716-718 Clay Street
This was once home to the Luella Grand Theatre, a fabulous opera house built in 1895 by Zibe Myers. Over the years it changed names to the Majestic, then the Dickinson, and finally the Strand Theatre. It became the Strand Coffee Shop in 1933, after a fire destroyed the theatre, and is now part of the Strand Apartments.
The new Strand Apartments include the adjacent building to the east that was once a theatre and coffee shop. The renovated aparements opened in 2005. Carlson Gardner of Springfield, Missouri, bought the buildings from Richard Smith and converted them into affordable low-income housing. The new structure was planned to have fewer but larger units than the previous Strand Hotel.
From 2001 to 2003 and 1978 to 1995 the Carriage House Inn Restaurant was immediately east of the Strand Hotel; there appears to have been no restaurant from 1996 to 2000. In 2001 it opened under the new ownership of Pat McCrary. She had a fried chicken recipe from Gordon Smith who used to run the Taster’s Choice Restaurant in Chillicothe. Ownership shifted to Pat’s sister and her husband, Diane and Harold Hamilton of Chillicothe at some point. IThe restaurant closed in early 2004. Items from the Strand Hotel as well as the coffee shop area were auctioned off and the buildings sold.
In July of 1978 Richard and Linda Smith bought the Strand Hotel. The hotel had 80 rooms which were converted to 20 rental units. They also fixed up the Carriage House Inn Restaurant building next door. Mr. and Mrs. Harold Pulliam became managers of the Carriage House in 1975.
Throughout the years, many clubs had meetings here including the Lions Club and the Red Cross.
In early 1965 Holiday Foods Inc., a Kansas City chain, took over the Strand Coffee Shop. Mrs. Gloria Gall was the new manager. Chef Douglas Schaefer was to spend a month in Chillicothe to train the local chefs to work at this restaurant. It seems the restaurant itself went back to being called the Strand Coffee Shop. Waitress Nancy Brown won $1 in 1965 from the June Dairy Month program, part of the Livingston County Farm Bureau, for recommending her customers drink milk with their meal.
In 1964 Mr. and Mrs. L. C. Hopper leased the Strand Coffee Shop from the Strand Hotel owner Karl Schewe. They had previously run a café in the Leeper hotel on Washington Street, but had to leave for the Mart Drug renovations there. They also ran the Lazy L Restaurant in town, being in the food service industry since 1941. The name changed to Hopper’s Restaurant, but many still called it the Strand.
In 1960 the coffee shop was leased to Mrs. Maggie Nolton by hotel Manager Dee Sherrill of the Strand and Leeper Hotels.
Jim and Frank Ruth bought the coffee shop in 1951 and changed the name back to Ruth's Coffee Shop. From about 1954 to the early 1960s this was referred to both as the Strand Coffee Shop and Ruth’s Coffee Shop.
R. W. Lochrie operated the coffee shop for about four years, starting in October 1946. For a brief time it was also called the Lochrie Coffee Shop. Lochrie moved out of the area in late 1950; he died Sept 16, 1952.
In 1948 Mr. and Mrs. Harold Swan took over coffee shop and dining rooms from Mrs. Consuelo Hill Newton who moved away.
From 1940 to 1947 this was called either the Strand Coffee Shop or the Hotel Strand Coffee Shop. F. Manion was the chef. On October 1, 1944, Mr. and Mrs. Frank Ruth took possession of the coffee shop and renamed it Ruth’s Coffee Shop.
The Strand Hotel and Coffee Shop were leased by the Chillicothe Business College from 1942 to 1943 for the Army Air Force Technical School conducted at the CBC. About 900 soldiers rotated in and out. Another agreement was reached for training 250 soldiers in 1951. These were short-term arrangements, concluded in about a year.
In 1938 the Chic Scoggin Ochestra was to play at a dance at the Strand Coffee Shop.
This building burned in 1933. It was rebuilt as a coffee shop and opened April 1, 1936. Many local businesses were involved in the re-building. The new coffee shop touted state-of-the-art air conditioning, equipment, lighting and more. The best roofing materials were used. And fire-proof steel beams were utilized in the framing. The new sign out front read “Coffee Shop” with the “Fiesta Room” below. E. E. Pettigrew from Kansas City was the manager.
And before it was a coffee shop, this location housed a theatre.
Dickinson Theatre, 1931-1933
After a remodeled, the former Strand Theatre opened on on June 8, 1931 as the Dickinson Theatre. A new cooling system, new seating, and a new balcony floor were installed. H.H. Tinsley was the contractor. Stage acts such as vaudeville were included with the movies, prompting the need to enlarge the stage. John Irvin was manager of the Strand-to-Dickinson.
