Charles Hedding Rowland (December 20, 1860 – November 24, 1921) was a Republican member of the

U.S. House of Representatives The United States House of Representatives is a chamber of the bicameral United States Congress; it is the lower house, with the U.S. Senate being the upper house. Together, the House and Senate have the authority under Article One of th ...

from

Pennsylvania Pennsylvania, officially the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania, is a U.S. state, state spanning the Mid-Atlantic (United States), Mid-Atlantic, Northeastern United States, Northeastern, Appalachian, and Great Lakes region, Great Lakes regions o ...

Biography

Rowland was born in

Hancock, Maryland Hancock is a town in Washington County, Maryland, Washington County, Maryland, United States. The population was 1,557 at the 2020 United States census, 2020 census. The Western Maryland community is notable for being located at the narrowest part ...

. He moved to

Huntingdon County, Pennsylvania Huntingdon County is a County (United States), county in the Commonwealth (U.S. state), Commonwealth of Pennsylvania. As of the 2020 United States census, 2020 census, the population was 44,092. Its county seat is Huntingdon, Pennsylvania, Hu ...

, in 1866 and to

Houtzdale, Pennsylvania Houtzdale is a borough in Clearfield County, Pennsylvania, United States. The population was 764 at the 2020 census. History Houtzdale is named after Dr. Daniel Houtz, the original owner of the town site. The town was built quickly in the late ...

, in 1874. He was president of the Moshannon Coal Mining Company and of the Pittsburgh & Susquehanna Railroad Company. He was elected as a Republican to the Sixty-fourth and Sixty-fifth Congresses from Pennsylvania's twenty-first district. He declined to be a candidate for renomination in 1918. Rowland died in Philipsburg, Pennsylvania, aged 60, and was interred in the Philipsburg Cemetery.

The Rowland Theater

In 1910, fire destroyed the Pierce Opera House, as well as a number of other Front Street buildings, in Philipsburg. Five years later, on December 31, 1915, Rowland's family purchased the site and began plans to construct a new building suitable to the needs of the local community. Upon its completion in June 1917, Rowland released the following statement, printed on the brochure distributed to the public on opening night:

The people of Philipsburg have long indulged the hope of a comfortable and commodious place of amusement and entertainment. For years we have had no suitable place for public meetings, entertaining conventions, or any auditorium large enough for the varied necessities of a community as large as ours. Such a building is a public necessity. The town needs it in order to keep pace with sister communities. Community growth would be retarded without such a public convenience.

I have felt that we should have a theatre building in Philipsburg of size, safety and perfection of appointment that would anticipate the future, maintain our best past traditions, reflect a progressive spirit, while affording us a place to spend a delightful evening at home. It is proposed to stage only plays and moving pictures of class and quality. I trust the people of Philipsburg, together with those who come from surrounding towns, may enjoy the playhouse now dedicated to their use and pleasure. I wish to take this occasion to say to the theatre going public that it has been a source of some gratification to have been the one permitted to open to the general public a place for its comfort and entertainment.

Today, the Rowland Theater remains open to the public for

motion pictures A film, also known as a movie or motion picture, is a work of visual art that simulates experiences and otherwise communicates ideas, stories, perceptions, emotions, or atmosphere through the use of moving images that are generally, sinc ...

stage plays A play is a form of drama that primarily consists of dialogue between characters and is intended for theatrical performance rather than mere reading. The creator of a play is known as a playwright. Plays are staged at various levels, ranging f ...

orchestra An orchestra (; ) is a large instrumental ensemble typical of classical music, which combines instruments from different families. There are typically four main sections of instruments: * String instruments, such as the violin, viola, cello, ...

s, and more. It is listed on the

National Register of Historic Places The National Register of Historic Places (NRHP) is the Federal government of the United States, United States federal government's official United States National Register of Historic Places listings, list of sites, buildings, structures, Hist ...

References

External links

*
The Political Graveyard
* {{DEFAULTSORT:Rowland, Charles H. 1860 births 1921 deaths 20th-century American railroad executives Businesspeople from Pennsylvania Republican Party members of the United States House of Representatives from Pennsylvania People from Hancock, Maryland People from Huntingdon County, Pennsylvania 20th-century members of the United States House of Representatives