time in New York by the Arion chorus in 1859.

The actual name “Arion” was taken from Greek Mythology as Arion was a Greek poet and lyre player in the 7^th century. The performance of German songs in harmony also occurred throughout the Northwestern region of the United States. Long before Moses decorated Portland’s Arion Hall, a variety of singing groups had formed for the sole purpose of performing tradition songs from their country of origin. Harry Miner’s American Dramatic Directory (1887-1888) even listed the “Arion Bell Ringers” as on of many concert companies that toured the country. In Oregon, there were Arion Halls with choirs in Portland, Spokane, Tacoma, Bellingham and Everett. Like many societies, the groups initially rented halls for their meetings and performance. Over time, as membership increased and funds were collected, permanent halls were planned and constructed.

The Morning Oregonian (Portland, Oregon) on March 30 and April 6, 1890, noted the “handsome new Arion hall” that now had twice the seating capacity. This was the space where Moses painted while in town.

There were Arion halls and theatres all across the United States by the 1890s. Two examples include the 500-seat Arion Hall in New London, Connecticut, and the 1500-seat Arion Theatre in Easton, Pennsylvania. These buildings house a variety of performances and meetings beyond that for the musical society. In 1890, the Marine Band under the direction of Virgil Coomer performed on May 29 in Portland’s Arion Hall. His performance was followed by a quartette that consisted of members from the Arion Singing Society. In 1894, Blind Tom, an African American pianist, performed at Portland’s Arion Hall from October 15 to 17.

The hall later became a hub for many interesting groups that included the Caledonian Club, the Assembly Club, the Oregon State Secular Union, and the Central Labor Council. The Arion Society suffered membership loss and disbanding of entire groups following WWI during a time of extreme Anti-German sentiment. Regardless of decreased membership, some areas kept maintained their singing societies and buildings.

In 1961, the Santa Cruz Sentinel (Santa Cruz, CA, 28 May, page 19) published a brief history of Santa Cruz’ Arion Singers. The article noted that the Arion Singing Society was one of Santa Cruz’ oldest musical organizations. They still met at “Arion Grove on Rother Ranch for song and good German cooking.” 1961 marked the 71^st year of regular sessions since its incorporation on April 4, 1890. The article added that the group had been meeting informally since 1872. The society’s official motto “Zu jeder zeit an jedem ort sei frei das lied und frei das wort” (At all times in any place, feel free in song or word) was placed over the new Arion Hall stage, now located at 230 Plymouth Street.

Like other ethnic halls the use of a stage with painted scenery formed the backgrounds for both musical and dramatic performances. Looking at current online images of Arion Music Groups in vintage halls, one can still see traces of historical drops behind costumed performers. In some cases it appears that painted shutters are still being used as the hard line is visible in the center of the composition. This may be one more journey for me to take on my path to document historical scenery collections.

To be continued…

 Thomas G. Moses left for Portland and the Marquam Theatre job on January 8, 1890. Ed Loitz and Howard Tuttle were there on the job to help him paint the scenery for Marquam’s Teatre.

The story is best is left for Moses’ own words as part of 1890 is summed up in a blur of entries. Here is one:

”Found Loitz had got everything in good shape, and we went to work and soon made a showing. One day just after I had finished laying in some foliage borders, and I was smeared from head to foot, face awfully dirty, a party of young folks came up on the paint bridge. They asked me a dozen questions. One of the ladies asked me, “What are they going to have for the drop curtain?” I answered that “It had been left to me to paint whatever I thought best.” They all looked at my dirty face and wondered what kind of curtain I would paint. Then she said,” I hope you will paint one as nice as the one in the New California Theatre in San Francisco.” I said to her that I was pleased to hear she liked that curtain, for I painted it. She was very much surprised and said, “So you are Mr. Moses!” We should be honored in having you paint our new theatre scenery.” She then introduced me to her friends. She seemed to know all about my work. Rather hard to connect me with a successful curtain. They all called several times after that. I managed to look more presentable when they called. I met her again in San Diego years after that at the Hotel Florence and she related to Fisher how she had met me and was astonished that an artist so “be-smudged” as I was could paint such beautiful pictures. Overalls don’t always make a man, they only help to keep the tailor and laundry bills down to normal.”

