“A Hero in Rags” Presented by the Social Footlight Club

In May of 1909 the Social Footlight Club presented a play entitled “A Hero in Rags” at the Sidley Memorial Hall in Saints Peter and Paul school. Victor W. Brown was the leading man in the play. Other cast members were: William A. Brune, Carl Swigert, Archie Blainey, Norma Heir, Pearl Roesch, and Ethel Herman. Charles C. Corell served as the musical director for the performance. Special acts were also performed by “The Elmores” and Byer and Moos, an acrobatic team. 

The Social Footlight Club was a theatrical club begun by a group of young men in Sandusky in 1906, with Chester Weis as its first president. Victor W. Brown was connected with a variety of amateur theatrical events in the 1900s to the 1920s

Theatrical Performance at Sidley Memorial Hall

In this image we see the cast from a play performed by members of the parish Dramatic Club in Sidley Memorial Hall, the auditorium of Saints Peter and Paul School, in the 1910s. From left to right are: Walter McGory, Cecelia Canning, Norm Gagen, Bernard McGory, Mrs. Leo Butler, Barney Gagen, Mr. Printy, Helen Esch, William Willmouth, Ralph J. Conley and Alica Hering. 

Sidley Memorial Hall was named in honor of Father R.A. Sidley, who was the pastor of Saints Peter and Paul Church in Sandusky from 1871 until just before his death in 1904. Father Sidley oversaw the building of the church which still stands today at the southeast corner of Columbus Avenue and Jefferson Street. Father Sidley left a bequest of over $13,000 for the building of a new school, which was completed in 1907. Major alterations were made to the school building in 1950, and in 1955 a large addition was made to the school. Though Father Sidley did not live to see the school completed, he had dreamed of a large school and auditorium to serve the families of his parish.

In 1916 two members of the dramatic club were married. Alicia Hering became Mrs. Ralph J. Conley. In the 1910s, the Dramatic Club of Saints Peter and Paul Church put on many plays at Sidley Memorial Hall. In the early 1930s, the Catholic Players met bi-monthly at the auditorium of Saints Peter and Paul Church, and put on plays throughout the year. The Catholic Players were just one of several amateur theatrical groups in the area. The group was part of a larger organization known as the Northwestern Ohio Little Theater Association. To read more about the rich history of Saints Peter and Paul Church, visit the Sandusky Library. The title Saints Peter and Paul Church: A Church and Its People chronicles the 125 years of the church’s history, from 1866 to 1991. Several other church histories are also available at Sandusky Library.