Long Beach Municipal Auditorium 1905

S. Pine Ave. & E. Seaside Way Long Beach, CA 90802 | map |

Opened: 1905. Thanks to Nathan Marsak for sharing this postcard from his collection on Noirish Los Angeles post # 1165. Head to page 59 on that forum for several more posts featuring a lovely collection of night cards from the Los Angeles area. A version of this card can also be seen on the site Card Cow. 

 

The building was of wood frame construction built on pilings on the beach. This building was the second attempt at an auditorium beside the new pier. A nearly new Auditorium / Pavilion building had been destroyed by fire early in 1905 and construction began immediately on this replacement. 

 

The first Pine Ave. pier had opened in 1893, the first city-owned pier on the Pacific Coast. The first Pavilion on the site, intended for concerts and dances, was built in 1897. Shipworms finished off the first pier and it had to be demolished. The second Pine Ave. pier, a two level construction of steel and concrete, had its official opening on November 12, 1904. The pier was was plagued with construction defects and required repairs throughout its life. On May 15, 1913, during a "British Empire Day" celebration, part of the upper deck near the entrance to the auditorium collapsed causing 30 deaths and about 150 injuries.

Architect: Unknown. 

Capacity: 6,000. It had a flat main floor that could be set up with folding chairs. The balcony wrapped around three sides of the auditorium. 

 

The Municipal Auditorium is on the right in this detail from a 1908 Sanborn Map. On the left is the  The Pike, here seen as the "Walk of a Thousand Lights." The building on the far left is the Bathhouse. In the center of the image is the Theatorium. The map appears courtesy of Ronald W. Mahan. Also see a larger area of the map. 

 

 

 

The Auditorium still abides in this this detail from a 1926 map from the Long Beach Historical Society. Just north of the Auditorium the State Theatre has arrived. The Theatorium got renamed the Rialto and acquired a new entrance on The Pike. Farther west is Hoyt's, a house later named the Strand. Thanks to Ron Mahan for supplying the map and coloring the theatre locations. Also see a wider area from the map.

The Auditorium in the Movies:

 

The Harold Lloyd two-reeler "Number, Please?" (Hal Roach / Pathé, 1920) includes this shot looking east with the Municipal Auditorium in the distance in the upper left. The film gives us an intercut mix of great amusement-area views from Venice, Ocean Park and The Pike. See the Historic L.A. Theatres in Movies post for shots with the Strand Theatre and the Rosemary Theatre in Ocean Park.

Status: The building was demolished after the new Auditorium was completed in 1932.

 

Interior views:  

 

 

A lovely view from the Card Cow collection. This copy was postmarked December 1907. Also see two other versions of the card on the site: version 2 | version 3 | There's also a black and white card in the Long Beach Public Library collection with a similar view. 

 

 

A 1920s Winstead Photo proscenium view. It's in the Los Angeles Public Library collection. 

 

 

 

A look to house right from the Long Beach Public Library collection. It's an Ebell club theatre group.

 More exterior views:

c.1897 - The first Pavilion on the site. This first pier at the Pine St. location had opened in 1893. It's a photo appearing with the article "Pine Ave. Pier #1" on the site Pier Fishing in California.

 

 

 

1904 - Perhaps this photo was taken at the opening of the new two level pier. It's unknown if the Pavilion seen here is the one that burned in early 1905 or if it's an earlier version. It's a photo appearing with the article "Pine Ave. Pier #1" on the site Pier Fishing in California. Also see an earlier view of this Pavilion from farther east that's in the Long Beach Public Library collection. They also have a c.1900 panoramic view from out on the pier. 

The San Pedro, Los Angeles and Salt Lake Railroad also arrived in 1904. That's a bit of their station on the right. The Pacific Electric Red Cars had begun service on Ocean Ave. in 1902.

 

 

c.1905 - A look at the new building from the Ronald W. Mahan Collection. Thanks, Ron! 

 

 c.1906 - A look at the new auditorium from the site Card Cow.  

 

 

 

c.1906 - A fine facade view from the cover of Marlin Heckman's 2000 Arcadia Publishing book "Long Beach in Vintage Postcards." See the preview on Google Books.

