John C. Bronaugh and Benjamin F. Dunn managed the Kansas
City Scenic Company, established in approximately 1890. Dunn functioned as the president
of the company, with Bronaugh as general manager and treasurer. It was
Bronaugh, however, who was credited with establishing the firm. He moved from
his hometown of Olathe, Kansas, to Kansas City, the same years that Lem Graham
arrived and started a scenic studio, possibly the earliest iteration of Kansa
City Scenic Co.
Bronaugh’s 1925 obituary provides a wealth of information,
so here is the article in its entirety:
“J. C. Bronaugh, 63, K. C. Pioneer Dies.
“John C. Bronaugh, formerly upper house alderman and widely
known leader in Kansas City democratic circles died today at his home at 408
East Twenty-seventh street. He was 63 years old.
“Mr. Bronaugh had been ill more than three years, suffering
with complications of the liver. He went to Mayo clinic in Rochester, Minn.,
three years ago for an operation, following which he moved with his family to Pasadena,
California, for the betterment of his health.
“After three years residence in Pasadena, Mr. Bronaugh
returned to Kansas City six weeks ago and remained here until his death.
“Mr. Bronaugh had lived in Kansas City forty-one years and
was a treasurer and general manager of the Kansas City Scenic company which he
established 35 years ago. He was born January 3, 1862 in Cass country,
Missouri.
“Active in Democratic politics for many years, Mr. Bronaugh
served as upper house alderman under the second administration of former Mayor
Henry L. Jost and under the second administration of the late Mayor James
Cowgill, and his successors, Sam B, Strother and Frank H. Cromwell.
“While in the council Mr. Bronaugh was chairman of the joint
finance committee. With the exception of two years, he was a member of the
Democratic county committee from 1902 to 1920 and is a past president of the
Jackson County Democratic club.
“Mr. Bronaugh was a member of the Masonic bodies of the
city, of the Arrat Shrine and of the Elks. He was a life member on the research
Hospital association and had been a director of the hospital several years.
“Mr. Bronaugh is survived by the widow, Mrs. Lula Miller
Bronaugh, whom he married in 1896 in Baldwin, Kan.; son, John G. Bronaugh, 408
East Twenty-seventh street and another son, George M. Bronaugh, and a daughter,
Miss Cleda May Bronaugh, who lived in the family home in Pasadena. Two sisters,
Mrs. Lela Lancaster, of Olathe, Kan., and Mrs. Morena Lee, of Peculiar, Mo.,
also survive.
The funeral services will be at 2:30 o’clock tomorrow
afternoon in the Mellody-Joyce-Taylor undertaking establishment, 3133 Euclid
avenue. Gate City lodge, No. 5 A.F. and A.M., will be in charge of the
services, Burial will be in a vault in Forest Hill cemetery.-K.C. Post, July
15.
Deceased was a cousin of F. W. and Miss Cora Bronaugh, east
of Clinton. He was a great worker for Wall Bronaugh, deceased, who ran for
railroad commissioner.”
John C. Bronaugh’s obituary from 1925.
Tomorrow I explore Bronaugh’s connection to the Dunn family.
The establishment of the Kansas City
Scenic Co. was briefly summed up in an article about its two founders in 1922.
They both grew up in Olathe, Kansas, and the “Jackson County Democrat,” reported,
“Ben Dunn and John Bronaugh, proprietors of the Kansas City Scenic Company, a
concern which for many years has provided scenery for theatres throughout the
country, were in Olathe Sunday visiting friends and boyhood stamping [sic.]
grounds. Benn Dunn was raised in Olathe and went to school with the owner of
this paper, who reported that Ben put in a good deal of time drawing scenery of
one kind of another, some horrifying to the vigilant teacher who often
confiscated his works of art. John Bronaugh was raised on the old Bronaugh farm
west of Olathe. He is not only a business man, but is also influential in
Kansas City politics” (9 June 1922, page 3) In Bronaugh’s 1925 obituary, he was
credited with founding the Kansas City Scenic Co. in 1890 (The Clinton Eye,
Clinton, Missouri, 24 January, 1925, page 4).
However, the earliest mention of the
company that I have located to date is 1887. Neither Bronaugh nor Dunn were
associated with the firm that year. In 1888 and 1889, Benjamin F. Dunn was
listed in the Kansas City Directory as an employee of Lemuel L. Graham. By 1890, Dunn began representing the Kansas
City Scenic Co. working on a new opera hall in Little River, Kansas. The
“Little River Monitor” reported, “The carpenters work on the new opera hall is
going on at a lively rate, Canfield & Co. are doing the work in good shape,
Messrs. Tschudi, Dunn and Oldham, of the Kansas City Scenic company, are
painting a set of scenes for the hall, and are doing a fine job. The mammoth drop
curtain is a beauty. It is ornamented with the business cards of our merchants
and others, and will be first class in every particular” (16 June 1887, page 3).
J. M. Tschudi was a sign painter in Emporia, Kansas, and I will cover his life
in the next few posts.
By 1891, the company began to
dramatically expand their reach, targeting stages not only in nearby states but
also much farther south. On July 9, the “Kansas Patron” reported, “Mr. John
Bronaugh, one of the firm of the Kansas City Scenic company started Tuesday of
this week on an extended trip through Texas in the interest of the company. In
passing Olathe, owing to circumstances over which he has no control, as yet, he
was compelled to stop and spend the night, much to the delight of – his
friends” (page 5). Two years later, the same newspaper clarified that Bronaugh
was “the traveling member of the Kansas City Scenic Co. (Kansas City Patron, 13
July 1891, page 3). He was the firm’s traveling salesman at first and Dunn
painted the scenery. By 1897 Bronaugh was still listed as the firm’s treasurer
and manager with Dunn as the president (Miami Republican, 1 Oct. 1897, page 3).
On October 11, 1891, the “Topeka
Daily Capitol” included an article on the Kansas City Scenic Co., noting, “This
well known company, the largest scene painting concern in the western United
States placed on exhibition during last weeks fair some of its finest work…At
their headquarters 2331 and 2333 Grand avenue, Kansas City, Mo., they have a
building built and especially arranged for scene painting. The workman takes up
his station on the second floor and his canvas slides up and down before him
through forty feet of space. Thus his curtain does not have to be rolled
neither does he climb up and down the ladder” (page 8).
From the “The Kansas City Catholic,” 6 July 1892, page 2.
The company then opened a regional
office in Jefferson, Missouri during 1892 (St. Louis Post-Dispatch, 29 March,
1892, page 2).
In 1894, the “Kansas Patron”
reported, “Mr. John Bronaugh of the Kansas City Scenic company was in town
Friday meeting his many friends. He also met the Board of Public Works at D.
and D. Institute and was awarded the contract for painting the scenery for the
new chapel. The board exhibited good judgment in making this award as there are
no better artists than Frank Dunn and John Bronaugh” (Olathe, Kansas, 26 April
1894, page 3). In this relationship, Dunn was the primary artist and Bronaugh
was the salesman, just like Sosman & Landis in Chicago; one was selling and
one was painting, but both deeply understood the painted aesthetic and
mechanics of stage settings.
