A St. Patrick's Day Celebration

In honor of St. Patrick's Day we are reposting this article from 2014.

On the evening of St. Patrick’s Day, most likely in the 1880s or 1890s, a program of entertainment was held at Biemiller’s Opera House in Sandusky, Ohio.

Though the church was not identified, the evening began and closed with selections from a church choir. Judge A.E. Merrill gave the introduction, followed by a lecture on the Land League by Rev. P. F. Quigley, a Catholic priest. Several musical numbers were performed. Mr. Buyer, Mr. Farrell, Mr. Dempsey, and another Mr. Farrell sang a serenade. While we do not know precisely which members of the Dempsey and Farrell families sang the Serenade, Helen Hansen wrote about the William Farrell and Thomas Dempsey in Supplement 13 of At Home in Early Sandusky. Both gentlemen were Irish immigrants, and they lived at 525 and 527 Columbus Avenue for many years.

Immediately before I. F. Mack gave remarks, Miss Kate Farrell sang “When I Left My Home in Erin,” by William Shakespeare Hays. You can view the sheet music to this song at the Musicfor the Nation exhibit of the Library of Congress. A midi version of the song can be found online as well.

Columbian Session of the Ohio State Grange

 

On December 12, 13, and 14, 1893, the 21^st Annual Session of the Ohio State Grange, Patrons of Husbandry met in Sandusky. It was called the “Columbian Session” in reference to the World’s Columbian Exposition, which was held in Chicago in 1893 to celebrate the 400^th anniversary of Christopher Columbus’s arrival in the New World.

Sessions for the Grange members were held at Biemiller’s Opera House in downtown Sandusky. Chairman of the evening session on December 12 was James D. Parker. According to the December 13, 1893 issue of the Sandusky Register, the Opera House was decorated with palms and sheaves of wheat. Mr. Parker told the audience that he had drafted some of the children of Erie County Grange members to participate in the entertainment portion of the evening’s events. His son and daughter, Eva and Jay Parker performed a vocal solo. Another daughter, Jessie Parker, played instrumental duets with Nellie Taylor and Will Gurley. Several other solos and recitations were performed.  Joseph H. Brigham, Master of the National Grange, gave the main address. Other speakers of the evening were Rev. Mr. Hart, J.F. Greene, F.A. Derthick, and S.H. Ellis, Past Master Ohio State Grange. Miss Hattie White recited “The First Settler’s Story” and Mrs. Emma Rood Tuttle recited “Mother and Poet” by Elizabeth Barrett Browning.

The Columbian Session of the Ohio State Grange was the topic of a lengthy front page article in the December 13, 1893 issue of the Sandusky Register.  The Register extended hospitality to all the visiting Grange members, and the headline stated that “brilliant oratory” had graced the opening session. Pictured below is the Nielsen Opera House, which had originally opened as the Biemiller Opera House in 1877. The Opera House was the site of many of the sessions held by Ohio State Grange’s annual meeting in 1893.

Illustrated Lecture on the Battle of Gettysburg

On Thursday night, December 23, 1886, an illustrated lecture on the Battle of Gettysburg was presented at Biemiller’s Opera House in Sandusky. 

The guest lecturer was former Civil War officer James T. Long. Mr. Long devoted himself to the study of the Battle of Gettysburg, and he served as a battlefield guide for several years. Mr. Long was the author of the book: Gettysburg: How the Battle was Fought.

 According to an announcement in the Sandusky Local, the presentation on Gettysburg was “the greatest and most life-like ever exhibited and is drawing crowded houses everywhere.” Proceeds from the lecture were for the benefit of the relief fund of the McMeens Post No. 19, Grand Army of the Republic. Admission to the lecture was fifty cents (about $12 in today's money), and admission to the gallery only was twenty-five cents.

Thirteenth Regiment Band of New York Performed in Sandusky

The following notice appeared in the December 19, 1890 issue of the Sandusky Register.

Fred N. Innes and his 13^th Regiment Band from New York gave a concert in Sandusky on Friday, December 19, 1890. Mr. Innes was considered “the greatest trombone player in the world.”  Tickets for the concert were on sale at Nusly’s Jewelry Store, and sold for fifty cents, seventy five cents and one dollar. The concert was held at Biemiller’s Opera House, which once stood at the southwest corner of Water and Jackson Streets.

A brief article in the Sandusky Register of December 29, 1890, reported that the famous 13^th Regimental band gave a superb concert at the Opera House, and “the music loving people of Sandusky who attended were more than pleased.” The audience was not as large as was expected, due to the closeness of the holidays. The article continued, “The members of this band are all artists of the highest rank, and under the matchless leadership of Mr. F. N. Innes this musical organization is one of the strongest in the country, not excepting the great Gilmore’s band.”

