Harbor Beach Community House
Harbor Beach Community House is a building used for community purposes located in Harbor Beach, Michigan. Building The building is located at the northeast corner of State Street and Huron Avenue, the main intersection in Harbor Beach, Michigan. The Community House was built on land which had been donated by George Jenks and Anna Belle Jenks Scranton for the purpose of constructing a building to be used for community purposes. It was dedicated on September 21, 1921 and housed a theater/auditorium, gymnasium which doubled as a banquet hall with full kitchen facilities, public & school library, the city offices and Council room, as well as numerous meeting and club rooms. It also housed the Community Theatre. The building is now home to the local movie theatre, a gymnasium and the public library. The Harbor Beach Area District Library is responsible for administration of the building. The library was established in the early 1890s, before the construction of the building, moving there when it was completed. The common rooms are in frequent use by area clubs and organizations for meetings, practices, and rehearsals. On the west face of the building is a mural, designed and executed by Dave Wiley, replacing an original mural on the building which had been lost to time and the elements. This new mural depicts local historical scenes and figures, including representations of agriculture, Frank Murphy, shipwrecks, locomotives, and much more. History In a letter dated November 5, 1917, George J. Jenks and Anna Belle Jenks Scranton deeded Lot 34 of the Salt reserve of the City of Harbor Beach to the people for Community House purposes. By early 1918, the citizens of Harbor Beach raised $25,000 for the purpose of erecting and fitting out city offices in connection with the auditorium. This money enabled the Harbor Beach Community House Corporation to move forward, and on November 11, 1918, the Board appointed George J. Jenks and James I. Bennett to oversee the construction of the building. Actual construction of the building didn’t begin June 1919. The first section of the building used was the theater and auditorium. On November 1, 1920, the D. W. Griffith, six-reel silent movie, “The Love Flower”, and the two-reel Harold Lloyd comedy played to a standing room only crowd. On February 4, 1921, an informal opening and housewarming took place, with the final dedication and opening celebrated on September 21, 1921. During the next four years, the Community House became a community center. The theater and auditorium, with a seating capacity of 500, was in constant use. The American Legion, Woman’s Club, Girl Scout and Boy Scout rooms, the Community and School Library, city offices, and Council Room were centers of activity. Fire and rebuilding On March 17, 1926, fire destroyed one-half of the Community House. Smoke and water damaged the rest of the building. The community immediately made plans to rebuild the Community House, with rebuilding almost complete by August 1927. The rebuilt theater, with a seating capacity of 681, was