The staff the studio continued to
increase over the years. In 1895, J. E. Wagner was listed as traveling for the
Kansas City Scenic Co. in Harrisonville, Mo. (The Olathe Mirror, 31 Jan, 1895,
page 4). J. C. Kloos was the “expert stage machinist.” That year Kloos
overhauled the stage of the opera house in Pittsburgh, Kansas, installing new
scenery, two new drop curtains and other effects (Pittsburgh Daily Smelter, 6
Aug. 1895, page 4). The local newspaper reported, “Mr. Kloos has the reputation
of being the most rapid stage setter in the United States and is the man who
put on the scenery at San Francisco for the celebrated ‘Fall of Pompeii.’ He
was late with Matt Morgan, the stage artist who is without equal.” The
following day, the “Pittsburgh Daily Smelter” elaborated, “Mr. J. C. Kloos, the
clever artist and machinist…is not an artist of a day but a man who has years
experience and who knows just where and how to put that experience to the best
practical use as his work in the Opera House will attest” (7 Aug, 1895, page
4). In 1896, J. B. Lane from Pittsburgh, Kansas, secured a position with the
company too (The Pittsburgh Daily, 25 May 1896, page 4).
In 1897, W. H. Walborn, scenic artist and salesman, was added to the Kansas City Scenic Co. staff. The “Downs Times” reported, “W. H. Walborn, representing the Kansas City Scenic Co., is about to put up a new drop curtain at the opera house. He has been canvassing for advertisements for the front of the curtain. Mr. Walborn is also doing this line of work in various other towns in this section of the state” (18 Nov 1897, page 5).
Kansas City Scenic Co. ad drop, now at the University of Texas – Austin. Photograph by Karen Maness.
The “Kansas City Weekly” expanded on Walbourn’s contribution to the company in 1897, noting, “W. H. Walbourn, who represents the Kansas City scenic Co., and who is placing considerable work in Kansas, Nebraska, and Colorado, at one time resided in Midddletown, Penn . and distinguished himself by ‘knocking out’ a heavy weight that was vey insulting and stuck on himself. Mr. Walbourn is one of the finest artists with a paintbrush that ever traveled in this part of the country. His process are reasonable and his work first-class, and satisfaction guaranteed” (26 Nov., 1897, page 2). He was still with the studio in 1898, painting a Venetian-themed drop curtain for the new public hall and opera house in Jamestown, Kansas (The Kansas Optimist, 3 Dec. 1898, page 5). The newspaper reported, “The new drop curtain for the stage, just completed by Mr. W. H. Walborn of Kansas, a scenic painter of wide reputation, is a beautiful work of art. The central picture of this curtain represents one of the water-ways of Venice, painted in colors. The picture is bordered with neat and attractive advertising cards of Jamestown merchants.” That same year he also delivered a new drop curtain to the opera house in Independence, Kansas. The local newspaper reported, “Mr. Walborn, who has been in the city for some days” was securing “twenty ‘ads’ from our businessmen to adorn the border.”
By 1900, Walborn began partnering
with another scenic artist on projects, both representing the Kansas City
Scenic Company, to deliver new scenery to the new opera house in Stanberry,
Missouri. The “Stanberry Headlight” reported, “Mr. Powers has secured the
services of Messrs. W. H. Walborn and Harry Minor, two scenic artists, who
certainly are artist with the brush. They are painting new scene and side-wings
throughout and it is the finest work we have ever witnessed” (Stanberry,
Missouri, 2 May 1900, page 1). This is the same Harry Minor who published the
dramatic directories.
Kansas City Scenic Co. drop delivered to the Elk’s Opera House (now known as the Tabor Opera House) in Leadville, Colorado.
In 1925, Bronaugh passed away,
leaving control of the company to Dunn, more on Bronaugh tomorrow. The company
was still running in 1931, when founder Benjamin F. Dunn (b. 1862) passed away.
At 69 years old, he was the president of Kansas City Scenic Co. (The Morning
Chronicle, Manhattan, Kansas, 28 July 1931, page 1).
To date, I have identified the
following thirty-two venues that purchased scenery from Kansas City Scenic Co. between
1897 and 1910. I am sure that there are more, but only a few of this list are
still standing, let alone have any scenery:
Kansas Theaters:
Opera
Hall in Little River, Kansas (1887)
New Hall
in Baldwin, Kansas (1892)
New
Chapel Hall in Olathe, Kansas (1894)
New
Parochial School Hall in St. Mary’s, Kansas (1894)
Mallory
Opera House in Paolo, Kansas (1897)
Kansas
City carnival parades float (1897)
Opera
House in Independence, Kansas (1898)
Dr.
A. B. Seelye’s New Theatre in Abilene, Kansas (1900)
Olathe,
Kansas. Grange Opera house. (1901)
Sapp’s
New Theatre in Galena, KS (1905)
Missouri Theaters:
New Gillis
Theatre in Kansas City, MO, (1897)
Opera House in
Stanberry, Missouri (1900)
Jefferson Theatre
in De Soto, MO (1903) gone
People’s
Theatre in Kansas City, MO (1906)
New Hubbell
Theatre in Weston, MO (1906)
Lyric
Theatre in Fredericktown, MO (1908)
Arkansas Theaters:
King Opera
House in Van Buren, Arkansas (1907)
Imperial
Theatre in Marianna, Arkansas (1908)
Alabama Theaters:
Meyer’s
Opera House in Sheffield, Alabama (1897)
Kentucky Theaters:
Opera House
in Clinton, Kentucky (1910)
Louisiana Theaters:
Auditorium
Theatre in Monroe, Louisiana (1903)
Colorado Theaters:
Elks Opera
House, Silver City, Colorado (1908)
Elks Opera
House, Leadville, Colorado (1902)
West’s
Theatre, Trinidad, Colorado (1908)
Idaho Theatres:
Rigby
Opera House in Rigby, Idaho (1903)
Nebraska Theaters:
North
Opera House in Columbus, Nebraska (1903)
New Mexico Theaters:
Coliseum
Theatre in Raton, New Mexico (1906)
Texas Theaters:
New Opera
House in Brownwood, Texas (1907)
Opera House in Lockhart, Texas (1907)
Harryman
Opera House in Brownwood, Texas (1908)
Seguin Opera
House in Sequin, Texas (1908)
Kempenstein Theatre in Sequin, Texas (1910)
Advertisement placed by the Kansas City Scenic Co. when the Majestic Theatre opened.
Lemuel Laken Graham. From “The Brooklyn Daily Times,” 29 Dec. 1914, page 12.
