2315.0076: Winter scene outside of the Capitol Theatre on Washington Street, January 1932.
The Capitol Theatre
A Landmark Collapses
On Tuesday, March 12, 1974 at 9 pm, downtown Rossland shook as the roof of the Capitol Theatre collapsed under the heavy weight of rain-soaked snow. The theatre did not go down quietly. As the roof fell, it pushed the side walls outward and damaged nearby buildings. The north wall leaned against the neighbouring laundromat, and the south wall crashed into nearby buildings across the lane. The force of the collapse was so strong that it thre doors, partitions, concrete, and galss all across Washington Street, taking telephone lines down. Within minutes of the collapse, police and firefighters were on scene. They quickly blocked off Washington Street as the east facing wall of the theatre was in danger of collapsing and causing further damage. Luckily, the theatre was no longer in operation. The theatre operated from 1931 to the late 1950s. It was then sold to Fame Construction in 1964.
Capitol Theatre Admission Sign from 1930s
An Heirloom
How the Rossland Museum Cominco Theatre seats came to be placed in their current location is with a bit of luck! In the late 1960s, the Rossland Independent Order of Oddfellows and Rebekah Lodge purchased the seats from the theatre, saving them from being destroyed by the future roof collapse. Before the lodge was sold in May 2003 and subsequently demolished, the seats were saved yet again when they were donated to the Rossland Museum!
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