Because
of date gaps in the available online Helena newspaper archives,
this history of the Music Hall is quite incomplete. The hall
opened around 1891; by 1903 it had become notorious for serving
alcohol to minors, and was not held in high regard.
A 1916 newspaper account describes the scene in the Music Hall:
A 1907
newspaper story told of a bloody fight between a bartender
and an irate customer. The customer, one Paul Dipadova, and
a bartender identified only as Lewis, mixed it up with a knife
and broken bottle after Dipadova "forgot" to pay
for his drinks. Dipadova got the worst of it, waking up in
jail the next morning with a bloody gash across his face,
from a broken beer bottle wielded by Lewis in self-defense.
In 1909,
the Music Hall was apparently closed for good. There were corrupt politicians and vice involved, of course. Most notably during the administration of Mayor Frank J. Edwards (1868-1945), who faced scandals involving cronyism linked to prostitution in the South Main area.
A fire
damged the building in the late 1920s or early 30s. It was
used for a time as a garage, but was heavily damaged by the
1935 earthquakes and subsequently demolished...
Capital
Music Hall Building After the 1935 'Quakes
 COLLECTION
OF KENNON BAIRD
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