For quite a few years, I believed that the history of the
Kansas City Scenic Co. was integrally linked to L. L. Graham. Lemuel Laken
Graham was a friend, fellow scenic artist and one-time business partner of
Thomas G. Moses. Moses credited Lem Graham with the founding a scenic studio in
Kansas City sometime during 1884. I mistakenly believed this studio was Kansas
City Scenic Co. Fortunately, I was able to connect several dots while preparing
a series of documents for the Tabor Opera House in Leadville, Colorado; this
venue boasts a 1902 Kansas City Scenic Co. collection.
In 1882, Moses and Graham established the scenic studio Moses
& Graham. The partnership only lasted until 1884 when Graham moved from
Chicago to Kansas City, founding another scenic studio – Graham & Davis. This
partnership was also short-lived, lasting only two years, but Graham continued
a studio under his own name, Lemuel L. Graham. In 1888, one of the artists in
his employ was Benjamin F. Dunn, future president of the Kansas City Scenic Co.
and childhood friend of later studio founder, John C. Bronaugh. Bronaugh was
listed as a Butcher, working at 2018 Grand ave. and residing at 2006 Grand Ave
that same year.
I have to wonder if Graham’s scenic studio was known as the
“Kansas City Scenic Co.” but he never officially registered or advertised the
business as such.
Back to 1882. In that year Moses recorded that when the theatre season closed, he left his position at Sosman
& Landis to partner with Lem Graham, I am focusing on the life of Graham today.
Little is known of Graham’s early
years, other than he was born in Michigan, about 1850, although some sources
list his birth year as early as 1845. Like Fred Megan, Jesse Cox, and many
other scenic artists, Graham began his theatrical career as a performer in a
touring company. In 1888, “Industries of Kansas City: historical,
descriptive, and statistical” included a section on Graham, reporting, “Mr. Graham
is an adept in this line, having followed the business upwards of twenty-five
years.” This suggests that Graham’s first theatrical work was in 1863.
Regardless of his start date, by 1870, an
“L. L. Graham” was touring with J. A. Lord’s Chicago Dramatic Co. Graham played
the role of Sir Charles Marlowe in “She Stoop’s To Conquer” that year. Starring
Louis Lord, his company toured throughout Kansas. (“The Daily Commonwealth,” 7
Jan. 1870, page 2). By the fall, Graham
was performing in “Frou-Frou” alongside Mary Graham (The Leavenworth Times, 22
Nov. 1870, page 4). It is unclear whether Mary was a relation or his wife.
By 1871, the “Junction City
Weekly Union” mentions Mr. L. L. Graham is a performer in “The
Ticket-of-Leave-Man.” Advertised as a “modern play,” Graham was credited with
personifying “Jem Dalton,” the tiger. The newspaper announced he “did it well,”
adding, “He is a young man of talent, and we believe a true artiste” (4 Feb,
1871, page 3). Few things make me smile, as thinking of a future scenic artist
and studio founder dressed up as a tiger.
In 1872, Graham again appeared
with Louie Lord’s Dramatic Company in their production of “Our American Cousin”
(Daily Commonwealth, 12 Jan. 1871, page 4), as well as a touring production
entitled “Buffalo Bill.” This production is a little confusing, as it was
advertised as a “Kansas romantic aboriginal spectacular specialty,” not really
a spectacle featuring William Cody, the actual “Buffalo Bill” (Daily
Commonwealth, 8 Dec. 1872, page 4). Something happens by the mid 1870s and
1880s, causing Graham to transition from a performer to a scenic artist. The
1888 publication, “Industries of Kansas City: historical, descriptive, and
statistical” included a section on Graham, report, “His first experience in the
school of art was had at McVickers’ Theater, Chicago, Ill. and subsequent
training in San Francisco, Cleveland, Memphis and New Orleans.”
On September 17, 1875, the “Times-Picayune”
reported, “opening of the Amusement Season. – The Academy of Music, always
first to open and last to close, has been entirely renovated, a new proscenium
and ceiling put up, which is being decorated by Mr. L. L. Graham, the Academy’s
scenic artist, who, by-the-by, showed us some fine specimens of his art during
the last season, repainted all over, new carpets, and other modern
improvements” (New Orleans, page 1).
Later that fall, the “New Orleans
Republican” reported that L. L. Graham painted the drop curtain for Bidwell’s
Academy of Music,“representing Tasso at the Court of Ferrara. Graham’s new drop
was to be “unrolled for the first time” on Sunday October 10 of that year (October
16, 1875, page 1). By winter, Graham was mentioned again in connection with the
Academy of Music’s scenic attributes: “The truly sublime piece of scenery in
the transformation scene is the handiwork of Mr. L. L. Graham, the skillful
artist, who gets up some very grand effects, and it riveted the gaze of the
spellbound audience” (26 Dec. 1875, age 1).
By the beginning of 1876 the
“Times-Picayune” reported, “ACADEMY OF MUSIC. –
To-night there will be a change of programme at this theatre in “Dead to
the World” in which Mr. France will appear a Philip Warwick, Flip, a negro, and Aunt Hannah. The drama is described as “replete with thrilling
effects, exciting situations, startling tableaux,” but no Indians. The play
appears to have achieved a remarkable run of twelve weeks at the London Grecian
Theatre, which would lead us to the conclusion that there is much merit in it.
At all events the public will have the opportunity of judging to-night. The
play will be ornaments with new scenery from the brush of Mr. L. L. Graham,
whose handiwork has ere now received its need of popular applause.” (New
Orleans, Jan 20, 1876, page 8). Graham remains associated with the Academy of
Music during the 1870s before moving to Chicago and working with another
well-known scenic artist, Henry C. Tryon. Both would later work at Sosman &
Landis in the 1880s.
In 1876 Graham partnered with
Tryon to deliver a new drop curtain and stock scenery to an opera house in
South Bend, Indiana. An article in the “Southbend Tribune reported, “L. L.
Graham of the academy of music in New Orleans, La., and Henry C. Tryon, of
McVicker’s theater of Chicago, scenic artists, are engaged at the opera house
in painting a new drop curtain, a wooded landscape, a place scene, a parlor
scene and others” (“South Bend Tribune,” 9 Aug, 1876). This seems to be a turning point, as Graham
becomes increasingly connected with the Chicago theatre scene.
By 1881, he was working at the
Academy of Music in Chicago. Enter Thomas G. Moses who is a young artists
working at Sosman & Landis. In fact, Moses is the first employee that
Joseph Sosman hires and the two go on the road, completing one project after
another secured by Perry Landis. Between trips in Chicago, Moses looked for a
second job as his finances are stretched thin after the birth of another child.
