Construction of the David Fife Opera House began in 1898 and was completed in 1901. Fife operated a hardware store on the ground floor. Seating was available for several hundred guests in the opera house, which measured 55 feet wide and 70 feet deep. A raked floor filled with upholstered, red leather theater seats rising toward the back guaranteed every ticket holder a good view of the stage. Audiences were cooled by electric fans in summer and warmed by a coal furnace in fall and winter. Two original ceiling fixtures include a mirrored collar to reflect the glow of high wattage light bulbs. Single lights spaced at two foot intervals circle the house.
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