Smyrna Town Hall gets place on the state historic registry

SMYRNA – The history of the Smyrna Town Hall is long and complex. The building has been used as an opera house, a movie theater and as classrooms for the area school.

Now, 101 years after the facility was built, it has been added to the New York State Historic Registry.

According to Smyrna Historian Robert Matteson, the town’s first meeting was held in 1808, but for nearly 100 years, there was no official meeting place. Meetings were held in various offices around the town. It wasn’t until Feb. 12, 1907 that the town passed a proposition to build the Town Hall.

The current Smyrna Town Hall is located on the Corner of School Street and Academy Street. Until 1900, a house stood on the current site, but a large fire in 1900 wiped out much of the town’s center, including many businesses located on the main street, the Opera House and many of the homes lining Academy Street.

On March 9, 1907, the town board agreed to purchase the current property for $250. The town sold bonds to raise the money to build the town hall, an amount they agreed would not exceed $4,000.

The town hall was built quickly, but soon after it was completed, the building was leased. On Dec. 3, 1907, the town board agreed to lease the building to G.A. Munson, a member of the town board and the owner of the original opera house for the price of $150 a year. Munson utilized the facility as the new opera house. The building contained a stage and a large balcony seating area, which remain in the building today, although they have been blocked off and are not in use.