Moses secured a part-time position with Graham at the Academy of Music. The two
were painting for the Academy’s stock company, the same stock company that
included Moses’ sister Illie who is an actress [Illinois Moses]. By the way, in
1882, Graham is listed as an artist residing at 230 West Washington in the
Chicago Directory. Graham was also
listed as the scenic artist at the Standard Theatre in Chicago; this is before
partnering with Moses to form the new scenic studio Moses & Graham. Of the
partnership, Moses wrote, “We got together and I quit the firm after refusing a
big salary – that is, for me. Our first
contract was at Kalamazoo, Michigan. The
Academy of Music. We worked night and
day. I did all the foliage and I was
astonished. On seeing my stuff set, to see how I improved.
The Academy of Music in Kalamazoo, Michigan, was a 1250-seat opera house located on South Rose Street. The venue was directly across from Bronson. John McCullough’s “Virginius” was the opening production at the venue. The theater owners wanted to make it a big affair, so they paid Graham and Moses “a good price” for special scenery to accompany the production. Moses noted that they were all Roman scenes, recalling, “We spread ourselves and it was very pleasant work.”
After Kalamazoo, Moses and Graham
completed a project in Grand Rapids, Michigan for Redmond’s Opera House, also
built in 1882. The venue was later known as the Grand Opera House. While in
town, Moses recalled that Graham fell in love with the head waitress at his
boarding house; the two later married on Nov. 20, 1884. Her name was Elizabeth “Lizzie” West (b.
1860), and of her Moses wrote, “she proved to be a good wife and good
mother.” The Grahams celebrated the
birth of two children, Rachel Elizabeth (b. 1892) and Revard Parker (b. 1895),
Now, this was at least the second
marriage for Graham, if you read everything listed in the newspapers and
between the lines, he was married a few times.
His first marriage ended in divorce during 1870, Chicago. We know this
because the original divorce decree was destroyed during the Chicago fire. On
April 17, 1884, the “Inter Ocean” reported, “Martha Elizabeth Graham of
Cumberland, Maine, filed a petition in the Circuit Court yesterday for the
restoration of a decree of divorce. The decree was rendered against her on Nov.
30, 1870, in the Circuit Court of Cook Country in favor of Lemuel L. Graham and
was destroyed by the great Chicago fire.”
(page 8). That same year, a Lemuel L. Graham also severed marital
ties to Nellie H. Graham, as reported in the “San Francisco Examiner.” On Oct.
28, 1884, “Judge Maguire has granted Nellie H. Graham a divorce from Lemuel L.
Graham, willful neglect and desertion.” Interestingly, both of these events
occurred the same year he eventually married Lizzie. By 1889, Lizzie was
working as a seamstress.
Back to Moses & Graham in
1882… After completing scenery for the two opera houses in Kalamazoo and Grand
Rapids, the pair traveled to Elgin. At this time, John H. Young also joined
their team. Young would become one of the top Broadway designers in the first
decade of the 20th century. Of Young in 1882, Moses wrote, “He was then
working as a candy concern, but was delighted to join us.” Moses had previously worked with Young in
Michigan during the 1870s. I have written extensively about Young, see past
posts 140, 171-173, and 186.
Moses, Graham and Young next
worked on a project in
Racine, Wisconsin, where they painted scenery for the Black Opera House. By
this point, Moses wrote, “Graham and
I were doing much better now and we had two good jobs at the same time. He was a regular Shylock, a good fellow and a
hard worker, but altogether too close to please me.” I am not even going to hazard a
guess to his comment, but the two soon split; Graham and Young departed for
Hannibal, Missouri, leaving Moses alone to finish the Racine project.
By 1883,
Moses & Graham went after a project in Oshkosh, Wisconsin. Sosman &
Landis were also competing for the same work. Of the encounter, Moses wrote, “I met Mr. Landis there.
I got the contract. We rode to
Chicago together and met Mr. Sosman on our arrival. We were offered $45.00 a week. I wired Graham at Burlington. He answered $50.00 and extras. We closed for that. I had Oshkosh to finish, which I did and May
1st found Graham, Young and myself back on Clark Street at the
Sosman and Landis Studio.” Graham remained at Sosman & Landis until 1884.
In 1884 Graham partnered with a
“Mr. Davis” to establish a scenic studio in Kansas City, Missouri, named Graham
& Davis (Sioux City Journal. 9 May 1885, page 3). According to the newspaper
accounts, Davis married Cora in 1884. He only remained with the company for two
years before withdrawing and moving to Chicago. He was listed in the 1887
Chicago Directory, living at 850 W. Madison and working as a scenic artist. I
believe that this was the same William P. Davis (b. 1855), who later worked at
the Chicago Auditorium and established the Twin City Scenic Co. in Minneapolis,
Minnesota. Davis moved to Minnesota in 1894 and was listed in the St. Paul Directory
as the scenic artist for the Grand Opera House. Interestingly, Davis first
worked for Moses in Richmond, Indiana, during 1881; Will Davis was Moses’
assistant at the time, just before Moses partnered with Graham. All three were working in Chicago for Sosman
& Landis.
I explored the life of Frederick R. Megan yesterday.
Megan was a salesman for the Kansas City Scenic Co. during the early twentieth
century, selling a large scenery collection to the Elks Opera House in
Leadville during 1902.
Fred Megan and Thomas G. Moses later purchased the name “Sosman
& Landis” after the company closed in 1923. That year Sosman & Landis partnered
with Kansas City Scenic Co. to production scenery for productions in Olathe,
Kansas. The two companies had worked together over the decades, sharing both
artists and designs. One example of their working together was the 1902 scenery
collection delivered to Leadville, Colorado.
Note that scenery is credited to both Sosman & Landis and Kansas City Scenic Co. From the “Olathe Mirror,” Olathe, Kansas, 22 Feb 1923, page 3.
On February 22, 1923, the “Olathe Mirror” reported “Let’s
Go Peggy” was using scenery Sosman & Landis, Chicago, and Kansas City
Scenic (page 3). by On March 1, 1923,
the “Johnson County Democrat” announced that the Olathe American Legion
production, “The Play’s the Thing,” used the scenery for the was by both Sosman
& Landis and Kansas City Scenic Co. (Olathe, Kansas page 1).They continued
to run the firm successfully throughout the decade, delivering scenery to the Oakland
Scottish Rite in 1927.
From the “Olathe Mirror,” Olathe, Kansas, 22 Feb 1923, page 3.
Today’s posts, jumps ahead of my “Tales of a Scenic
Artists and Scholar” timeline, but is being included to provide some additional
context for the Tabor Opera House history.
Situated on the shores of Lake Merritt, Oakland’s
Scottish Rite was a staggering $1,500,000 project. The painting contract alone for
Moses was worth $36,000 (Oakland Tribune, 4 June 1927, page 3). Although this
seems an exorbitant, it is on par with what Tabor spent for his opera house in
Denver in 1881. Today, these projects would require an estimated $18,000,000.
From the “Oakland Tribune,” 12 Dec 1927, page 17.
