As we conclude Preservation Month during the month of May, we feature the The Murphy Theatre, Wilmington, Ohio. Constructed in 1918, this theater was intended to be the best small theater in southwest Ohio.
Why this place matters?
Developed by Charles Webb Murphy… the owner of the Chicago Cubs… the theater could seat 1,000 people – a fifth of the town’s population at the time. Murphy hired Mandel Bros. to decorate the interior of the building. Italian and English craftsmen were employed. The modern-style marquee we see today was installed in the 1950s.
