Toccoa’s Ritz Theatre on National Registry of Historic Places

In Stephens County, Toccoa’s Ritz Theatre, formerly known as the Schaefer Center, has been named to the National Register of Historic Places.

Located on the corner of West Doyle and Broad Sts in downtown Toccoa, the theatre made the list in October.

The theater was listed as part of a small boundary increase to the Toccoa Downtown Historic District.
City of Toccoa officials had been trying for several years to get the old movie theatre on the historic list for a number of years, but a previous brick facade was deemed as not being original to the structure so the application was denied.
Using grant money and other funds, the theatre was restored inside and out to its original look and the designation was finally awarded.
According to the Georgia Department of Natural Resources Historic Preservation Division, the Ritz opened in 1939 as a single-screen film theater. I
It was operated by Fred McLendon, who owned and operated a chain of movie theaters.
After the movie theater closed in 1975, the building was renamed the Schaefer Center and used as a performing arts center
The Ritz Theater is being hailed as an excellent example of a 1939 Streamline Moderne-style movie theater, and it contributes to the significance of Toccoa’s downtown district as a community landmark building.

The National Register of Historic Places is the country’s official list of historic buildings, structures, sites, objects, and districts worthy of preservation.

It provides formal recognition of a property’s architectural, historical, or archaeological significance.

The registry also identifies historic properties for planning purposes and insures that these properties will be considered in the planning of state or federally assisted projects.