On Dec. 12, 1927, the “Oakland Tribune” published the
article, “Stage Setting and Scenery are Artistic.” The article lists the major
players, Moses and Megan of Sosman & Landis, as well as their collaborative
endeavor with the Western Scenic Studio. Moses designed the scenery and Megan
designed the stage machinery. Here is the article in its entirety as it
contains such valuable information, especially in regard to the description of
the counterweight system:
“In keeping with the magnificent beauty of the new
Oakland Scottish Rite Temple is the stage scenery and equipment installed by
Thomas G. Moses, representing the Sosman and Landis company of Chicago. The
settings exemplify the degrees of Scottish Rite Masonry and portray an oriental
splendor whose style ranges from the Egyptian to the Assyrian, Persian, Gothic,
Grecian, Norman Gothic, Babylonian, ending in the land of the Druids of
Stonehenge, England.
“Moses bears the reputation of being the most sought-after
scenic artist in America. Not only is he known for his masterful production of
elaborate scenery and stage settings, but his own hand wields the brush in the
majority of his creations.
Thomas Gibbs Moses (1856-1934) pictured in the “Oakland Tribune,” 12 Dec, 1927, page 19.
“Into the stage settings for the Oakland Scottish Rite
Temple he has put the knowledge and ability of over fifty years of scenic
production work.
“The richness of the stage settings concurs with the art
of the ancient courts of Cyrus, Darius and Solomon, through the motif of the
scenery is to provide a harmonious background for the colorful robes used in
the Scottish Rite degree work.
“The ideas of members conferring the degree were combined
with those of the designer. Al painting was done at the new Tempe were the
designs could be discussed with the Oakland Scottish Rite officials. The
excellent result of the cooperation is apparent in the finished work. Earl
Sudderth and Lenn Harris, local artists, aided Moses in the actual painting of
the huge settings. [In 1925, Robert Earl Sudderth was listed as a scenic artist
working at the Western Scenic Studio].
“The scenery for the Oakland Scottish Rite Temple is the
largest Masonic scenery ever to be painted according to Moses. The drops on the
stage measure thirty by fifty feet while the average drop for this type of work
measure but twenty by thirty-six feet.
“The canvas employed in this work is a heavy six-ounce
duck tied to an iron pipe instead of wood. Moses started several months ago
painting a complete set of new designs using a large neutral cyclorama, forty
feet high and one hundred and thirty feet long, This is used as a background
for many of the sets [this is exactly what he delivered to Fort Scott, Kansas a
few years earlier].
“A special set of rigging was installed for the operating
of the stage scenery. The rigging was designed and planned by Ned [sic. Fred]
R. Megan, also of the Sosman & Landis company. Special concentration was
given the arrangement and construction of the rigging as the commodious stage
of the Oakland Scottish Rite Temple allows thirty-five drops to be raised out
of sight, This allows plenty of space for high sets, This is the first Scottish
Rite Temple to have wall slots, in which counterweight arbors travel without interfering
with the operators. In the old system the operator’s hands were in constant
danger f being injured by the counterweight frames. Steel sheaves, with ball
bearings, the best tiller rope cable, Cuban bolt hauling lines, irons arbors
with counterweights constitute the rigging equipment. Iron pipe battens are
used in place of the old style wooden battens. The materials for this rigging
was furnished by Oakland foundries. Patterns were shipped from the east while
additional ones were made here. Megan was aided in this work by L. A. Abrott,
of the Western Scenic studios.” Larry
Abrott, owner of Western Scenic Studios, was a member of the Oakland Scottish
Rite. In 1908, it was A. O. Sterling and Bart Marlone who opened Western Scenic
Studio and Stage Equipment Co. in the Grand Opera House of Des Moines, Iowa. On
July 4, 1908, “The Billboard” announced the opening of the firm, adding, “They
have a well-equipped studio and are prepared to turn out good work in the
shortest time possible. The write wishes them success” (Billboard, 4 July 1908,
Vol. 20, page 11). By 1929, Western Scenic Studios offices were located at 1527
Jackson St., Oakland. In 1929, the Sosman & Landis offices were located at
416 S. Kedzie Ave. in Chicago.
Now this article is a pretty big deal, as I cannot think
of a comparable one that describes the rigging with this level of detail, the
comparison of the old standards and new installation.
Advertisement in conjunction with the opening of the Oakland Scottish Rite, published in the “Oakland Tribune,” 12 Dec, 1927, page 17.The Oakland Scottish Rite with scenery by Thomas G. Moses of Sosman & Landis.
Horace Tabor’s financial fall in the 1890s resulted in the
sale of his two prized possessions, opera houses in Leadville and Denver. The Tabor Opera House in Leadville briefly
became known as the Weston Opera House before J. H. Herron purchased it. Herron
immediately sold the property to the Benevolent and Protected Order of Elks who
renovated it. The fraternal organization
began a massive building renovation in 1901. The $25,000 renovation by the Elks
included a new stage with fly loft and enlargement of the auditorium. There
were also many cosmetic changes made to the interior décor that included an
elk’s head mounted on the proscenium wall. Gone was the original painted décor and
characteristic of the 1870s theater.
The 1902 scenery collection delivered to the Tabor Opera House included at least six interior sets: two center door fancies, two plain interiors, a prison, and a Baronial Hall. Over the years, I have encountered dozens of examples of interior settings, especially in social halls and smaller venues. However, I have never encountered any on such an elaborate setting as at the Tabor Opera House. Not all interior sets at the Tabor Opera House are of the same quality, being produced by two different studios. The green gothic interior and yellow center door fancy are some of the best scenic art examples that I have encountered to date. They are products of Sosman & Landis, a firm subcontracted by Kansas City Scenic Co. in 1902.
1902 setting at the Tabor Opera House painted at the Sosman & Landis studio in Chicago, subcontractor of the Kansas City Scenic Co.1902 setting at the Tabor Opera House painted at the Sosman & Landis studio in Chicago, subcontractor of the Kansas City Scenic Co.
Both firms shared work and artists over the years, but in was F. R. Megan, the Kansas City Scenic Co. salesman, who secured the Leadville contract.
Kansas City Scenic postcard.
I am going to start F. R. Megan. Frederick Rishel
[sometimes noted as Richell]
Megan was born in Galesburg, Illinois on May 5, 1873. His father was Dr. John W. Megan, an Irish immigrant, and his mother was Cornelia Wookey, a native of New York; they were married in 1871 in Knox, Illinois. [I have to admit, reading “Cornelia Wookey” makes it difficult not to think about “Star Wars”].
The first mention of Frederick R. Megan is in an 1896
Kansas City Directory; his listing notes “trvlg” [traveling] and rmg [rooming]
at 1021 McGee. In 1897 Megan was performing and touring with the Barrett
& Barrett Company (“Leonardville Monitor,” Leonardville, Kansas, 2 Dec.
