Local History

Arts & Entertainment

Chaffee, Ada Gilmore

Ada Gilmore Chaffee (Find a Grave) Despite living most of her life outside of Kalamazoo, the Kalamazoo-born artist Ada Gilmore Chaffee was a leading pioneer as a painter and woodblock…

Fischer’s Exposition Orchestra

Kalamazoo has long had a strong connection with the production and performance of music. Since the mid-nineteenth century, local, nationally-recognized, and even world-famous instrument makers, educators and performers have actively pursued their...

Fuller Theatre

East side of South Burdick Street, north of South Street (143 South Burdick Street). Completed from an expansion of the Wonderland and run as a stock, variety and film theater…

Garden Theatre

North side of East South Street, between Burdick Street and Farmers Avenue (Farmers Alley) (119 East South Street). Proposed but never built. In 1913, theater magnate W.S. Butterfield announced plans…

Gem Theater

West side of South Burdick Street, between Main Street (Michigan Avenue) and South Street (134 South Burdick Street). Originally opened and operated as the Vaudette Theater from 23 February 1907…

Grace Tyson

The Tyson family was deeply rooted in Kalamazoo County long before Grace Tyson was born. Herbert Tyson (born about 1812) and Elizabeth D. Tyson (born about 1813) maintained a farm in Climax (Pavilion Township, Kalamazoo County) where they raised...

Grand Theatre

Northeast corner of Kalamazoo Avenue and North Burdick Street (402 North Burdick Street). Opened as a budget film theater on 2 July 1933 by Richard P. Early, a Kalamazoo realtor…

Greatest Life Theater

West side of Portage Street, between Michigan Avenue and East South Street (128 Portage Street). (There were no floor plans for a site such as this except a room full…

Kalamazoo Institute of Arts

“To stimulate the appreciation and the creation of art.” With that goal, the Kalamazoo Chapter of the American Federation of Arts incorporated as the Kalamazoo Institute of Arts (KIA) in 1924. Its first home was a rented room in the then-new YWCA...

Kiddieland Amusement Park

If you grew up in or near Kalamazoo during the 1950s or 1960s you might recall a small amusement park “kitty corner” from Milham Park. It wasn’t much… a half-dozen…

Labadie Art Store

Edmond Eugene Labadie, c.1940 Edmund Eugene Labadie was born in Mattawan, Michigan (Van Buren County) in 1868 to Joseph and Octavia Labadie. As a young boy, Edmund worked on the…

Landes, Harold D.: Fine Arts Pioneer

Today, Kalamazoo has a healthy, vibrant arts community, with both individuals and organizations endeavoring to contribute to Kalamazoo’s rich cultural heritage. Yet...

LaVal Records & Productions

During the 1960s and 1970s, Vic Taylor's Kalamazoo-based "LaVal Records" was a big name in popular entertainment, especially among lovers of blues, R&B, and comedy. Taylor did much to promote black music and entertainment in our area.

Lyric Theater

South side of East Main Street (now East Michigan Avenue), east of Burdick Street (112 East Main Street, next door west of “The Hub” restaurant). Opened and operated as a…

Majestic Theater

South side of East South Street, east of Burdick Street (118 East South Street). Built and run as a vaudeville house from 18 November 1907 until October 1918. Claimed to…

Many, Fillette C.

The public and institutional infrastructure that evolved in the early 1920s to advocate for the value of art as a public good consisted of passionate individuals like Fillette C. Many...

Michigan Theatre

South side of East Michigan Avenue, east of Burdick Street (120-22 East Michigan Avenue). An enlarged and reconfigured location where the former Lyric had been. Operated as a film house from…

Military Bands of 19th Century Kalamazoo

To say that military and brass bands were popular during the 19th century is like saying the Beatles were popular during the 1960s; military bands were immensely popular in their day. Band music was viewed by most as both patriotic and “proper.”

New Theatre

North side of West Main Street (Michigan Avenue), east of Rose Street (126 West Main Street). Claimed to seat 240 including balcony. Opened and operated as a film and illustrated song…

Newman, Kirk H.

Kirk Newman’s artistic legacy is part of both the physical and cultural landscape of Kalamazoo. Few local artists have had as significant an impact on their community as Newman. Recognized…