This is just one of the stories in Moses’ typed manuscript, but there was something about the statement “overalls don’t always make the man” that struck a cord with me. I have worn my old paint overalls for years and recently received the comment, “Oh, how sweet, you are still wearing overalls!” I was a bit shocked. Then I thought about her statement as it wasn’t intended as a slight. They are seldom in stores now, even at thrift stores, and yet they remain a staple of my painting wardrobe. When my few remaining pairs finally wear out, I will certainly have a problem. Overalls, coveralls, or bibs – whatever you chose to call them- keep the laundry bills down, especially when using dry pigment.

To be continued…

Thomas G. Moses met up with Howard Tuttle in Riverside, California on November 28, 1889. Tuttle had come up to help Moses with the next few projects where they would work as a team. Tuttle had started working with Moses when Walter Burridge left Burridge, Moses & Louderback the previous year and remained with Moses when he returned to Sosman & Landis. Projects that Tuttle accompanied Moses on were in Riverside, CA, San Francisco, CA, Evansville, IN and Corvallis, OR. Tuttle would later be the scenic artist for theatre settings at the Davidson (Milwaukee, WI), the La Crosse Theatre (La Crosse, Wisconsin), Grand Opera House (Oshkosh, WI), Illinois Theatre (Rock Island, IL), Calumet Theatre (Calumet, MI), and Stone’s Theatre (Flint, MI).

During the Riverside project, Moses wrote, “I had too much to do. We worked night and day, and every evening a number of ladies would drop in from the hotel to watch us. They were very interesting – very refined – mostly from the Eastern cities. It was a pleasure to meet them.”

Moses and Tuttle stayed at the Old Glenwood Hotel. The Glenwood Hotel was started by Christopher Columbus Miller and his family, who came to Riverside in 1874. The operation included a small, cottage built hotel around the Miller home. Later additions expanded their business.

In 1880 the hotel and grounds were sold to Miller’s oldest son, Frank, who continued the business for more than twenty years. Moses noted that the Frank Miller was an the “ideal” landlord during their stay in Riverside. However, Frank Miller planned a larger hotel in 1902 and started construction of the Mission Inn on the grounds of the old Glenwood Hotel.

Miller used a stage coach, and later his brother’s fleet of automobiles, to transport visitors from the train stations. The Glenwood Hotel Stages in the 1880s made daily trips to bring passengers to Riverside from the train stations in Colton, East Riverside, and eventually downtown Riverside. The Arington Hotel on the northwest corner of Eight Street and the Glenwood Hotel on the northeast corner of Main and Seventh Streets enjoyed a rivalry trying to secure guests for their establishments. The history of Riverside is included in a publication by Steve Lech, “Riverside, 1870-1940.”

Life was finally looking up and Moses’ finances were becoming a little more stable. He wrote, “I had done very well this year, ahead of last year, so I was satisfied.” Moses recorded that he and Tuttle had a difficult time getting out of Riverside, but they were on their way by December 30, 1889, and left town with Verona Jarbeau’s company. On their way they were delayed by a washout that held them up for thirty hours. During this time, he made some sketches and “sold them on the ground.”

Moses and Tuttle then stopped for several days in San Francisco to visit with old friends, one being Bill Porter who was the scenic artist at Tivoli Theatre.

There was a great network of scenic artists across the country and many remained friends. Moses always looked up his fellow artists wherever he traveled as he never knew when he might need a helping hand on a project. After San Francisco Moses and Tuttle headed up to Tacoma for several days to sketch. Then they continued on to their next contract in Portland. In Portland they were also able to pick up a few extra projects in addition to painting for the theatre.