1897, page 8). By 1900 the US Census lists Megan’s wife as Thenia Jones, born
in Carroll, Arkansas around 1877. The couple was married in Jackson, Missouri,
on April 14, 1898, likely while Megan was touring. The transition from
performance to technical theater is not a great leap, as many 19th
century touring companies required their performers to complete backstage
tasks, including scene painting. Jesse Cox is only one example of a performer
who ended up enjoying a successful career as a scenic artist.
On July 19, 1900, Fred and Thenia
Megan celebrated the birth of their daughter, Anabel L. Megan; all were living
in Kansas City, Missouri.
Megan continued to appear in the Kansas City Directory
until 1918, with his first listing as Kansas City scenic Co. salesman in 1903.
However, we know that he was already with the company in 1901, as newspapers
published his association with the firm.
From “The Kansas City Catholic,” 6 July 1892, page 2.
In 1903, however, Megan established his residence at 507
Monroe, where he would continue to reside from for over a decade before moving
to 4136 Warwick Boulevard. Although he continued to be listed as a traveling
salesman for the Kansas City Scenic Studio Co. by 1920, Megan was listed as
Government Supervisor. Many scenic artists worked for the government on
painting projects during WWI, especially in regard to the development of
camouflage painting. The 1920 US Census listed Megan and his wife Thenia as
living a 16th Street in Washington, D.C., although Kansas City
Directories still included their entry.
Megan’s 1918 WWI draft registration card describes him as
tall and medium build, with blue eyes and grey hair. He was 45 years old at the
time. On his draft card Megan listed his occupation as traveling salesman for
the Kansas City Scenic Co,, located at 24th and Harrison Streets in
Kansas City, Missouri.
And then there is Megan’s connection to Thomas G. Moses.
After the death of Joseph S. Sosman in 1915, Sosman & Landis stockholders elected
Moses company president. He was a gifted artist and charming salesman, but was
not intricately connected to the same theatre and Masonic networks as his
predecessor. The company started to slip, losing projects to smaller companies
with the necessary connections. In the post-WWI years, Moses began to realize that
Sosman & Landis would not survive. By 1923, Moses wrote, “On our
return to Chicago we had a little chat with Fred Megan about buying into the
company and getting Hoyland and Lemle out. D.S. Hunt is also bobbing about for
the lease of the studio.” It is this
connection with Megan that has always peaked my interest. Megan was the consummate salesman, having
entered the studio scene early in his career. The opera house in Leadville was
one of his first big projects for Kansas City Scenic Co. that brought in Sosman
*& Landis as a subcontractor.
In 1923, Megan and Moses teamed up and leased the old Fabric
Studio in Chicago while they waited to purchased the Sosman & Landis name.
By 1924, Megan was on the road most of the time, with Moses making models in
his studio and painting scenery. This is how Sosman & Landis had most
successfully operated since the beginning- with Landis on the road and Sosman
in the studio. Now Megan was on the road and Moses was in the studio.
Moses and Megan would close the contract
for the Salt Lake Consistory scenery [Scottish Rite] during 1926. They would
also deliver scenery to the Oakland Scottish Rite in 1927 under the name of “Sosman
& Landis.” Moses and Megan continued working together until 1931. In 1933,
Megan was listed as the Sosman & Landis manager in Chicago, residing at 819
Dobson in the Evanston, Illinois, Directory.
At the time of Megan’s passing on April 16, 1946, his “usual
occupation” was listed as that of a “paint contractor.” At the time of his
death, he was married to Edith Wilkson and was living in La Joya, Texas. The
cause of his death was a heart attack.
Thomas G. Moses and Fred R. Megan became partners in 1923. They purchased the Sosman & Landis name after Hoyland-Lemle purchased the company contents at that same time.
Advertisement from the “Oakland Tribune,” 12 Dec 1927, Page 17
Frederick R. Megan’s history is elusive, but the little that
I have uncovered to date is quite interesting. Megan periodically pops up in
various newspaper articles during the late nineteenth century, eventually working
for the Kansas City Scenic Co. by 1901.
Megan’s business career initially appears in print during 1894. That year, Megan is listed as the editor for Dr. Megan & Son, publishers (Leonardville Monitor, Leonardville, Kansas, 8 Nov. 1894, page 4). The publication was advertised as “a spicy 5-column quarto, neatly printed and is Republican in politics,” suggesting the progressive leanings of the family and publication at the time.
Fred R. Megan was the son of a physician and surgeon. Dr.
James W. Megan. Like many in the medical profession, Megan traveled throughout
a region, establishing practices as the family moved from one small town to another.
With each move Dr. Megan established his practice in a slightly larger town,
until supplementing his income as a publisher. Megan’s various residences
included Pawnee Rock, Kansas, Little River and Home City, Kansas. By 1894 Megan
relocated his medical practice from Home City to Olsburg (Westmoreland
Recorder, 12 Oct.1893, page 8). On October 18, the “Olsburg News-Letter”
reported, “Dr. J. W. Megan expects to move to Leonardville after election and
will practice medicine there as well as look after editorial duties of the
Monitor” (1894, page 8).
Advertisement from the “Olsburg News-Letter,” 15 Feb, 1894, page 8
In Olsburg, Dr. Megan was an active member of the
Independent Order of Odd Fellows, Randolph Lodge, No. 216 (Randolph Enterprise,
3 May 1894, page 1). The Megan family also attended the Fostoria Baptist church
in Olsburg (Olsburg News-Letter, 9 August 1894, page 8).
After Olsburg, the Megans moved to Leonardville, Kansas,
where father and son commenced a new business venture – publishing. On October 25, 1894, the “Clay County Star”
reported, The Leonardville Monitor has changed hands, assuming editorial
charge, F. R. Megan, assuming editorial charge, and Dr. Megan & Son appear
as publisher. From appearances they start in with an excellent patronage and
will no doubt keep the paper up to its former high local standing” (25 Oct. 1894, page 3).
From the “Clay County Star,” 25 Oct 1894, page 3
By 1896, Megan relocated to Kansas City (The Topeka Daily
Capital, 9 April 1896, page 8). It is unclear what prompted the moved, or
caused the younger Megan to seek a career in the theatre. However, he worked
his way up through the profession from usher to technician, not an uncommon
progression at the time. A decade later, he would still be living in the area,
working as a well-known scenic artist and traveling salesman, representing
Kansas City Scenic Co. The “Lead Daily Call” described the painting of scenery
for the Lead Opera House, reporting, “”Fred R. Megan, who has the work of
painting the scenery and decorations was on arrival on the Burlington last
evening. He comes from Kansas City, and is an artist in his line, one of the
best in the country. He will begin just so soon as the carpenters give him
room, which will be in a day or so, to erect his stagings and make other preparations
for doing the work of adornment, and when he has finished the interior of the
little opera house will be one of the handsomest in the west, and no pains will
be spared to make it so. Mr. Megan will have his work well under way before the
week is over, and will have it completed before the winter season really
begins” (Lead Daily Call, Lead South Dakota, 8 Oct. 1906, page 1).
