The entertainment story in Presque Isle begins in 1880 with the opening of the theatre owned by C. G. Perry on the southeast corner of State (then known as Bridge) and Main Streets. This theatre had a seating capacity of about 800 people. It was previously known as Johnson’s Hall as it was located in the building owned by C. A. Johnson and his Aroostook Lumber Company.

In those days, theatres typically used kerosene lamps for lighting and had wooden benches, planks or straight back chairs for seating. There were no shows on Sundays.

The Perry Opera House was destroyed by fire on April 23, 1900. This was a great loss to the area as it was the largest theatre north of Bangor and the town had relied heavily on the space. The fire did not keep C.G. Perry down for long. He immediately made plans to rebuild. The problem at the time was that construction materials were scarce and costly. He also had difficulty finding a builder as they feared his ability to pay the steep material costs. Finally, George McArthur, a builder from St. John, New Brunswick agreed to take on the job. Excavation began on August 4, 1902. The plans called for a brick building measuring 125 ft X 60 ft, two stories in height, with space for five stores on the ground floor and the opera house on the second floor. In addition, there were 14 hotel rooms and two bathrooms on the second floor (as the hotel burned down with the opera house). AR Gould’s company supplied 700,000 bricks for the building. It was, however, still an uphill battle. In March of 1903, the staging collapsed badly injuring three workers.

The Perry Opera House officially re-opened on June 9, 1903. At the time, it was called Perry’s New Theatre. The new opera house had seating for 600 on the main floor, and sat an additional 200 around the three-sided balcony. The main floor measured 55 ft X 60 ft, and the stage 24 ft X 32 ft with a 32 ft curtain drop. There were three dressing rooms elevated above the stage which could be reached by stairs. The opera house featured electric lights and stage lights operated by a switchboard.
The Perry Opera House began to show “moving” pictures in 1905.

In late March of 1907, C.G. Perry passed away of a fever. The Perry Opera House, however, remained active. It was temporarily taken over by the “Dreamland Theater”, which closed in June. The Perry Opera House went up for auction on May 4, 1908.

Following another fire at the Presque Isle Opera House, the owners rented the Perry Theatre operating it simply as “The Opera House” showing moving pictures, plays, and “illustrated” songs. In July of 1913, the Perry Opera House showed its first “colored” films. A new electrical sign with 140 lights built by local electrician Roy Steward was added. The Perry Theatre opened again for business in 1917 for social gatherings, benefits, and occasional stage performances. On July 12, 1917, Lee Ferguson closed the Horseshoe and moved into the Perry Theatre to show moving pictures. Ferguson eventually leaves the theatre game in Presque Isle in order to join the Canadian Army in its World War I endeavors. The final performance on the stage of the Perry Theatre was held on August 31, 1935. It was Jimmie Hodges’ musical revue, “Miami Nights”.

In September of 1935, the Perry was leased to J.W. Bridgman & Son of Dover, NH. Bridgman planned to refit the theater for sound. It re-opened on October 10 as the State Theatre. The Perry Building was gutted by fire on January 20, 1945. A group of local business men formed a corporation called “Community Real Estate Corp” and planned to build a theater, assembly hall, and business center on the site of the Perry/State Theatre. It was never built.

At around the same time, J.W. Bridgman filed an application to re-build his theater. Since the new corporation had tied up the land he had been on, he had N.W. Downing & Sons demolish a building he owned on a lot across the street (the Jamison Building) to make room for his new theater. The theater simply known as “The State” opened on its new site on August 29, 1945

Perry Building Looking South	Perry Building Looking North
After 1945 Fire