{"nrhp_refnum":"79003237","name":"Proctor, F. F., Theatre and Arcade","other_names":[],"category":"building","location":{"address":"432 State St.","address_restricted":false,"city":"Schenectady","county":"Schenectady County","state":"NY","lat":42.81238167600003,"lon":-73.94157696599996,"geom_source":"nps_gis"},"listed_date":"1979-10-04","is_nhl":false,"nhl_designated_date":null,"areas_of_significance":["Architecture","Communications","Performing Arts"],"significance_levels":["local"],"summary":{"what_it_is":"A four-story brick theatre and shopping/office arcade at 432 State Street in downtown Schenectady, New York, built in 1926 and designed by Thomas W. Lamb, with C.P. Boland and Sons Co. as builder.","why_significant":"The nomination presents it as a classic example of Thomas Lamb's neoclassical \"Adam Period\" movie palace design and a monument to vaudeville promoter F.F. Proctor. It reflects Schenectady's boom tied to General Electric. It was also the site of the first large-screen television projection demonstration on May 22, 1930, and is one of only two remaining downtown theatres.","narrative":"Proctor's Theatre and Arcade occupies a downtown Schenectady block on State Street, where a four-story brick complex combines a lavish movie palace with a shopping and office arcade. Completed in 1926 for vaudeville impresario F.F. Proctor, it was designed by Thomas W. Lamb, who worked in a neoclassical style inspired by Robert Adam. The street facade reworked an older brick market, while the interior carries the main display: marble staircases, a Louis XV style fireplace, gold leaf detailing, a fan-shaped auditorium and a dome with a 192-lamp chandelier. The arcade held fourteen shops and thirty-five offices. The property was valued as a classic example of Lamb's work and as a reflection of Schenectady's growth alongside General Electric. In 1930 Ernst Alexanderson demonstrated large-screen television projection here. It was also one of just two theatres left downtown, and the other was expected to be demolished. It remained in use as a theatre and arcade.","period_of_significance":null,"architect_builder":"Architect Thomas W. Lamb; builder C.P. Boland and Sons Co.","architectural_style":"Adamesque (Thomas Lamb's \"Adam Period\" movie palace style)","criteria":[],"status_note":"Still used as a theatre and arcade; condition rated good, with a deteriorated stuccoed street facade partly hidden by a large electric sign. Alterations since 1977 include a new roof, new oil burners and replastering and repainting.","vacant_flag":false,"machine_generated":true,"model":"claude-sonnet-5-5","prompt_version":"v1.0-2026-10-29","generated_at":"2026-10-29 02:50:39.755262-05","source_pdf":"https://s3.amazonaws.com/NARAprodstorage/lz/electronic-records/rg-079/NPS_NY/79003237.pdf"},"photo":{"url_800":"https://nationalhistoricalregister.com/media/79003237/2b49b3d5f0-800.webp","url_1600":"https://nationalhistoricalregister.com/media/79003237/2b49b3d5f0-1600.webp","licence":"CC BY-SA 3.0","author":"UpstateNYer","credit_html":"<a href=\"https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:ProctorsSchenectady.jpg\" rel=\"noopener\">UpstateNYer</a>, <a href=\"https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/3.0\" rel=\"license noopener\">CC BY-SA 3.0</a>, via Wikimedia Commons","source_page":"https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:ProctorsSchenectady.jpg"},"district":null,"sources":{"nps_snapshot_date":"2026-05-22","nara_catalog":"https://catalog.archives.gov/id/75314616","wikipedia":"https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Proctor%27s_Theatre_(Schenectady,_New_York)","wikidata":"https://www.wikidata.org/wiki/Q7247509"},"indexable":true,"url":"https://nationalhistoricalregister.com/new-york/schenectady-county/proctor-f-f-theatre-and-arcade-79003237/"}