This historic building was built in 1904 by the Knights of Pythias as the Knights of Pythias Hall and Opera House at a whopping cost of $25,000, and seated an audience of 700. Noah Gates) who also designed Carnall Hall, and featured a grand staircase, box seats and a ballroom on what is now our fourth floor, and a neo-classical façade. Notable visitors included President Taft, William Jennings Bry
ant, and Jack Dempsey. In the late 1920s, the Opera House began showing moving pictures, and in 1948 it was renovated and the front façade changed to art deco and it featured one of the largest neon marquees in the state, which completed its renovation from opera house to the modern movie house Ozark Theater owned by Malco. It remained the place to go until it fell in disrepair in the late 1970s. It was nearly demolished for a parking lot in the early 1990s before a group of local citizens, headed by 12-year-old Jonathan Story, campaigned relentlessly for the building to be spared. Story gathered signatures for a petition and also spoke at city council meetings. The group was eventually successful and the front third of the building was renovated into the contemporary offices we have enjoyed since late 2008 at the corner of College and Center streets.