Like Moses, Megan not only contracted the work to produce
new scenery for a variety of entertainment venues, but also designed and
painted the contracted settings. “The Columbus Courier” reported, “Fred R.
Megan, representing the Kansas City Scenic Co., is in the city today with full
samples of scenery. He sold a good sized order for the LaRue Investment Co. for
the Opera House” (Columbus, Kansas, 10 Jul 1902, page 5). What us interesting
about this particular article is the use of the wording “full samples of
scenery.” It is unclear whether “full” suggest the size of the samples or the
completeness of the selection. Likely, it was a series of standard designs for
purchase. However, I have yet to locate any
another reference describing the samples carried by Megan on behalf of Kansas
City Scenic Co.
Stage hardware manufactured by the Kansas City Scenic Co. recently sold in an online auction
The earliest mention of Megan’s association with the Kansas
City Scenic Company is in 1901. For the scenic firm, Megan primarily traveled
throughout Kansas and neighboring states. In 1908, Megan’s arrival to hang
scenery at the Haydn-Parke theatre in Gasden, Alabama, was even reported in the
“Gasden Daily Times-News” (26 Sept. 1908, page 2). Earlier, Megan had toured
with the Barrett & Barrett Company (The Leonardville Monitor, Leonardville,
Kansas, 2 Dec. 1897, page 8).
Kansas City Scenic Co. postcard
In 1901, the “Rooks County Journal” of Stockton, Kansas,
reported, “F. R. Megan of Kansas City, spent Saturday in the city soliciting
advertising to place on a new drop curtain which he will place in the opera
house. We were told he sold Mr. Bigge about $300 worth of theatre supplies of
various kinds”(27 June 1901, page 50).
His association with the company continued until 1915. The
reason for his departure is unclear, but Megan began working in Washington D.
C. By 1918, Megan was appointed to the Liberty Theatre office in Washington as
Supervisor of Maintenance and Construction (Variety, Vol. LII, No. 10, page
19). The theater, designed by architect B. Frank Meyers, opened in 1914 at 1419
N. Capitol Street, near O Street.
Here is a little sidestep from the life and times of Thomas G. Moses. Occasionally while looking for information online, I discover a site, that takes me by surprise. Here was one that I uncovered while looking for information about advertising curtains by the Kansas City Scenic Co.
Image from Luminous-lint.http://www.luminous-lint.com/__phv_app.php?/f/_studios_backgrounds_painters_01/
Image from Luminous-lint.http://www.luminous-lint.com/__phv_app.php?/f/_studios_backgrounds_painters_01/
It was an advertisement for the Kansas City Scenic Co. that drew me into a series of photographs depicting scenic artists from the mid-nineteenth to mid-twentieth century. The images were part of an online collection called Luminous-Lint and the artists were categorized as “Painters of backgrounds.”
Image from Luminous-lint.http://www.luminous-lint.com/__phv_app.php?/f/_studios_backgrounds_painters_01/
Image from Luminous-lint.http://www.luminous-lint.com/__phv_app.php?/f/_studios_backgrounds_painters_01/
If you are unfamiliar with the Luminous-Lint, this is one site to bookmark. It contains 85,989 photographs from 3,278 different collections around the world. The creators mission is to create “detailed and well structured histories of photography.” The site includes “1,031 distinct, but interlinked, histories of photography that are evolving on a regular basis.” The creators report that their site is used worldwide by curators, educators, photo historians, collectors and photographers to better understand the many histories of photography.
My interest in the contents has little to do with the photographers or history of photography; I am interested in the subject matter. My interest lies with not only the scenic artists with paint palettes, buckets, and brushes, by also the performers and tradesmen.
Image from Luminous-lint.http://www.luminous-lint.com/__phv_app.php?/f/_studios_backgrounds_painters_01/
David Knights-Whittome on a ladder. Image from Luminous-lint.http://www.luminous-lint.com/__phv_app.php?/f/_studios_backgrounds_painters_01/
One of the collections features David Knights-Whittome. Here is the information about the collection on Luminous-Lint: “About 1978 a collection of around 11,000 glass plate negatives was found in the basement of Linwood Strong’s shop (Optician) on the High Street in Sutton, a town in South London. The plates had been stored there in deteriorating conditions for over 60 years, they were saved and eventually became a part of Sutton Archives, South London, England. They were stored but not made available until 2014 when a preservation and digitization project commenced. The photographer was little-known David Knights-Whittome and the portraits provide a time capsule of Late Victorian and early Edwardian England. The collection included images of studio backgrounds, a photograph of David Knights-Whittome standing on a step ladder and posed as if he was painting a backdrop, and a notebook with a sketch for a background that he had drawn as a teenager in the 1890s.”
Many of the photographers also worked as scenic artists, creating painted backings of various sizes and subjects.
Part 582: Advertising Curtains and the Kansas City Scenic Company
I came across an interesting article when searching for information about advertising curtains during the early twentieth century. It presented some of the financial logistics and revenue generated by an ad spaces on a drop. The article concerned scenery for the new opera house in Perry, Iowa, located at 1314 Second St.
Opera house in Perry, Iowa, 1908
Fred R. Megan, representing the Kansas City Scenic Co., was negotiating the contract during August 1903. Kansas City Scenic was founded by former Sosman & Landis scenic artist, L. L. Graham.
Private collection of Christopher Steiner at Luminous-Link.
Here is the article published in the “Perry Daily” on 26 Aug 1903:
“Mr. F. R. Megan, of Kansas City, was in Perry this week representing the Kansas City Scenic Co., which concern will paint the scenery for the new opera house. The directors selected the richest design of drop curtain that he had to offer and it is indeed a beauty. They also selected about eleven hundred dollars’ worth of scenery all told, including interiors, woods, garden, landscape, street scenes, etc. When the choice of the scenery was made it was found that there was a deficit of four hundred dollars in the appropriation that had been set apart for the item of scenery, and in order to procure the full amount that had been chosen it was decided to put on an ad curtain and sell limited number of ads. The main house curtain will be raised when the orchestra begins its overture and display this curtain. In seven hours time $375 worth of space on the ad curtain was sold Monday. $25 worth have been sold since and there are yet three spaces which an be taken by any parties who have not been solicited. It is probable that there will be no space for sale in a day or two” (The Perry Daily, 26 Aug 1903, page 3).
The Perry Opera House stage stage included a proscenium that measured 31 feet wide by 26 ½ feet high. The height to the rigging loft was 47 feet, and the height to the fly gallery was 23 ½ feet. There were no grooves to accommodate painted wings, just fly scenery. It was a sizable space, standard in many aspects for the time. Although there is not measurement provided for the ad curtain, it likely measured approximately 32 feet wide by 24 feet high. The number of ad spaces possibly ranged from 10 to 14 surrounding a central landscape.
