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This #FortRileyFriday we continue our look at the historic buildings around Cavalry Parade Field.
Following a negative report by the Secretary of War in 1926, the Army recognized that temporary facilities built on #FortRiley for use during World War I were not only inadequate, but living conditions for officers, enlisted men and their families were described as "dangerous." Between 1927 and 1940 the Army embarked on a nationwide building program to replace these aging facilities.
By the close of 1939, Fort Riley had received new officer housing, several warehouses and various support and recreational facilities. Among them was the Main Post Theater in building 206, opened in 1933. The theater remained in use through most of the 1980s. It was then used a warehouse.
The theater was renovated in the 1950s and again in the late 1960s. Recently, a major repurposing of the facility was completed by the Army Corps of Engineers. In this current renovation, workers turned the interior
into classrooms by leveling the sloped auditorium floor from the back all the way up to the former stage area, with classrooms on either side of a central hallway. New ADA-compliant restrooms were included as part of the new construction while the 1930s era restrooms with art deco signage were preserved. Much of the building's original furniture, including the old film vault, remains along with the projection room on the second floor. The historic exterior of the building was also preserved and the canopy over the main entrance and ticket booth were reconstructed to their 1933 appearance.
The theatre is one of the facilities on post with a ghost story associated with it. Legend has it that lights in the building turn on and off seemingly by themselves and Military Police working dogs refused to enter even when coaxed with treats.
| Date Taken: | 11.02.2018 |
| Date Posted: | 10.26.2023 10:50 |
| Photo ID: | 8090428 |
| VIRIN: | 181102-A-YH536-1001 |
| Resolution: | 526x526 |
| Size: | 51.83 KB |
| Location: | FORT RILEY, KANSAS, US |
| Web Views: | 50 |
| Downloads: | 2 |
This work, Fort Riley Friday Main Post Bldg 206 [Image 5 of 5], by Scott A Rhodes, identified by DVIDS, must comply with the restrictions shown on https://www.dvidshub.net/about/copyright.
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