The Dickinson Theatre was not terribly long-lived, however, as fire broke out on March 28, 1933 during a Will Rogers movie, The State Fair. The structure was rebuilt as a coffee shop instead. John G. Kling of Kansas City was noted as the owner. J.A. Jeffress was the manager at this time.
Strand Theatre, 1920-1931
In February of 1920 new owners Cuff, Reed, and Kling remodeled the facility and opened under the new name of the Strand Theatre. Johnny Kling was a catcher for the Chicago Cubs baseball team, but lived in Kansas City. The new Strand Theatre exclusively showed movies and opened on November 30, 1920.
In 1921, Cuff was charged by the City with being open on Sunday. Cuff stated the city ordinance did not include moving picture shows. Apparently every Monday morning he was arrested until the appeal decision was reached. His case was finally dismissed in October of 1921, when the City passed an ordinance that repealed their theatre ban. (This was on and off again for many years.)
In 1929 the Strand became part of the Glen W. Dickinson Theatres, Inc. based out of Kansas City. Dick Curry was manager of the Strand from about 1927 to 1930. Lewis Sponsler was the manager of the Strand in early 1931; he complied with the City’s ordinance to be closed on Sundays.
Majestic, 1912-1920
Mr. Tom K. Catron, owner at this time, sold the Luella Theatre to J. W. Foote and C. E. Lindsey in 1912. Mr. Eylenberg continued on as manager. Sometime after 1913, the name of the theatre was changed to the Majestic.
Father J.D. and sons Lee and Orville Brookshier of Brookshier Brothers & Company owned the Majestic Theatre from 1917 to 1920. Though inexperienced, they seem to have embraced their new enterprise. In fact, they “photographed” their own movie, “Over the Top” in 1918.
Luella Grand Theatre, 1895-1912
Zebulon “Zibe” B. Myers built the first dedicated opera house in Chillicothe: the Luella Grand Theatre, located at 716-18 Clay Street. Zibe was born at 423 Jackson Street in Chillicothe in 1860. A true entrepreneur, Zibe managed multiple businesses. He served as the Livingston County representative to the state legislature in 1927 and was also involved in the Anti-Horse Thief Association, being state president of the organization in 1933.
By 1889, Zibe was one of two managers of the City Hall’s grandiose Opera House, as well as continuing to work in the transfer line in the early 1890s. (His stables were behind the present Chillicothe State Bank on Jackson Street.) He was looking for the right location to build his own dedicated opera house and already had financial backers for the venture.
In 1895 Zibe purchased a lot on Clay Street from Peter Young and had Kansas City theatre architect and scenic artist George H. Johnston design an opera house. It was named the Luella Grand Theatre after Zibe’s wife, Luella Lile. Zibe had even sold hundreds of tickets for opening night before the structure was built! It is said he paid for the seats with the opening night admissions. The theatre opened on June 27, 1895 with the Kemper Stock Company from Kansas City performing. Clifford H. Irvin, father of famed John (Ben Bolt builder) and Fred Irvin (artist), played the piano that opening night.
The Luella Grand Theatre was known as “the finest show house in north Missouri” with 650 theatre seats. Its large stage at 60 feet was “said to be the largest between Kansas City and Des Moines”. It was meant to be reminiscent of the famed Ford Theatre where Lincoln was assassinated, with “sloping, curved balcony” seating and “loges” along the sides. There were also murals, plush seats, parquet flooring in the entryway, and colored glass in the front.
Zibe brought the best entertainment to Chillicothe, including renowned theatre actor Walker Whiteside. “Tiers of boxes” in the theatre were packed for Madame Scalchi’s Il Trovatore performance as well as for Bob Taylor, a famous orator from Tennessee.
The Luella showcased more than just plays and operas. In 1898 the Chillicothe High School held its graduation ceremony here. Governor Stanley of Kansas gave the Chillicothe Business College’s annual address at the Luella. Right after Christmas there was a wrestling match and a big boxing match at the Luella. John Philip Sousa and his band played here in 1900. They were barely able to accommodate Sousa’s fifty-piece orchestra on the stage in six rows. There were also lectures given here. Professor Halsey Ives, who ran the Wayman Crow Memorial Art in St. Louis, came to Chillicothe to give a lecture at the Luella on the progression of the fine arts from 1893 to 1904. In 1906 the Governor of Missouri, Joseph W. Folk, came to speak with thousands trying to fit into the theatre to hear his speech.
Not afraid to stand up for his rights, Zibe fought with the City Council a number of times over ordinances not allowing theatres to operate on Sundays. The issue seemed to come to a head in 1902. A large meeting was held and many citizens signed a petition against the “desecration of Sunday,” wanting the City to restore the ordinance closing theatres on that day or else make the penalties very stiff.
