A photo of the stage at Greenville Municipal Auditorium during a Women’s Club event in the 1940’s.
Seventy-five years ago the citizens of Greenville celebrated the opening of one of the most magnificent structures in Greenville. The Greenville Municipal Building was officially presented to the community on Tuesday, October 22, 1939 at a grand open house. Dignitaries from city, county, and state were on hand to welcome guests. Architects and builders were feted in an atmosphere of beauty, but with subdued decorum. Mayor A. S. Moore, who had worked so diligently for the project, passed away less than a month before the completion of the structure.
For the first time since the city of Greenville was created on April 11, 1846, all city offices were in the same building. In addition, there was a large, acoustically sound, auditorium for public use. Both concepts had been dreams of early leaders, yet there was always something more critical to resolve.
The inauguration of Franklin Delano Roosevelt (FDR) in the spring of 1933 set off 100 days of feverish legislation to rein in the devastating economic depression with startling alternatives to financial woes. One of the new agencies created to stimulate growth was the Public Works Administration (PWA), not to be confused with the WPA or Works Progress Administration charged with putting unskilled laborers to work. The PWA made loans combined with grants to public entities such as cities, schools, colleges, and states to build courthouses, libraries, schools, dormitories, dams, docks, and city halls.
The program began to take applications in 1933 and was immediately overwhelmed. Greenville applied on the first round but was passed over. Yet, the city retained the plans drawn by W. R. Ragsdale, local architect of the Hunt County Courthouse built in 1928-1929. At that time, the fire department was in an old building at the corner of Picket and Johnson Street, the city offices were in the Beckham Hotel Annex, and jail space was leased from the county.
In 1937 the economy that had been improving, stumped its toe so to speak, and a recession occurred. Fearing the worse, FDR convinced Congress to revitalize the PWA. This time Greenville had its act together and received notice of acceptance of their proposal. They were to spend no more than $150,000.00. The city would receive a grant of 45% of the expenditure and a loan of 55% of the cost that was paid from revenue of the municipally owned electric power plant. No tax dollars were spent on the Municipal Building and Auditorium.
Mack Harrell, Greenville native and baritone at the Metropolitan Opera in New York performed the first concert in the Municipal Auditorium two nights after the official Open House. It was an outstanding success and the beginning of countless performances in the Auditorium by performers in a wide variety of genres.
My favorite story related to a performance in the 1960s by pianist Victor Borge. It seems a drunk in the jail under the stage began a hilarious conversation with the pianist. Many in the audience believed the drunk was actually part of the act. Big Band performances during World War II broadcast from the Auditorium to troops in North Africa via Armed Forces Radio. Everyone has memories of his/her favorite performer. What’s yours?