To be continued…

After they got the Tacoma theatre opened, and Moses sent Loitz to Portland and he went on to Riverside. During his stay in Tacoma, Moses had closed two contracts: one for the Marquam Theatre in Portland, Oregon, and another in Riverside, California.

By 1889, Portland’s downtown had shifted inland after the immediate growth surrounding the arrival of the Northern Pacific Railroad in 1883. Phillip Marquam began work on a building that would later bear his name and include a performance space – the Marquam Grand Opera House. It was the city’ first modern office building and recorded to be “ a magnificent theatre.” Once considered to be located on the outskirts of town, it soon became prime urban real estate. The complex was a ten-story office building with a five-story theatre. The entrance to the theatre was on Morrison Street with side entrances on 6th and 7th. The building had steam heat and was powered with electricity. The opera house seating was 1,600 and the opening production was “Gounod’s Faust” starred Emma Junch. Later entertainers and lecturers included Sarah Bernhardt, George Backer, Mark Twain, and Maurice Barrymore.

Philip Augustus Marquam acquired the lot at the corner of SW Sixth and Morrison from William W. Capman in 1854 as payment of $500 in legal fees. Marquam resided on the property and then constructed other dwellings nearby. In the late 1880s he began planning the Marquam Grand Opera House in the Marquam Building. These were all adjoining structures that would cost approximately $600,000 to complete.

An early manager of the performance venue was future Portland mayor George Luis Baker. The opera house itself was later known by a series of titles, including Loews Theater, the Hippodrome, the Pantages, and the Orpheum. A Portland newspaper, The Oregonian called it “one of the neatest theaters of the west.”

By 1904 it was advertised as the Marquam Grand Theatre or simply the Marquam Grand.

The Marquam Building was sold in 1912 to a real estate speculator, Henry Pittock. Pittock was the founder and publisher of The Oregonian. Pittock and his son-in-law, Frederick Leadbeather intended to remodel the building to serve as headquarters for the newly organized Northwestern National Bank Company. Pittock hired general contractor Ernest Boyd MacNaughton to supervise the work.

Part of the building collapsed during renovation, possibly because of substandard masonry used in the original construction. After the collapse, discussion increasingly focused upon the need for a newer, modern building. In a letter to the editor of The Architect and Engineer, one writer stated that “…as Portland advanced from a sleepy overgrown village to a half-grown city, the building became a home for quack doctors and patent medicine fakers…” and that the bricks used in construction were soft and of poor material. He implied that the collapse was not a disaster but a blessing. Pittock fired MacNaughton and hired architect A. E. Doyle to demolish the Marquam Building and erect what would become the American Back Buiding.

The rise and fall of the Marquam Theatre is available online at: https://www.allclassical.org/the-rise-and-fall-of-the-marquam-grand-a-tragedy/

To be continued…

Thomas G. Moses and Ed Loitz all enjoyed the town of Tacoma and their work, yet hoped to return home and work on other projects near their families. Before leaving the area, Moses made a side trip to Seattle and closed a deal with John Cort (ca. 1861– November 17, 1929). The scenery work would be later done at the studios in Chicago and shipped to Cort in Seattle.

Born in New York, Cort started his career as part of a comedy duo called “Cort and Murphy.” He ten managed a theatre in Cairo, Illinois, before heading west to Seattle, Washington. In Seattle, he managed the Standard Theater. This venue was considered a “box house,” or a cross between a saloon and variety theater. His theatre became one of Seattle’s leading establishments and was considered on of the pioneers for theater circuits. This meant that Cort booked the same act successively into multiple cities. This made it worthwhile for an acting company or any performance troupe to tour to remote locations.

The “Cort Circuit” was one of the first national theater circuits and at one time. Cort was so successful that by 1888 he built a new 800-seat theatre on the southeast corner of Occidental and Washington streets in Seattle. It was the second theatre that Cort opened in Seattle. The first Standard Theatre was located on Second Street between South Main and South Washington Street.

