Woodland Opera House

The 1973 bronze ends with a closing because the house was still dark when it was cast. Woodland's first opera house burned in the fire of 1892; David Newcomer Hershey bought the site, and a syndicate rebuilt it in 1895-96, reusing walls left standing. More than 300 touring companies played it before 1913, when motion pictures and a lawsuit over a patron's fall through a stage door closed it. The Yolo County Historical Society bought it in 1971, and it reopened in 1989. The register gives Hershey's initial as M.; the bronze has it right.

What the plaque says

The Woodland Opera House The first opera house to serve the Sacramento Valley was built on this site in 1885. The present structure, built in 1895-96, continues to represent an important center for theatrical arts of that period. Erected by David N. Hershey and incorporating the classic American playhouse interior, it served vast agricultural regions of the Sacramento Valley. Motion picture competition hastened its closing in 1913. California Registered Historical Landmark No. 851 Plaque placed by the State Department of Parks and Recreation in cooperation with the Yolo County Historical Society, April 28, 1973.

Where it stands

Worth the stop nearby

• Sacramento — 16 mi
  The Gold Rush river port that became the state capital, and jacked itself ten feet into the air to stop drowning.

More markers nearby

• Gable Mansion — 0.4 mi
• Bryte VFW Memorial Hall — 14 mi
• First Pacific Coast Salmon Cannery — 16 mi
• Site of Stage and Railroad (First) — 16 mi