Before you fold your Christmas list and put it away, there’s one more name you might consider adding. It’s that of a grand ole lady, who’s been around for a long time and has a real need this holiday. It’s Bonnie Kate, and she’s a theater, which holds numerous memories for many Carter Countians.
This Christmas, the Bonnie Kate is in peril. She was most recently placed on the 2015 Ten in Tennessee Most Endangered List of historic properties.
However, the theater’s biggest need this Christmas is to find a new owner, and hopefully, that will be a group of local citizens who wish to purchase the building and turn it into a community performing arts center. The building is presently owned by a local bank.
This week, John Huber, who is heading up the group, has been busy making containers, which will be placed in several downtown businesses during the holidays for the collection of both donations and pledges, which will go toward the purchase of the building. “The containers will contain a slot in which to place coins and bills and a rack with pledge forms,” said Huber.
The Bonnie Kate Fund has approximately $30,000 to date. An anonymous donation of $10,000 and another for $5,000 have been received by the local group. Also, another $5,000 has been received from the Elizabethton/Carter County Foundation. “The remainder of the donations have been for smaller amounts,” said Huber.
Huber said the group needs to raise $180,000 to $200,000 initially for the purchase of the building and to make additional roof repairs. Once the group has ownership of the property, it hopes to raise another $75,000 through grants, from the public and supporters to do further renovations. Eventually, the goal is to turn the building over to the City of Elizabethton.
“We want to reach out to the public, to businesses, civic groups, and philanthropists,” Huber said. “Currently, we need funds to purchase the building. That’s our biggest need. Until we get ownership of the building, we can’t do anything.”
Now that the building has been placed on the 2015 Ten in Tennessee Most Endangered List of historic properties, preservation strategies will be developed for the Bonnie Kate and will include working with current property owners, government officials, citizens, and the new owners to preserve the building’s heritage, which in the case of the Bonnie Kate Theater dates back to 1926.
The theater had its first showing May 16, 1926 — a silent film. All 500 seats were filled for the first show. The Bonnie Kate was also the first theater east of the Mississippi to have rocking chair seating.
A local music program “Barrels of Fun” originated at the Bonnie Kate in the 1930s and in the 1940s and was broadcast by two radio stations to a listening audience of 3.2 million people in the southeast United States.
The building also has some striking architectural features, making its importance more notable. It is of Classical Revival design, and the front facade pilasters are most prominent and unique especially for a building today.
“First and foremost we must secure the building, and then we can get it ready for public performances,” Huber said.
“I think the community would like to see it preserved, rather than go the way of the Lynnwood Hotel and other historical buildings in town. Like the Tweetsie Trail, it has the potential to bring a lot of visitors from out-of-town and be as popular as any other performing arts center in the area, namely the Paramount Theater in Bristol and the Renaissance Theater in Kingsport,” Huber said.
The local affiliate of The East Tennessee Foundation, the Elizabethton/Carter County Foundation will act as the agent for the receiving and dispersing of the funds until a Bonnie Kate Foundation is formed.
Checks should be made out to the Elizabethton/Carter County Foundation and designated Bonnie Kate Fund. Donations or pledges can be mailed to Bonnie Kate Fund, P.O. Box 695, Elizabethton, TN 37644-0695.
All donations are tax deductible.