Unlike the old Standard Theater, his new building had electric Edison lighting, as well as steam hear and electric service bells. The structure was a wood frame building with a corner entrance.

It was Seattle’s first theater with electric lighting. Unfortunately, his theatre burned to the ground in the Great Seattle fire of 1889. This June 6 fire burned nearly all of Seatlle’s entertainment venues. Cort reopened a performance venue two weeks later in a tent to continue his business and provide a place for booked productions. By November he had erected a replacement for the Standard Theatre. This was the new theatre that Moses had contracted to paint scenery for while on the job at the Tacoma Theatre. He was in the right place at the right time.

Cort later left Seattle during the depression that followed the Panic of 1893 when much anti-vice legislation was put into place. However, he returned after the Klondike Gold Rush to build the Grand Opera House on Cherry Street.

By 1903, Cort’s circuit controlled 37 theaters throughout the American West. This allowed him to compete with some success against the Eastern entertainment establishment. He even signed an agreement with Marcus Klaw and Abraham Erlanger who were leading booking agents and Cort’s theatres became part of the Klaw and Erlanger Circuit.

However, Klaw and Erlanger’s power continued to spread, negatively impacting many other theatre circuit owners such as that ran by Cort. By 1910, Cort helped organize the Independent National Theatre Owner’s Association. This was a group of circuits that attempted a break with the New York-based theatre syndicates, such as Klaw and Erlanger. They allied with the independent Shubert Organization and eventually forced many theatre that were controlled by eastern syndicates to book other productions. In retaliation for Cort’s participation with this movement, Klaw and Erlanger backed the construction of Seattle’s Metropolitan Theatre. In turn, Cort headed to New York where he became a notable producer and manager, founding the Cort Theatre, The Cort Theatre is still located at 138 West Broadway between Sixth and seventh avenues in the theatre district of downtown Manhattan. It still remains a fixture of Broadway and was designated a New York City landmark on November 17, 1987.

Interestingly, Cort was a founder for the Fraternal Order of Eagles (F.O.E.).

To be continued…

Here is a great link for Seattle’s Theatre History: http://www.seattletheatrehistory.org/

On arriving in Tacoma, Washington, Thomas G. Moses and Ed Loitz checked into the Fife Hotel.

The Fife Block was finished in 1888 and was considered to be one of the largest multi-storied structures in Tacoma. It lasted until 1925 when it was demolished to build a parking lot for the new Winthop Hotel.  Moses and Loitz’s lodging accommodations were only located only two blocks from the theatre and an easy walk in this bustling area. The Tacoma Theater would become one of the city’s main downtown attractions after opening in the spring of 1890.

The Tacoma Opera House Company commissioned a group of architects to design an office and theatre block in downtown Tacoma. At this time, Tacoma was experiencing a building boom. It began shortly after the Northern Pacific Railroad first reached Tacoma in 1883. Chicago theatre architect James M. Wood (see my previous installment #214 ) designed the Tacoma Theatre. Wood was a native of New York City, born in 1841. Early in his career, he moved to Chicago and eventually opened an architectural firm for himself. He completed many designs for theaters, opera houses and concert halls throughout the United States. In Tacoma, Wood was assisted by local architect August F. Heide (1862-1943). The architect who had a hand in the theatre design was John Galen Howard (1864-1931). Galen had previously worked in Los Angeles (1887-1888) and would later return to the East Coast after Tacoma. Howard also worked with Sydney Lowell, who completed the larger building’s interior design. Others involved in this portion of the project were Moore and Clark, (building contractors), Spierling & Linden (interior decorators), Thomas Moses (scenic artist), Charles H. Smith (stage carpenter) and the Peterman Manufacturing Company (manufacturer of the carved woodwork).

