Dorchester Illustration 2668, Dorchester Music Hall

Dorchester Music Hall

Dorchester Illustration 2668

There was a music hall on the third floor of the former storage building in Fields Corner. Today we see two photos from about 1900 of the interior of this wonderful space, which was known as the Dorchester Music Hall. The photos were presented to the Dorchester Historical Society in 1923 by Edwin J. Lewis, Jr., he was an architect who designed many homes in Dorchester.

The top picture is facing the stage (to the east) and the other faces a rear balcony (west toward Dorchester Avenue). Note the large arched windows on both sides, and the pattern of the panes of glass, which is clearly visible in this very crisp photo.

The storage building represents one in an unusual mix of uses for the buildings that Lewis designed, the greatest percentage of which seems to have been homes or churches. The window trim and door surrounds in the photos are similar in design to those found in Lewis-designed houses in Dorchester, especially in the residential areas around Peabody Square.

Research in newspaper archives indicates that when the Dorchester Music Hall opened in about 1886, it presented fairly high-brow concerts and musical stage events. By the early 20th century, however, it primarily hosted political meetings and campaign rallies.

A sign of decline was evident in the following Dec. 15, 1894, newspaper article in The Boston Globe, which describes a staged betting event:

“Razors Like the Wind — They Whistled Through Whiskers of Ten Men. No Fatal Results From a Shaving Contest Last Night.”

“Dorchester Music Hall was turned into a one-chair barber shop last night, when Al Hayden beat Murphy in a fast shaving contest.”

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