Queen Theatre
206 Morton Street,
Richmond,
TX
77469
206 Morton Street,
Richmond,
TX
77469
1 person
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Additional Info
Previously operated by: Cole Theaters Inc, Paramount Pictures Inc.
Architects: Ernest L. Shult
Previous Names: Cole Theatre, Lamar Theatre
Phone Numbers:
Box Office:
281.937.7337
Nearby Theaters
Located in downtown Richmond, TX. The Queen Theatre opened in 1928. By 1943 it was operated by Cole Theaters Inc. as part of the Julius Gordon chain who were a subsidiary of Paramount Pictures Inc. and was renamed Cole theatre. October 1946 it was remodeled to the plans of architect Ernest L. Shult. In the late-1940’s it was renamed Lamar Theatre, still operated by Cole Theaters Inc.
Although the building no longer has its marquee, the entrance hints of a movie theatre. The building appears to be at least minimally maintained.
It was announced in September 2011 that proposals were being made to refurbish the building as the Queen Theatre. Renovation work began in 2012 but seem to have been halted by 2024.
Contributed by
Bob Machann
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Recent comments (view all 6 comments)
Cole Theaters operated a Lamar Theater in Richmond, and ads in old Fort Bend County newspapers advertised movie schedules for the Lamar. Was this and the Queen one and the same?
This house was called the Queen before it was the Lamar. Unless the original name was later restored (I can’t find any evidence that it was), the page should be renamed. Boxoffice of August 25, 1951, had this information in an item about the installation of an air conditioning and heating system in the Lamar: “It’s the first major work on the house since it opened in October of 1946. Operated years ago as the Queen Theatre and later as the Cole, the Lamar has served three generations of Richmond moviegoers.”
The Queen in Richmond is mentioned in Motion Picture Times of June 17, 1930, when H.A. Kruger sold his half interest in the house to his partner, Mart Cole. The pair had opened the house in 1928. Cole still owned the Lamar in 1951. The Cole circuit also opened a 256-seat house called the Dixie at Richmond in 1950.
I’ve found items about the October, 1946, opening of the Cole Theatre, but have found no indication that it was an entirely new building or that anything untoward had happened to the original Queen Theatre building. It appears to have been an extensive remodeling, but I can’t be positive. If the Queen burned, I can’t find anything about it in Boxoffice, and I can’t believe that Boxoffice would have passed up an opportunity to report a major theater fire. I’ve also been unable to find the date of the name change to Lamar Theatre.
The street number for the Lamar Theater is 206 Morton Street.
This theatre has been purchased and is undergoing planning for refurbishment and operation as The Queen Theatre. www.queentheatre.org
I saw “for sale” signs on this theater. Did the revival effort fall through?
Still boarded up by the googlemoble passed it by in 2022.