Washoe Theater (1936), Anaconda, Montana
The last theater built in the United States in the Nuevo Deco style, the Washoe stands in a copper-company town as an improbable extravagance: $200,000 of etched glass, silver leaf, and murals in a Montana mining community of 12,000 people.
At a glance
Designed in 1930 by Seattle architect B. Marcus Priteca and delayed by the Great Depression until its opening on September 24, 1936, the Washoe Theater is the last American building constructed in the Nuevo Deco idiom — a variant of Art Deco characterized by rich interior ornament and an almost theatrical use of applied materials. Its home, Anaconda, existed because of copper: the Anaconda Copper Mining Company built the town and smelter in the 1880s, and the theater’s interiors return that identity in gleaming metal at every turn. The Smithsonian Institution has recognized the Washoe as a national treasure. It still operates as a movie theater today.
Key facts
- Opened: September 24, 1936 (designed 1930, near-complete by 1931; delayed by Depression)
- Architect: B. Marcus Priteca (Seattle)
- Style: Nuevo Deco (Art Deco)
- Construction cost: $200,000 (1936 dollars)
- Address: 305 Main Street, Anaconda, Montana (within Anaconda Commercial Historic District)
- NRHP: April 30, 1982 (ref. 82003162)
- Recognition: Smithsonian Institution national treasure
- Current status: Operational movie theater
History
Two earlier theaters occupied this block. The Margaret Theater served Anaconda from the city’s founding years; in 1927 it was remodeled at a cost of $60,000 and rechristened the Sundial Theater, only to burn in 1929. In the months that followed, the Anaconda Copper Mining Company commissioned a replacement worthy of the town it had built. B. Marcus Priteca — whose Pacific Northwest practice included Pantages circuit theaters in Seattle, Vancouver, and Spokane — drew plans in 1930. Construction was essentially complete by 1931, but the Depression held the doors shut for five years.
When the Washoe finally opened on September 24, 1936, the delay had yielded an unexpected dividend: the sound system was redesigned around Western Electric’s newest innovation, the Mirrophonic Sound process — a high-fidelity audio system that was then a cutting-edge rarity. The first film screened was The Texas Rangers (1936), a Western starring Fred MacMurray as a Texas Ranger. The theater’s copper accents, ram-head carvings, and muraled dome reflected both the town’s industrial identity and the aspirations of its residents toward the luxury of Hollywood’s movie palaces.
Listed on the National Register of Historic Places in 1982 for architectural significance, the Washoe has survived as a functioning cinema through decades of multiplex competition that shuttered comparable buildings across the country.
What you see
The exterior presents etched-glass entry doors set within a frame of carved relief patterns and ornamental ironwork — restrained geometry that announces something exceptional within. Inside, every flat surface is a painted mural: the domed ceiling carries the grandest of these, executed by Colville Smythe. Hollywood theater designer Nat Smythe planned the interior furnishings and decorative program. Copper appears throughout — in fixtures, railings, and accent work — fitting for a town that mined and smelted it for generations. Silver and gold leaf amplify the effect against carved ram heads that line the walls.
The silk curtain, seldom lowered today, carries a painted scene of deer stags. Curators are reluctant to move it: the fabric is fragile enough that any handling risks irreversible damage, leaving the painting as a vivid but precarious survival. The acoustics were a point of pride at the time of opening, and the proportions of the auditorium still reward live performance.
Practical information
- Address: 305 Main Street, Anaconda, MT 59711
- Current use: Active movie theater; check the marquee or washoetheatre.com for current screenings
- Interior access: During regular film screenings
- Best approach: Arrive before a screening to study the lobby details; weeknight shows tend to be less crowded
Getting there
Anaconda sits in the Deer Lodge Valley of western Montana, roughly 25 miles west of Butte via US-1 (the Pintler Scenic Route). The nearest commercial airport is Bert Mooney Airport in Butte. No intercity bus service connects Anaconda regularly; a car is the practical option. The theater is at the center of Main Street, walkable from anywhere in the small downtown.
Nearby
- Anaconda Smelter Stack — 0.5 miles; 585-foot smokestack, Montana’s tallest structure, on the National Register
- Copper Village Museum and Arts Center — downtown Anaconda; local history and visual arts
- Old Montana Prison (Deer Lodge) — 18 miles northwest; Victorian territorial prison on the National Register
- Butte Historic District — 25 miles east; one of America’s largest National Historic Landmark Districts, built on copper wealth
Sources
- Wikipedia: Washoe Theater
- National Register of Historic Places nomination form (ref. 82003162, April 30, 1982)
- Historic American Buildings Survey: MT-53-B (Anaconda Historic District, Washoe Theater)
- Washoe Theater official website: washoetheatre.com
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