Collier Anthony Turnage (Cat Turnage) moved from the Farmville, NC area to Washington and opened a Shoe store at 120 W Main Street.

3 Business Operated Downstairs in the Hodges Building

• Facing the building, the left side at 152 W Main was Lewis and Calais

  • a dry goods store featuring ladies’ ready-to-wear.

  • It was owned by J.T. Lewis and J.T. Calais.

• The center section (our hallway) at 148 W Main was occupied by William Bragaw and Co.

  • He was a cotton broker and an insurance agent for Penn Mutual Life Insurance Co.

    The right section, 146 W Main, was H.T. Latham Books and Stationery. In 1930, when Turnage opened his new theatre, the back Shaw Soda Shop opened there.

Constructed in 1913.

• Hosted vaudeville acts, musical revues, and community performances

• The “New Theatre” reflected its prominence in the community.

• Features include

  • A raked (sloped) wooden floor for better viewing

  • Original balcony, piano pit, and stage

  • Historic catwalk, curtain pulleys, and early horn speaker

  • Ghostly figures have been sighted - who could they be?

  • Eras of the historic theatre’s ownership:

• At that time, three businesses operated downstairs in the Hodges Building. Facing the building, the left side of the building at 152 W, Main was Lewis and Calais; a dry goods store featuring ladies ready-to-wear goods. It was owned by J.T. Lewis and J.T. Calais. The center section (our hallway), 148 W Main was occupied by William Bragaw and Co. He was a cotton broker and an insurance agent for Penn Mutual Life Insurance Co. The right section, 146 W Main, was H.T. Latham Books and Stationery. In 1930 when Turnage opened his new theatre in the back Shaw Soda Shop opened there. Later in 1913, The New Theatre opened upstairs in the Hodges building. The New Theatre was operated by a stock company made up of the following persons: R. E. Hodges, Jay M. Hodges, J. L. Capeheart, Sam Etheridge and Tom Blow. The opening had been delayed due to damage from the hurricane of 1913. Bell Wright’s most popular story, “The Shepherd of the Hills,” of which a million copies have been sold, had been made into a play by its author with the assistance of Elsbery W. Reynolds. The show opened at the New Theatre on Thursday, November 13, 1913.

• In 1914 C. A. Turnage purchased Sam Etheridge’s interest in the New Theatre. Tom Blow then sold his interest to Ed Willis and L.E. Kidd.

• On March 25, 1929, the first “talkie was shown at the New Theatre; “On Trial” starring Pauline Frederick.

• In 1929, Turnage secured a long lease from Mr. Hodges on the store formerly occupied by Lewis and Calais and the lot in the rear of the Hodges building, and there he built one of the most modern theatres in eastern North Carolina at the time, the TURNAGE THEATRE.

• The TURNAGE opened on February 27, 1930 with the musical film “Lord Byron of Broadway” starring Ethelind Terry and Charles Kaley. Shaw's Soda shop opened in the space where AOP’s sister retail shop, Maker's Gallery is now. In 1938, it was bought and became Davis' Soda Shop. 1939 it was bought out again by none other than George Diamond. He renamed it People's Soda Shop.

• In 1937, Turnage leased the Strand Theatre building including the part of the building occupied by Bell Jewelry company and fifty feet of land in the rear of the building, which located at what is now 109 and 111 W Main Street.

• Tearing down all but the walls of the Strand Theatre, he erected a modern theatre and named it REITA, after his wife, at the suggestion of Edmund Harding. The first showing at the Reita was February 18,1938 featuring the film “Make A Wish” starring Bobby Breen and a Popeye cartoon.

• Turnage operated both theatres continuously until 1955. He sold both theatres to Stewart and Everett Theatre Company of Charlotte who continued to operate them until they closed. The REITA was closed in the late 60s. Sadly, it was torn down and divided into two shops.

• C. A. Turnage passed away in the Beaufort County NC Hospital January 22, 1971, at the age of 85. Having no heirs, his home at 201 W 11th Street in Washington, NC and his estate were sold at public auction. He is interred at Oakdale Cemetery in Washington, NC. His ghost has been sighted in his home by past residents. Maybe it is he who is haunting the theatre.

• The TURNAGE closed in 1979 due to the rise of multiplex theatres and economic decline of small downtowns.

• Turnage Theatres Foundation spearheaded renovations of much of the building and set the stage for what is happening today at the TURNAGE.

• In 2013, AOP purchased the theatre out of bankruptcy and has created a vibrant hub for arts and culture in Beaufort County.