Raising to restore

FORT RECOVERY — New faces popped in and out of the Fort Recovery Morvilius Opera House earlier this month during the facility’s open house.

Some were children eager to meet with Santa Claus on the first floor.

Some were elder Fort Recovery residents who had never stepped foot on the second floor.

The opera house on the second floor of 101 N. Wayne St. — once a community gathering place — had been used as storage for almost 90 years. More than a year and a half ago, locals came together in an effort to change that.

Friends of the Opera House is in the midst of raising funds for restoring the second floor of the 138-year-old building, the former location of Brockman Applicances.

Judy Wood of the opera house committee commented on the large amount of people who stopped by the building between Nov. 11 and Nov. 14. The committee has hosted an open house at the location for the last two years.

Wood handled decorations for Santa’s visit during the open house, setting up Christmas trees, lights and other decor. Welcoming the community inside, she explained, allows supporters and people new to the project to see its current state and learn about future plans.

“I’m really surprised,” said committee president Karen Meiring, noting the committee’s progress since early 2020. In that timespan, the committee has completed several tasks, including the launch of its fundraising campaign, patching the roof and removing wallpaper. It’s been approved at the state level to be on the National Register of Historic Places, with national level approval still pending.

Committee members are still waiting to hear if they received a Target of Opportunity grant through the Ohio Office of Community Development. The grant is aimed toward funding projects and activities that don’t fit within the structure of existing programs. Because of coronavirus-related delays, Meiring said, the committee will likely not hear back until at least January. If selected, the grant will provide $250,000 toward opera house restorations.

In 1898, Russell Morvilius bought the opera house for his daughter, Fay, a traveling singer and performer. She studied at New England Conservatory of Music in Boston, and she performed in Europe and the Chautauqua circuit. After her father’s death, she retired to Fort Recovery for the rest of her life.

The hardware store below caught on fire in 1976, but the opera house floor wasn’t damaged. There is, however, some water damage on the southern wall from a leak in the roof.

Wood believes restoring the opera house is an integral step for the community.

“It means keeping our town alive, and this is a part of history that (hasn’t been) touched for a long time, so we just want to bring that back to life,” she said.

At one time, the opera house hosted high school graduations, meetings and other town activities. Locals and traveling acts performed plays, concerts and vaudeville shows on the stage. When Fort Recovery built a school gymnasium in the ’30s, the need for the space diminished. Automobiles and cinema shrunk the demand for opera performances, halting most business at the opera house.

Committee members hope to restore the opera house as a space for the community, somewhere that could host include weddings, receptions, baby showers, silent films, concerts, lectures, club meetings and special events such as pictures with Santa or the Easter Bunny.

“We want this to be a community gathering place,” Meiring said.

Plans are still in the works to add updated electrical wiring, sand and re-finish the yellow pine flooring, replace the water-stained center stage and add curtains and stage lights. The committee is also planning to construct an annex to the west of the structure, complete with restrooms, a kitchenette a new elevator and an extra staircase.

Before any more interior work can be completed, Meiring noted, the ceiling needs to be fixed. Cracks are littered across it, and although the roof has been patched, it will need a long-term solution. Friends of the Opera House will need to install water lines for a sprinkler system as well as equipment for a heating, ventilation and air conditioning system. There’s also a crack in the southern exterior wall that needs to be repaired.

Some surprises have popped up along the way, with committee members uncovering extra patterns and murals on the walls and ceiling as they removed wallpaper. A portrait of Shakespeare is now prominently displayed above the stage. Meiring estimated it had been covered up by wallpaper since the early 1900s. There’s also a small painting that appears to be Hercules on the ceiling.

An unexpected gift came in the form of chairs from Bryan Trego of the Masonic Lodge in St. Mary’s, Ohio. He donated 88 upholstered, fold-up theatre seats.

“They’re in absolute terrific shape,” Meiring said, noting the committee decided to bolt the chairs onto plywood instead of the opera house floor so it can remain a multi-purpose room. “It could all be easily transformed from one thing to the next, we want to make it as multi-functional as possible.”

When not in use, the chairs will be stored in the basement.

So far, Meiring said, the fundraising campaign has been successful. Fort Recovery natives, including lifelong residents and FRHS graduates who moved away, have donated toward the effort.

Wood, who was born and raised in Fort Recovery, purchased naming rights for one of the murals near the stage. She dedicated her financial commitment toward the project in the name of her mother Jeanette Grieshop and aunt Norma Grieshop. Wood’s father and uncle started J & M Manufacturing years ago, and she wanted to do something to honor their wives.

Naming rights to the ceiling and some of the murals have been purchased. There are still some naming rights available for those interested, Meiring noted.

The committee encouraged those unable to donate large amounts to contribute $20 in 2020. It followed that trend in 2021 and has asked donors for $21 this year.

“It’s just a way for people who don’t have more to give and want to contribute something,” Meiring said.

Friends of the Opera House will be open for tours from 6 to 8 p.m. Thursday. Santa Claus also plans to visit the opera house every Thursday from 6 to 8 p.m. and every Saturday from 11 a.m. to 1 p.m. in December leading up to Christmas Eve.