St. Patrick’s Day Entertainment at Biemiller’s Opera House

On the evening of St. Patrick’s Day, most likely in the 1880s or 1890s, a program of entertainment was held at Biemiller’s Opera House in Sandusky, Ohio.

Though the church was not identified, the evening began and closed with selections from a church choir. Judge A.E. Merrill gave the introduction, followed by a lecture on the Land League by Rev. P. F. Quigley, a Catholic priest. Several musical numbers were performed. Mr. Buyer, Mr. Farrell, Mr. Dempsey, and another Mr. Farrell sang a serenade. While we do not know precisely which members of the Dempsey and Farrell families sang the Serenade, Helen Hansen wrote about the William Farrell and Thomas Dempsey in Supplement 13 of At Home in Early Sandusky. Both gentlemen were Irish immigrants, and they lived at 525 and 527 Columbus Avenue for many years.

Immediately before I. F. Mack gave remarks, Miss Kate Farrell sang “When I Left My Home in Erin,” by William Shakespeare Hays. You can view the sheet music to this song at the Musicfor the Nation exhibit of the Library of Congress. A midi version of the song can be found online as well.

The Sandusky Theatre

In the picture above, three individuals can be seen painting a sign and the building of the Sandusky Theatre, about 1930. The Sandusky Theatre had a long, rich history according to an article by John Himmelein in the Twin Anniversary Edition of the Sandusky Register-Star-News from November 24, 1947. The theater was built in 1877 by Andrew Biemiller. It was first known as the Biemiller Opera House, located at southwest corner of Water & Jackson Streets on property that had originally been owned by William T. Townsend.

Biemiller’s Opera House accommodated 1,500 persons, and featured cushioned seats and excellent acoustics. The cost of the original building was $48,000. The spacious stage was sixty-six feet wide and thirty-three feet deep. The first opera to play at Biemiller’s Opera House was Wagner’s “Lohengrin.” In May of 1895, the building was purchased by Carl Neilsen. Mr. Nielsen remodeled the Opera House and changed its name to the Neilsen Opera House.

John A. Himmelein acquired the building in 1902. Again, the theater was remodeled. Mr. Himmelein stated that several types of amusements were performed here, including opera, dramatic, musical, minstrel, vaudeville, and plays by stock companies. The first attraction after the remodeling project was the play “York State Folks,” which opened on September 7, 1905. Between 1905 and 1907, the building was known as the Grand Opera House. By 1908, the name was changed to the Sandusky Theatre, after the building was leased to O.S. Hathaway. The Seitz Amusement Company leased the building in 1936 to show motion pictures, bought it in 1950, and sold it four years later. The building was razed in 1955.

Visit the Sandusky Library Archives Research Center to see a variety of programs from performances at this former Sandusky landmark.

Edwin Booth, as Hamlet, in Sandusky

A reporter wrote in the April 1, 1928 issue of the Sandusky Register that Edwin Booth, brother of John Wilkes Booth, was “the greatest tragedian of his generation.” A crowded house attended the one night performance of Shakespeare’s Hamlet on the evening of March 11, 1882.

Prices to see Hamlet ranged from $1.00 to $1.50. The play took place at Biemiller’s Opera House which was located at the southwest corner of Water and Jackson Streets. Later the Biemiller’s Opera House was known as the Nielsen Opera House and the Sandusky Opera House. The building was razed in 1955.

An article from the New York Times of April 25, 1880 praised Edwin Booth for his portrayal of Hamlet.

Kate Castleton in “Crazy Patch”

 

Kate Castleton was considered the “idol of the fun loving public.” She starred in the play “Crazy Patch” which played in Sandusky on December 13, 1887 at Biemiller’s Opera House. 

The December 12, 1887 issue of the Sandusky Register featured an article from the Cleveland Leader about the play:

“Crazy Patch,” as seen here three years ago, did not give the promise of becoming the remarkable success it has certainly achieved.  This is its third year, and it is today one of the best paying attractions on the road. “Crazy Patch: is the combined work of the star and the various comedians she had around her from time to time, not of is success being due to the author. It is a dramatic conundrum – comedy, parody, burlesque, pantomime and opera being all jumbled together to from a crazy patch of fun. According to reports it keeps the audience in a perpetual roar. Miss Castleton’s song, “Excuse me, I’ll tell you no more” is said to be the happiest of her recent creations. Mr. .Eddy Foy is spoken of as irresistibly funny in his personation of the lunatic.”

Images of the actress Kate Castleton are found in several online collections, including the New York Public Library Digital Gallery and the Kentuckiana Digital Gallery.