Ray Evans Seneca Theater

10 Main Street Salamanca Ny

History

Located in Salamanca, New York, the theatre was originally called the Seneca Theatre and built by the Schine Chain to replace an aging venue a couple of blocks up the street. The building was designed by John and Drew Eberson. Construction was started in 1941 just before the outbreak of WWII. Because of a shortage of building materials caused by the war, construction was not completed until 1945 after the war ended.

The theatre was called the Seneca after the Indian nation which owns the underlying ground. The entire city of Salamanca is located on the Seneca Indian reservation. The land is ground-leased from the Senecas and everyone in the town pays an annual Indian rent.

The theatre lobby featured many sculptures in crevices on the walls. It was operated by the Schine Chain until the mid-1960s. The theatre continued to show movies until June of 1972 when the auditorium ended up under eight feet of water in the flooding which accompanied Hurricane Agnes. The Theater originally had 1272 seats.

The Seneca sat abandoned until the early 1980s when Cattaragus County acquired the building. Over the next several years the theatre was slowly renovated and transformed into the Cattaragus County Center Living Arts Center. It is now primarily used for local live theatre and travelling acts.