Myers, defying the re-enacted ban, held the first Sunday Theatre on Sept. 21, 1902 at the Luella. He continued to have Sunday shows, considering the ban “toothless and harmless.” In fact, Myers told the new Marshall, Maurice Dorney, that if he arrested Myers, he would have to arrest all business owners operating on Sunday. Dorney decided to do the same as he had always done for Sundays and just monitor the saloons. This back and forth with bans was on and off again for years!
To stay competitive, Zibe, a shrewd businessman, looked into the new “moving picture” technological advancement. The earliest ad is for the Lyman Howe Moving Picture Company coming to the Luella on May 2, 1905 to share the “rare pleasure” of seeing the “Inaugural Pageant” of President Roosevelt. It is claimed that Clifford H. Irvin, pianist on the opening night of the Luella, was also playing a pipe organ the night of the first moving picture show. By October of 1905, the Luella was continuing to show moving pictures along with the more traditional forms of entertainment. At this time, Chillicothe was part of a “circuit” that included Macon, Moberly, Kirksville, and Hamilton. Clyde Morton, who played at the Luella, was known as one of the best organists for silent movies; he did not use sheet music because it was all in his head!
In 1905 Zibe remodeled the Luella Grand Theatre. Enhancements included the addition of a fire escape and portico with colored glass border and a new gravel roof. Zibe was made interior revisions including refreshing the murals.
Not afraid to stand up for his rights, Zibe fought with the City Council a number of times over ordinances not allowing theatres to operate on Sundays. The issue seemed to come to a head in 1902. A large meeting was held and many citizens signed a petition against the “desecration of Sunday,” wanting the City to restore the ordinance closing theatres on that day or else make the penalties very stiff.
Myers, defying the re-enacted ban, held the first Sunday Theatre on Sept. 21, 1902 at the Luella. He continued to have Sunday shows, considering the ban “toothless and harmless.” In fact, Myers told the new Marshall, Maurice Dorney, that if he arrested Myers, he would have to arrest all business owners operating on Sunday. Dorney decided to do the same as he had always done for Sundays and just monitor the saloons. This back and forth with bans was on and off again for years!
To stay competitive, Zibe, a shrewd businessman, looked into the new “moving picture” technological advancement. The earliest ad is for the Lyman Howe Moving Picture Company coming to the Luella on May 2, 1905 to share the “rare pleasure” of seeing the “Inaugural Pageant” of President Roosevelt. It is claimed that Clifford H. Irvin, pianist on the opening night of the Luella, was also playing a pipe organ the night of the first moving picture show. By October of 1905, the Luella was continuing to show moving pictures along with the more traditional forms of entertainment. At this time, Chillicothe was part of a “circuit” that included Macon, Moberly, Kirksville, and Hamilton. Clyde Morton, who played at the Luella, was known as one of the best organists for silent movies; he did not use sheet music because it was all in his head!
In 1905 Zibe remodeled the Luella Grand Theatre. Enhancements included the addition of a fire escape and portico with colored glass border and a new gravel roof. Zibe was made interior revisions including refreshing the murals.
Zibe traded the Luella Theatre in 1910 to a Mr. Tom K. Catron/F.W. Smith and Company for some farmland near Columbia. Catron remodeled the Luella, with Douglas Stewart Jr. in charge of the building until a manager could be hired. Some much needed renovations were made.
It seems Zibe stayed on and acted as manager, along with Eylenberg, for a time, keeping him involved with the Luella a little longer. In 1911 he is credited with bringing “colored pictures” to the Luella. On Nov. 3, 1911, he showed a “real/reel motion pictures in color.” At this time, colored film was new to Chillicothe. These may have been hand-colored film or slides; actual colored motion pictures did not appear on the scene until the late 1930s.
Zibe was a force in this community. He ran for and was elected to the City Council in 1905, holding the post of Councilman-at-Large. He also served on the Ordinance Committee. The pesky issue of Sunday shows did not seem to come up during his tenure. Myers ran but did not win re-election in 1907. However, he remained active in politics and the city. In 1926 he was elected to the State Legislature.
On Oct. 12, 1938, Zibe died in the same house in which he was born. Luella Myers died June 19, 1946.
Prior to the Luella Theatre, this was part of the Stafford and Pringle Carriage Company, started in 1869, which occupied the area from Clay and Washington to the alleyway. Read more about this in the next building, the Strand Hotel.
Going even farther back, the middle section of the building was once the site of Hale's saloon owned by Thomas Conn. The night of September 23, 1872, Conn got into an argument with policeman Tom Fox. In the shuffle, Conn was shot and killed. A jury decided Fox had acted in self-defense and he was acquitted.