 

  

c.1906 - A closer look at the facade from the site Card Cow.

 

 

 

c.1906 - A wonderful view looking east along The Pike toward the Auditorium. It's from the site Card Cow. Also on the site see a nice night view of that colonnaded building on the left, the Bathhouse. That building opened in 1902 and also contained a bowling alley.

 

 

 

c.1907 - We're looking over the train station to get a grand view of the Auditorium. By mid-1908 there would be a small building added to the right of it. This card was postmarked in 1909. Right behind the station we get a sliver of the Theatorium. Thanks to Michelle Gerdes for locating the card on eBay. 

 

 

1908 - A delightful view looking across the National Theatorium toward the Auditorium. Thanks to Alexander Djordjevich for locating the photo for a post on the Photos of Los Angeles Facebook page. The caption that was affixed was "Atlantic Fleet arriving at Long Beach Cal. April 18, 1908."  Also see a panoramic image of the event in the Library of Congress collection.

 

 

 

c.1908 - An interesting view from the USC Digital Library collection. Note that, in addition to the little building to the right of the Auditorium seen in the previous photo, we now have a little entrance pavilion erected on the pier. The Long Beach Public Library has a copy of the card with a 1909 postmark. They note that the structure at the end of the pier was called the Sun Parlor.  

 

 

c.1908 - Now, this is a fun one. They started with the same photo as was used for the USC card above. But now it's night. And both the pavilion on the pier and the building to the right of the Auditorium have vanished. But here we get all those unsightly telephone poles that don't appear in the USC version. This one's from from Card Cow where they note that their copy has a 1911 postmark. 

 

 

c.1910 - A nice view over toward the Municipal Auditorium from the Long Beach Heritage Museum collection. The stagehouse we see in the lower center of the photo is that of the Theatorium. The sign on the side says "Selz Shoes." The photographer was probably standing on top of the bathhouse. The site Card Cow also has a version of this card with a 1911 postmark.  

 

Nathan Marsak notes that the ride in the image, Bisby's Spiral Airship, "had cars that were suspended underneath a track and could swing freely. The cars traveled up an inclined track, and then descended along a spiral track around a steel frame tower before returning to the station. This is commonly acknowledged as the first suspended roller coaster type ride." 

 

 

 

c.1910 - A view east from Card Cow. 

 

 

 

c.1915 - A look east on Seaside Way from the collection of the Long Beach Public Library. 

 

 

1916 - Behind the Auditorium the framing was going up for the Markwell Building that would house the State Theatre. The work on that project was halted due to wartime materials shortages. It's a photo from the Ronald W. Mahan Collection. Thanks, Ron.  

 

 

 

1916 - A detail from the previous Mahan Collection image.  

 

 

 

c.1917 - A construction view from the water. Thanks to Michelle Gerdes for finding this lovely shot on eBay. 

 

 

 

c.1920 - A card appearing with the article "Pine Ave. Pier #2" on the site Pier Fishing in California. 

 

 

c.1920 - A view from the Pike that's in the Long Beach Public Library collection. This side of the pier on the left side of The Pike note a view of the sign for the Rialto Theatre. The new building to the left of the Auditorium is the Markwell, housing the State Theatre, initially called Loew's State. The building would later be renamed the Jergins Trust Building.

 

 

 

c.1920 - A view east on Seaside from the Long Beach Public Library collection. That's the Markwell Building on the left. 

 

 

 

c.1921 - A beach view toward Loew's State. On the left we get a view of the back of the Theatorium stagehouse, halfway up the card. The card is from the Long Beach Heritage Museum collection. 

 

 

 

1922 - A postcard from the California State Library collection.

 

1925 - An interesting look behind the stagehouse of Hoyt's, later renamed the Strand. Beyond, we get the State Theatre building and, to the right, the Auditorium. Down Ocean Blvd. in the distance the West Coast Theatre is being constructed. At the far left is the Heartwell Building, also under construction. The photo is in the Los Angeles Public Library collection.  

 

 

 

1925 - A Winstead photo from the Los Angeles Public Library collection.