The company providing scenery for the venue was Kansas City Scenic Co., a studio that I have explored in “Travel of a Scenic Artists and Scholar” posts. Let me briefly put Kansas City Scenic Company and Fred R. Megan in relation to Thomas G. Moses and Sosman & Landis studio.
Kansas City Scenic Co. was a competitor of Sosman and Landis, formed by one of their studio artists – Lemuel L Graham. It was in 1882, Moses would partner with Graham, after leaving Sosman & Landis for the first time. After Graham left Chicago, he would later found the Kansas City Scenic Co. The company grew to be a prominent studio and major player in the midwestern and western regions of the country. Many well-known scenic artists would later become associated with Kansas City Scenic Co, such as scenic artists and salesman Fred R. Megan.
The earliest mention of Megan’s association with the Kansas City Scenic Company is in 1901. Earlier, Megan had toured with the Barrett & Barrett Company (The Leonardville Monitor, Leonardville, Kansas, 2 Dec. 1897, page 8). By the early twentieth century, Megan was on staff at the Kansa City Scenic Co. studio, negotiating contracts across the country.
Later, Moses would contact Megan during 1923; the two would work together, purchasing the Sosman & Landis name after Hoyland and Lemle purchased the company contents at that same time. While they were negotiating the purchase of the Sosman & Landis name, Moses and Megan continued to work under their own names – Moses & Megan. They needed to wait for Sosman & Landis to liquidate, get their own charter, and then work as “Sosman & Landis.” During this time, they leased the old Fabric Studio in Chicago (that was an interesting tidbit for me). By 1924, Megan was on the road most of the time, with Moses making models in his studio.This is how Sosman & Lanids had most successfully operated – with Landis on the road and Sosman in the studio. The two would close the contract for the Salt Lake Consistory during 1926. The two would also provide the scenery for the Oakland Scottish Rite in 1927. Moses and Megan would continued working together until 1931.
The was a special section in the Oakland Tribune concerning the new Scottish Rite (12 Dec 1927, page 17). Moses and Megan placed an advertisement in the center of the section.
A Visit to the Tabor House in Leadville, Co. June 18, 2018
We left Denver at 7am and headed to Leadville, Colorado. I had a 10am appointment with the executive director of the Tabor Opera House. Normally a two-hour trip, we planned on an extra hour for sightseeing, stopping several times along the way for “scenic overlooks” and “points of interest.” As we left Denver, overcast skies turned into puffy clouds scattered across brilliant blue skies.
One of our stops was in the town of Frisco. The name rang a bell and I soon realized that it was because Thomas G. Moses mentioned the town during his 1884 sketching trip to Colorado. This was his trip with tree other scenic artists to see the mountains.
The town of Frisco, Colorado, where Thomas G. Moses visited in 1884.
Lake Dillon near Frisco, Colorado.
Frisco is situated on the shores of Lake Dillon, seventy miles west of Denver. Henry Recen founded the town after a mining boom in the 1870s and soon boasted two railroads, many businesses, hotels, and saloons. The town was the center of mining activity because of the railroads and a stagecoach stop, serving as the gateway to the towns and mines in Ten Mile Canyon. It later became the sleepy little town that Moses encountered during his 1884 sketching trip. Of Frisco, Moses wrote, “We soon came to a little cemetery. One rough head-board had the following epitaph, printed with black letters: ‘Here lies the body of John Sands. A Frisco miner, an honest man and an old timer.’ No dates nor age. Near by was the small town of Frisco, which at one time was a prosperous mining town of about three thousand inhabitants. The mines gave out, no one stayed, and homes and stores were left to the elements. As we struck the main street we looked about, but we couldn’t see a living thing, excepting a few chickens which convinced us, however, that someone must have stayed. The feeling we had among the deserted homes and stores was rater uncanny. The buildings had been hastily built; all very rough, and very few of them had been painted. The signboards were a hot, badly spelled and very typical of a frontier mining town; a regular mushroom town – it grew over night.”
Lake Dillon near Frisco, Colorado.
After enjoying the bustling town, getting the contact for the city historian and walking about the marina, we headed to the Tabor Opera House in Leadville for our 10am meeting. I had asked Ziska Childs to join me on this particular adventure and we spent the morning looking at historic scenery produced by Kansas City Scenic Company. The drops are suspended by a hemp system – no counterweights or sand bags. As at the Brown Grand Opera House in Concordia, Kansas, the drops are raised and lowered by an individual pulling the full weight on the three ropes that are connected to the drop’s top batten. I was fortunate to help at one point and able to examine the pin rail and rigging. While assisting with one line, I was delighted to discover that the original paint frame that was still suspended from one of the lines. No, we didn’t lower it. I was told that it takes three men to handle the lines when either raising or lowering it!
Tabor Opera House in Leadville, Colorado
The Tabor Opera House in Leadville, Colorado
Wood scene with backdrop, two legs and a foliage border.
The four historic scenes at the Tabor Opera House include a drop curtain, a garden drop, a landscape and a street scene by Kansas City Scenic.
Garden drop at the Tabor Opera House
Front drop curtain at he Tabor Opera House
Detail of drop curtain at he Tabor Opera House
“Kansas City Scenic Co.” on bottom right corner of the front curtain in the Tabor Opera House, Leadville, CO.
Pin rail above the stage to raise and lower drops.
There are other historic scenery pieces along the back wall that were too buried to uncovered. There area also older roll drops, wings, and profile pieces are stored in the attic for both this stage and the previous stage before the Elks altered the building in 1901. Unrolling a few backdrops will be part of my morning adventures today. The Executive director explained that the scenery has been rolled up for over a century. I am curious to see what the original 1879 scenery in the attic looks like from the original stage.
The existing fly drops above the Tabor Opera House stage were produced by Kansas City Scenic. Lemuel L. Graham (1845-1914), a previous employee of Sosman & Landis, as well as one-time business partner of Thomas G. Moses founded this studio. Moses left the Sosman & Landis studio during May 1882 to partner with Graham. That year Moses recorded that while they were working on the Redmond Opera House project in Grand Rapids, Michigan, Graham boarded at a hotel and fell in love with the head waitress, eventually marrying her. Moses wrote, “she proved to be a good wife and good mother.” Moses wrote that Graham “was a regular Shylock, a good fellow and a hard worker, but altogether too close to please me.”
The partnership of Moses & Graham only lasted a little over a year. In 1883 they returned to the Sosman & Landis studio. After Moses and Landis encountered each other while bidding on the same job, they rode the train back together for Chicago. Sosman met them at the station and the three discussed a possible return. Sosman & Landis wanted Moses and Graham back, they were each offered $45.00 a week. Moses wired Graham their proposal, but Graham was not so eager to accept and countered “$50.00 and extras.” The studio agreed and on May 1, 1883, Moses and Graham were both painting in the Sosman & Landis studios again. It lasted less than a year for Graham, however, and in 1884, he left Sosman & Landis to form Kansas City Scenic Co.