The Tacoma Opera House was also called the Tacoma Theatre. Vintage photographs have captured images of the “Tacoma Theatre” sign. The building overlooked Commencement Bay and its tide flats to Mt. Tacoma (called Mt. Rainier by out-of-town visitors) Two months after opening, a fire occurred on March 7, 1890. Over the years, its name changed as the theatre underwent a series of renovations: the “Malan-Magrath Theater” in 1905, the “Orpheum” in 1918, the “Broadway” from 1927-1933, and the Music Box Theatre after 1933.. Performers at the Tacoma Theatre included Sarah Bernhardt (1891 and 1918), Mark Twain (1895), Alla Nazimova (1910), Al Jolson (1915) and Harry Houdini (1924). Much of the above information was located at: http://pcad.lib.washington.edu/building/4751/ Sadly, the Tacoma Theatre was destroyed by fire on April 30, 1963.

While Moses and Loitz were working on the scenery, visitors would stop buy and watch the two paint. Moses wrote, “The drizzling weather that followed for some weeks made me feel blue and homesick. We finally got started and was over-run with visitors.” One of the many locals that went to watch the progress was Mr. Blackwell, President of the Tacoma National Bank and also President of the Opera House Company. Moses recorded that Mr. Blackwell liked his woodland scene so much that he received a commission for a landscape. Blackwell offered Moses $200.00 to paint a watercolor like it.

I own a Moses oil painting of Mount Rainier from 1926. This is just one example that Moses would return many times to this area for both theatre work and sketching trips.

To be continued…

On April 6, 1889, the Oakland Tribune reported, “Thomas Moses is in Auburn” (page 7). He was there to stay for a while and Ella was pregnant with their fourth child.

During his time in California, Moses made some models and did $1000.00 worth of painting for the State Fair Show in Sacramento. He and Loitz worked on this extra project while finishing the scenery for Booth and Barrett. This would have been while painting the New California Theatre. On completing the Sacramento job, Mr. Tubin (the head man) gave Moses $50.00 and Loitz $10.00 for their earnest endeavors to make this show the best on the grounds. It was a Mother Goose Fairy Tale for the children and was presented under a big tent.

Extra work for Moses included painting the scenery for a production of “Hamlet” while at the New California. It was so well received that they wanted Moses to accompany them back East and repeat it in Chicago. However, he had too much work on his hands already and remained at the New California Theatre to complete their contract with Booth & Barrett. Joe Murphy was another client who played at the New California and hired Moses to paint some additional pieces for his show. Moses’ painted scenery was getting a lot of attention and his skills as a scenic artist were in high demand.   Moses wrote, “Mr. Hayman wanted me to sign a contract and remain at the theatre for $75.00 per week. I couldn’t do it.”

This would have been a wonderful compliment to Moses, but it also posed a threat to the Sosman & Landis studio. Moses had already left for greener pastures already. It was just a matter of time before he realized that he could make a much better living working by himself instead of remaining on salary with the studio.

Work was plentiful and Moses’ small family was growing. They celebrated the birth of Rupert on July 24 and they were making a lot of friends in the area. Sosman & Landis must have sensed that Moses might never return and soon called him back to Chicago for another painting project. There was a drop curtain to paint for Evansville, Indiana. Moses insisted on painting it in California and simply shipping it back to the studio. He recalled the difficulty in shipping back the drop to Chicago before it was sent on to Evansville. By September, he was sent on the road for another project, effectively giving up his hope to remain in Los Angeles. That fall, he sent his family back to Chicago. He wrote, “Ella and the four children started for home September 23 – some job for her. But she got along nicely as the passengers were awfully good to her and Pitt was a great deal of help.”

After his family left, Moses and Loitz headed to Tacoma, Washington to paint scenery for the new opera house. It was an opportunity to not only paint scenery, but also sketch the picturesque landscape surrounding the bustling town. Moses wrote, “My first view of Mt. Shasta I shall never forget. It was sunset and all the foreground and middle distance was in shadow.

