{"nrhp_refnum":"79000878","name":"Coronado","other_names":["Rockford's Wonder Theater"],"category":"building","location":{"address":"312-324 N. Main St","address_restricted":false,"city":"Rockford","county":"Winnebago County","state":"IL","lat":42.273965747000034,"lon":-89.09310220199995,"geom_source":"nps_gis"},"listed_date":"1979-09-06","is_nhl":false,"nhl_designated_date":null,"areas_of_significance":["Entertainment/Recreation","Architecture"],"significance_levels":["state"],"summary":{"what_it_is":"A multi-use building at 312-324 North Main Street in Rockford, Illinois, containing a 2,440-seat movie theatre, 18 efficiency apartments and five storefront retail spaces. The theatre opened on October 9, 1927, and was designed by architect Frederic J. Klein.","why_significant":"The Coronado is a very fine example of an \"atmospheric\" movie palace, with an interior that remains virtually unchanged since it opened in 1927. Its scale, cost and quality are exceptional for a city the size of Rockford. It also has a long record of music and stage performance, anchored by a restored Barton pipe organ.","narrative":"Rockford's Coronado is a movie palace and mixed-use building on North Main Street, holding a 2,440-seat theatre, 18 efficiency apartments and five storefront shops. It opened on October 9, 1927, at a reported cost of $1,500,000. Architect Frederic J. Klein of Peoria designed it in the \"atmospheric\" style, in which plaster castle walls, domes and turrets, a starry blue ceiling of small lights and a cloud machine suggest a Mediterranean night. Rockford firms did the construction, while the Walter Scott Bell Company handled the ornamental plaster. The Coronado's Barton pipe organ was restored in the 1970s by volunteer groups. The theatre has hosted big bands, opera and touring stage productions. It matters because it appears to be one of the best preserved movie palaces in the country, with an interior virtually the same as at its opening, and because a city of Rockford's size built so grand a theatre.","period_of_significance":"1925-1927","architect_builder":"Frederic J. Klein","architectural_style":"Atmospheric movie theatre style (Spanish Castles theme, in the manner of John Eberson)","criteria":[],"status_note":"Occupied and in excellent condition; still operates as a movie theatre and hosts live performances. Only minor alterations are noted, such as removed front doors, replaced marquee panels and new carpets.","vacant_flag":false,"machine_generated":true,"model":"claude-sonnet-5-5","prompt_version":"v1.0-2026-10-29","generated_at":"2026-10-29 02:55:34.647184-05","source_pdf":"https://s3.amazonaws.com/NARAprodstorage/opastorage/live/9/8944/28894409/content/electronic-records/rg-079/NPS_IL/79000878.pdf"},"photo":{"url_800":"https://nationalhistoricalregister.com/media/79000878/c551bab11f-800.webp","url_1600":"https://nationalhistoricalregister.com/media/79000878/c551bab11f-1600.webp","licence":"CC BY 2.5","author":"IvoShandor","credit_html":"<a href=\"https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Rockford_Il_Coronado8.jpg\" rel=\"noopener\">IvoShandor</a>, <a href=\"https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/2.5\" rel=\"license noopener\">CC BY 2.5</a>, via Wikimedia Commons","source_page":"https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Rockford_Il_Coronado8.jpg"},"district":null,"sources":{"nps_snapshot_date":"2026-05-22","nara_catalog":"https://catalog.archives.gov/id/28894409","wikipedia":"https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Coronado_Theatre","wikidata":"https://www.wikidata.org/wiki/Q5172165"},"indexable":true,"url":"https://nationalhistoricalregister.com/illinois/winnebago-county/coronado-79000878/"}