Back When Downtown Topeka Was 'The Place To Be' | Jayhawk Theatre Update

TOPEKA, Kansas (WIBW) -- The historic Jayhawk Theatre is one of the only heirloom theatres still standing in Topeka, and volunteers are working hard to ensure future generations can make memories inside it like they did.

"I mean, this was the place to be at one time!"

Quite some time has passed since Lonnie Williams paid 25 cents for a movie ticket and spent the entire day downtown at the Jayhawk Theatre, a 90-year-old Topeka relic that holds many of his memories.

"Back in the day when I was in 6th grade, black people couldn't sit on the main floor, so we had to sit in the balcony. I didn't know any better, so I just threw popcorn and poured pop down on everybody downstairs," Lonnie remembered with a laugh.

He said he never got in trouble, though.

"We were always on the move," he said.

Those were the days of a booming downtown culture in Topeka, where people would come from miles and miles to shop at Woolworths, go eat and of the many restaurants, or go to a show at one of the several theatres scattered about downtown. Those would be all-day excursions, and ones folks like Lonnie looked forward to.

The Jayhawk Theatre opened its doors in 1926, built by the Crosby Brothers Company. It was state-of-the-art for its time, as an extensive heating and cooling system was installed so that patrons could duck inside for 70-degree temperatures at all times. As many as 1,500 people could sit inside with a free-standing balcony that sat 650.

However, major developments outside of downtown Topeka would lead to the theatre's - and many other historic buildings' - demise.

The lights went dark at the Jayhawk Theatre over 30 years ago in 1976, back when life was completely different than today, but the organizers who are working hard to revitalize the gorgeous building say that capturing the spirit of family is what's going to bring that spark back.

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Back When Downtown Topeka Was 'The Place To Be' | Jayhawk Theatre Update