Made a rapid pencil sketch and have since painted it in watercolor and oil, with some success.” From the beginning of the train ride it was an adventure for the two. During the trip, Moses was sketching the mountains from the steps of the sleeper, when the double-head locomotive broke away from the train and continued rapidly ahead without the cars. They immediately pulled the brakes, forcing the loose cars to stop. Both Moses and Loitz recognized the dangerous situation and leapt from the train. Had the eleven cars started down the oncoming steep grade, they would have run out of control. They were stranded for a bit while waiting for the engine to return and pick up the cars.

To be continued…

Moses arrived in San Francisco on February 3, 1889. Moses rented a new house at 1715 Eddy Street. It was some distance out, but near a good school. He wrote, “Ella and the children were certainly glad to see me back and I was glad to get back. We were soon packed up and on our way to Frisco.” Loitz soon joined him and they started painting by February 21. Despite of the “knocking” he received from local artists, Moses had lot of newspaper publicity. He recorded that this put him “on the map in Frisco in big time.” The theatre opened in May and his East Indian Drop Curtain received some very good notice. Moses wrote, “my scenery was even praised by the previous knockers, so I must have done my best.”

He had been working on the remaining scenery for the New California Theatre. Here is the article in its entirety from the Oakland Daily Evening Tribune (Friday, April 19, 1889, page 3) as it is certainly worth the read!

The New California Theatre

“The New California theatre in San Francisco approaches completion so rapidly and systematically that it is safe to promise that the grand opening of the beautiful edifice by Messrs. Booth and Barrett will occur as announced, May 13^th. There are so many new and striking departures in the plan and construction of Mr. Hayman’s new theater, all tending to the comfort and safety of actors, as well as patrons, that it will be, when finished, the only theater of its kind in the country.   The building itself is a massive fire proof structure, isolated entirely on three sides, and adjoining, by a brick wall without opening of any kind, the building of the City Fire Department, the wall of which is also a solid fireproof one. From the spacious and beautiful arched entrance on Bush street the floor rises by gradual ascent, without any break whatever until the auditorium is reached, the massive iron stairs leading to the balcony and upper circle rising without a curve from the extreme right of the vestibule. Owing to the very slight curve of the dress circle and balcony rail, there are no side seats, nearly every one presenting a full front to the stage, which by this arrangement is brought much nearer than is generally the case.

The absence of wood in the construction of the auditorium, which is iron-lathed throughout, and the iron rails and chairs, render protection from fire absolutely certain. Between the auditorium and the stage there rises from the foundation to the roof a massive brick wall in which the immense proscenium arch, 38 feet wide and 39 feet high, is backed y an absolutely fire-proof curtain, hung on a wire cable secured to the brick work by heavy iron rings. In the roof over the stage there are six large skylights that open automatically at a temperature of 150 degrees, allowing heat or smoke to escape instead of being carried over the house. The hose appliances and automatic sprinkling attachment will furnish abundant means for promptly extinguishing an incipient fire, and as the scenery is all chemically treated and prepared with an incombustible paint, another cause of danger is removed.

While every possible precaution had been taken to prevent cause for panic, ample means are provided for immediate egress by fourteen exits, fur on each upper floor and six downstairs, and it is believed that the house, which will seat 1800 persons can be emptied in three or four minutes if no rushing of crowding occurs. Incandescent electric lights alone will be used in the house, no arrangement being made for gas, either o the stage or in the auditorium. Three separate engines with dynamos are provided, two of which will be held in reserve in case of accident, and all the usual effects of colored lights on the stage will be given by a system of switches which will produce instantaneous changes.

As far as possible, drops only will be used on the stage, which has facilities for hanging sixty-two drops, thirty by forty-five feet in size. In case grooves are needed, an ingenious invention on the plan of the parallel ruler will be employed, which permits lifting the grooves out of the way when not in use. The largest and most varied stock of scenery ever is being furnished a new house is now being painted by Thomas Moses, the artist for Messrs. Sosman & Landis of Chicago, whose light embraces thirty-two full sets, requiring 7000 yards of linen. The feature of horizon settings is a semi-circle rod on which is hung by rings, dispensing entirely with wings and giving the effect of great distance. Five different street scenes, complete in every detail,; five Gothic interiors of entirely different character, French, modern, plain, and fancy chambers, palaces, prison, kitchen, and garret – each scene requiring fifteen to twenty pieces – are already finished or under way, besides a number of exteriors of great beauty and variety.

