Fife Opera House

Fife Opera House

Construction at the Fife Opera House started in 1898 and finished in 1901.  The Fife Opera House was open from 1901 to 1912. This was actually not the first opera house in Palestine.  The first opera house in Palestine was run by Robert A. Plunkett, a native of Indiana, and was located across the street from the Fife.

  The bottom floor of the Fife Opera House was a hardware store. It was run by David Fife, and was completed before the upstairs opera house.  When the upstairs was completed, the majority of it was the opera house, but a small back section was actually used as storage for his embalming equipment and caskets. 

  The opera house played all sorts of shows and seated 700 people.  There were red leather seats and electric fans. In the winter, they heated the building with coal.  According to the Crawford County Historical Society, “There are five sets of scenery, some of which are still visible today.”  After the closing of the opera house, the building was used for multiple things. Once it was even a bobby pin factory.  Some people say that they still find bobby pins in the flooring today.  The Fife Opera House is located at 123 S. Main St, Palestine, IL 62451.