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The People's theater, an old frame building on the corner of Fourth and St. Peter streets, was the only real theatrical building in the city. H. Van Liew was the lessee and manager of this place of entertainment, and he was provided with a very good stock company. Emily Dow and her brother, Harry Gossan and Azelene Allen were among the members. During the summer of 1858 Mr. and Mrs. J.W. Wallack came to St. Paul and played a two weeks' engagement. They were the most prominent actors who had yet appeared in this part of the country.
"The Man in the Iron Mask" and "Macbeth" were on their repertoire. Probably "Macbeth" was never played to better advantage or to more appreciative audiences than it was during the stay of the Wallacks. Mrs. Wallack's Lady Macbeth was a piece of acting that few of the present generation can equal. Col. R.E.J. Miles was one of the stars at this theater, and it was at this place that he first produced the play of "Mazeppa," which afterward made him famous. A.M. Carver, foreman of the job department of the St. Paul Times, often assisted in theatrical productions. Mr. Carver was not only a first-class printer, but he was also a very clever actor. His portrayal of the character of Uncle Tom in "Uncle Tom's Cabin," which had quite a run, and was fully equal to any later production by full fledged members of the dramatic profession. Mr. Carver was one of the first presidents of the International Typographical union, and died in Cincinnati many years ago, leaving a memory that will ever be cherished by all members of the art preservative.
This theater had a colored gallery, and the shaded gentry were required to pay as much for admission to the gallery at the far end of the building as did the nabobs in the parquet. Joe Rolette, the member from "Pembina" county, occasionally entertained the audience at this theater by having epileptic fits, but Joe's friends always promptly removed him from the building and the performance would go on undisturbed.
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On the second story of an old frame building on the southeast corner of Third and Exchange streets there was a hall that was at one time the principal amusement hall of the city. The building was constructed in 1850 by the Elfelt brothers and the ground floor was occupied by them as a dry goods store. It is one of the very oldest buildings in the city. The name of Elfelt brothers until quite recently could be seen on the Exchange street side of the building. The hall was named Mazurka hall, and all of the swell entertainments of the early '50s took place in this old building. At a ball given in the hall during one of the winter months more than forty years ago, J.Q.A. Ward, bookkeeper for the Minnesotian, met a Miss Pratt, who was a daughter of one of the proprietors of the same paper, and after an acquaintance of about twenty minutes mysteriously disappeared from the hall and got married. They intended to keep it a secret for a while, but it was known all over the town the next day and produced great commotion. Miss Pratt's parents would not permit her to see her husband, and they were finally divorced without having lived together.
For a number of years Napoleon Heitz kept a saloon and restaurant in this building. Heitz had participated in a number of battles under the great Napoleon, and the patrons of his place well recollect the graphic descriptions of the battle of Waterloo which he would often relate while the guest was partaking of a Tom and Jerry or an oyster stew.
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During the summer of 1860 Charles N. Mackubin erected two large buildings on the site of the Metropolitan hotel. Mozart hall was on the Third street end and Masonic hall on the Fourth street corner. At a sanitary fair held during the winter of 1864 both of these halls were thrown together and an entertainment on a large scale was held for the benefit of the almost depleted fundes of the sanitary commission. Fairs had been given for this fund in nearly all the principal cities of the North, and it was customary to vote a sword to the most popular volunteer officer whom the state had sent to the front. A large amount of money had been raised in the different cities on this plan, and the name of Col. Marshall of the Seventh regiment and Col. Uline of the Second were selected as two officers in whom it was thought the people would take sufficient interest to bring out a large vote. The friends of both candidates were numerous and each side had some one stationed at the voting booth keeping tab on the number of votes cast and the probable number it would require at the close to carry off the prize. Col. Uline had been a fireman and was very popular with the young men of the city. Col. Marshall was backed by friends in the different newspaper offices. The contest was very spirited and resulted in Col. Uline capturing the sword, he having received more than two thousand votes in one bundle during the last five minutes the polls were open. This fair was very successful, the patriotic citizens of St. Paul having enriched the funds of the sanitary commission by several thousand dollars.
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