Contributor: Cirena Lenz, Florian Laper Source: Personal Collections

Daehn's Opera House and Tavern, ca. 1910-1917

Daehn's Opera House and tavern on Washington Street, Bill Town, ca. 1910 (from a postcard, courtesy of Cirena Lenz). The front of the Opera House dates the construction of the building as 1898. The building was notorious as the scene of many social events in the village, one of which was described in the May 15, 1903 issue of The Fairwater Register:

The Empire Comedy King's Co., a colored troop from Dixie or some other starting point, appeared in Dahn's (sic) hall Monday and Tuesday evenings. They did well and furnished lots of fun for the boys. They left for Fox Lake Wednesday.

The bottom photograph illustrates another one of the varied uses the Opera House served in the village, the annual meeting of the creamery association. The date is 1917. Note the 7-year growth of the tree outside the hall and the addition of the power pole. (photo courtesy of Florian Laper)