There are thirty dressing rooms, separated from the stage by brick, fireproof wall, and provided with hot and cold water, retiring rooms, and other comforts usually unknown to actors. The dressing rooms have windows looking out into the open court, and are provided with improved fire escapes. The chairs in the auditorium are of the latest style, and there are eight beautiful pagoda like proscenium boxes, decorated in the East Indian style, which, indeed, is the general style of the house decoration, the drop curtain representing a hunting scene in the Indies.

Every arrangement for the comfort and convenience of patrons has been made, including a comfortable smoking room for gentlemen and a luxurious and elegantly furnished parlor and retiring room absolutely sacred to the ladies. The hotel to which the new California Theater is an adjunct will not be finished until some time after the completion of the theater, which is already well booked for sterling attractions to follow the great Booth and Barrett season which opens it.”

There is so much to comment on, especially the fire prevention system and fire-proof paint on the scenery. This is fifteen years before the fire at the Iroquois Theatre in Chicago. As usual, California is ahead of the game. But there also is conscious decision to not have grooves, yet make allowances for those who still want them. They are cutting edge and ahead of their time. What a great article for future analysis.

To be continued…

In 1888, Thomas G. Moses secured a substantial amount of work at the Grand Theatre, Spring Street Theatre and New California Theatre in California. He envisioned so many projects in one area that he decided to temporarily relocate his family to California. They rented three rooms in a private home on Temple Street for $50.00 per month, but there was a “land boom” in Los Angeles and everything was expensive.

After a summer of constant travel the Moses family departed for California on August 25 and arrived in Los Angeles on August 31. They had rented their fully-furnished Chicago house to a dentist, wife and a bull dog. Moses later wrote that the bulldog “made antiques of all our rugs and draperies.”

Moses was constantly on the go and ready to settle in one spot for a while. California must have seemed like a wonderful opportunity to reconnect with Ella and his children. He had been crossing the country from coast-to-coast, juggling painting projects from Pennsylvania to California. Pennsylvania projects included theatre in South Bethlehem and Altoona. By September 17 he completed the scenery for the Grand Theatre and started the Spring Street theatre painting by Sept. 25. The few days in between projects, he and Ella enjoyed several days running about Santa Monica and other resorts. During this time they discovered an old school mate, Mary Jones, now Mrs. Connell, living directly opposite of them – a happy surprise.

Moses’ Spring Street Theatre project lasted from September 25 until November 20. At its completion, he fully expected to go to San Francisco and start on the New California theatre job as Booth and Barrett would be performing there in December. The New California Theatre job was later noted in the Dec. 17, 1888, publication of the Los Angeles Daily. The newspaper printed that “Booth and Barrett will open the new California Theatre in San Francisco, and we will again have the pleasure of seeing them.”

But Moses was not there for the opening. Unfortunately, the studio farmed out Moses’ painting skills on another project. He was sent east again and arrived in Chicago on November 27. There, Moses and Ed Loitz packed up their supplies and left for La Crosse, Wisconsin to began work on some scenery by December 1.

It took a month, but the two finished their project by January 1, 1889. Again, he expected to go back to his family in California, but there were some projects in the studio and he remained in Chicago. Moses wrote, “The new year of 1889 found me in a grouch, as I found I had fallen shy of $4000.00 for the past year. After all the hard work, I put in a month a round the studio and left Chicago the 30th of January. ” He was constantly away from his family and they were again spiraling into debt. I cannot imagine Moses’ frustration. He must have felt an utter failure as not only a husband and father, but also as a scenic artist. There was so much work to be had and he was not making any of the profits.

To be continued…