Elks Opera House

The story

Behind the sketch.

The Elks Opera House opened in 1907 at 209 Eustis Avenue, across from the Church of the Nativity and just off the courthouse square. Its ornate façade announced that Huntsville was ready for touring productions, public performances, and, eventually, the miracle of moving pictures. The house later operated as the Elks Theatre, and remained part of downtown entertainment life until the theater closed in 1954. The auditorium was converted to office space, but the building was demolished in 1967 for a parking lot, one of downtown Huntsville's more brutally efficient architectural substitutions. Its comedy-and-tragedy masks were saved and now stand near the entrance to the Von Braun Center Concert Hall.

Neighborhood

Downtown

Book location

Page 18