 

 

 

1925 - A panoramic view by Pettit's Studio looking west along Ocean Blvd. with the pier and the Auditorium on the left. In the center it's the West Coast with the stagehouse of the Mission/Fox Long Beach just behind. It's a photo in the Huntington Library collection. Someone put a 1924 date on the image but that's a bit too early for it. 

 

1925 - A detail from the left side of Pettit's Studio panorama with views of the Auditorium and the State Theatre. Closer to us is the stagehouse and side wall of the Ritz, a house later renamed the Capitol and then the Tracy Theatre.

 

 

 

1925 - A view by the Aerograph Co. from the California Historical Society collection appearing on the USC Digital Library website. An obscured look at the Strand, here still called Hoyt's, is on the far left. The tall building left of center is the Heartwell Building on Ocean Blvd.

   

 

 

1925 - A detail from the Aerograph Co. panorama above. Between the Auditorium and the Markwell Bldg. / State Theatre we get a view of the water tank on top of the stagehouse at the West Coast Theatre.

 

 

 

c.1928 - A look in from the pier. The tall building to the right is the Breakers Hotel, a building that opened in September 1926. Thanks to Jeff Gritchen for posting the photo on the now-vanished blog  Long Beach Seen that he was doing while he was working for the Long Beach Press Telegram, where he was a staff photographer. His work continues with a wider focus in the new blog SoCalSeen.com. 

 

 

 

1929 - A view from the pier from the Joseph Musil collection that's on the Los Angeles Public Library website. That's the Jergins Trust / State Theatre building beyond the Auditorium. Note the lighter color of the recently added upper floors. It appears they've built a railroad to haul rock for construction of the breakwater that was named the Rainbow Pier.

 

 

 

c.1929 - A view west from an unknown source. It once appeared on a now-vanished Flickr account. 

 

 

 

1929 - The backstage wall of the Capitol, later renamed the Tracy Theatre, is in the center of this detail from a photo in the California State Library collection, their item #01377828. On the readerboard of the sign atop the stagehouse: "Chas. King Players Now 'Cheating Husbands.'" The tallest of the buildings on the right is the Breakers Hotel, a Walker & Eisen design that opened in 1926.  

 

 

1929 - Looking west along Seaside toward the Municipal Auditorium and the Capitol Theatre. Thanks to Ken McIntyre for locating the image for a post on the Photos of Los Angeles Facebook page. 

 

 

c.1930 - A view from the Long Beach Public Library collection. Browse the Library's photo collection for other historic views. 

 

 

c.1930 - A view toward the old Municipal Auditorium. It's a Winstead photo from the Los Angeles Public Library collection.

 

 

1932 - A lovely shot down American Ave. (later renamed Long Beach Blvd.) toward the new Municipal Auditorium, then under construction. On the far right are the old Auditorium and the Jergins Trust Building with the State Theatre. A half block left of American Ave. we get a view of the back of the West Coast Theatre with the Fox Long Beach this side of it. The uncredited photo from the California Historical Society appears on the USC Digital Library website.  

 

 

 

1932 - The beach on Labor Day, after demolition of the old Auditorium. It's an Inman photo in the Long Beach Public Library collection. In the 100 block of east Seaside Way, this side of the Jergins Trust Building, note the Family Theatre, the former American, on the right edge of the image.

 

 

 

c.1950 - A view across toward the Municipal Auditorium. That's a bit of the Ocean Center Building on the far left with the Jergins Trust Building beyond. Thanks to Michelle Gerdes for locating this one on eBay. This copy has a 1953 postmark. Card Cow also has a version of the card.

 

 

 

2018 - Looking south on Pine with the Convention Center over on the left on the site of the 1905 Auditorium. Photo: Google Maps.

 

More information: See the page here on this site about the replacement 1932 Municipal Auditorium.  

The Long Beach Public Library has over a hundred photos to browse that show the Auditorium buildings. For a history of the 1893 and 1904 piers see the articles "Pine Ave. Pier #1" and "Pine Ave. Pier #2" articles on the site Pier Fishing in California. 

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