This is Ritner's State Theatre in Boyertown, PA, or The State.

When I worked at the Times, I did an article on the theatre and spoke to Jack Kline, then 82, who managed the theatre for 40 years.

The building was built in 1912. The inside murals were done in 1934 by R.E. Greco Co. of Philadelphia. It was originally called the Lyric.

Kline's father bought the theater in 1934 and changed the name to the State. Just before he bought it, it was equipped with a sound system, before that it was a silent movie house.

The theatre's had many owners over the years, but in 1987 the current owner, Bob Ritner, bought it.

In June 2006 a mural was painted on the side of the theater by Robert Williams.

Admission is $3. When I was growing up, admission was $1, then $1.5. We lived close enough to walk to the theatre, and I remember seeing many movies there as a teenager.

The Friendship Hook & Ladder Fire Company of Boyertown, PA, stands at the corner of Third Street, South Reading Avenue and Warwick Street.






In this photo, you can see Third Street in front and Warwick Street on the right.

I remember going to Friday night dinners at the Hooks almost every week as a teenager. They used to have a fantastic ham steak that was as large as the plate! That was my favorite. And string beans.



Something else they occasionally served was sausage soup, what's locally called "Hookie House Special." (another recipe site). It's sausage, potatoes and beans. Yum! Very good in winter.

The Hooks also serves breakfast. We went a few times for breakfast, and I know other people who go every week and I think they still get a crowd.

My kids love the Hooks because if we go for walks at night, if any of the firefighters are at the building sitting out with the trucks they'll invite the kids in to see the trucks and sit on them. The kids have done that a few times, along with visits to the firehouse from preschool.

This is the Cumberland Farms convenience store at the split of Warwick Street (left) and South Reading Avenue (right) in Boyertown, PA.

The Friendship Hook and Ladder Fire Company at the intersection of South Reading Avenue and Warwick street. It was later torn down and the site is now a Cumberland Farms convenience store.

According to the Hook's 100th anniversary booklet in 1982, the old fire house was sold to Gulf Oil in March of 1966 for $30,000. The firehouse was later demolished.

Looking North on Reading Avenue in Boyertown, PA, you can see the former laundromat on the left, and the mural A Special Kind of Place is to my back.

Looking up the street you see the Boyertown Inn, the large white building on the left on the corner of Philadelphia Avenue (Route 73) and Reading Avenue (Route 562).

Across Philadelphia Avenue (Main Street) you see the National Penn Bank building (the distinctive logo and mirrored glass makes it easy to spot). And just beyond that you see the steeple of St. John's Lutheran Church.

On the right you see the stores.

Boyertown, PA, is "A Special Kind of Place."

The original print by Boyertown artist David Larson was done several years ago (I think the original print was about 1985). He's also done two later prints, "Boyertown Autumn" and "Boyertown Botanical."

History of Boyertown from brochure of same name.

This mural was sponsored by the Lions Club of Boyertown. Based on the Dave Larson print, the mural was done by Robert L. Williams. It's on what Building a Better Boyertown now calls the "Civic Club Walkway" along South Reading Avenue at the entrance to the Inner Core parking lot. The walkway was dedicated in April 2007.

Growing up, I remember this walkway being one of the few places in town with public telephones. Funny thinking about that now, when even 12-year-olds have their own cell phones. But back in the '70s and '80s, if you were out with friends and needed to call home, you stopped at a pay phone. They weren't actual phone booths (with doors that closed), but a pole with the phone surrounded on three sides by a small glass case at the top. (phone booth photos) I think there were two or three phones here, and two benches.

Farmer's National Bank in Boyertown, PA, was at the corner of East Philadelphia Avenue and Washington Street.

Like many banks, it's changed hands over the years. It's now M&T Bank, as you can see by the sign that covers the engraved name on the building's facade.

This is the bank my grandmother has always used. The interior is pure nostalga, with granite and marble. When you walk through the outside columns, you feel like you're walking into a "real" bank.

Online research shows Farmers’ National Bank of Boyertown was organized on March 20, 1883. According to this article, the bank was originally in the same building as the Rhoads Opera House, so it would follow that the bank building pictured was built after the fire. The article was in a biography book of 1898, so the fire isn't mentioned.

On the top left of the building you can see the alarm system. Near the bottom right you can see a Fallout Shelter sign. On the left you can see the drive-through, which has two spaces, and a small parking lot.

The Boyertown Area Historical Society (Boyertown, PA) exhibit about the Rhoads Opera House Fire includes many photographs and postcards. The photos visually tell the story of the fire in a way that words cannot.

Growing up, this is the photo I remember seeing the most-the one of the inside of the opera house after the fire and the bodies piled up on the floor.

Photos I don't remember seeing before were the photos of the aftermath. There were photos of crowds gathered outside the building. I imagine there were people coming to identify bodies and probably many spectators who just had to come see for themselves what had happened.

And, of course there were many funerals. At the memorial service Sunday Pastor Pearson said many services were held in the homes of the families (because that was the custom then). This one was at a church.