The Stockbridge Casino is a historic building at the junction of East Main Street and Yale Hill Road in

Stockbridge, Massachusetts Stockbridge is a town in Berkshire County in Western Massachusetts, United States. It is part of the Pittsfield, Massachusetts, Metropolitan Statistical Area. The population was 2,018 at the 2020 census. A year-round resort area, Stockbridg ...

. Built in 1887, it is a prominent local work of architect

Stanford White Stanford White (November 9, 1853 – June 25, 1906) was an American architect and a partner in the architectural firm McKim, Mead & White, one of the most significant Beaux-Arts firms at the turn of the 20th century. White designed many houses ...

, and has served as a cultural center in the community since its construction, despite being moved in 1928. Now a part of the grounds of the

Berkshire Theatre Festival The Berkshire Theatre Festival is one of the oldest professional performing arts venues in the Berkshires, celebrating 100 years of theatre in 2028. History The main building of the Berkshire Theatre Festival was originally the Stockbridge Casin ...

, the building was added to 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 ...

in 1976.

Description and history

The former Stockbridge Casino is set east of Stockbridge's Main Street downtown, at the northwest corner of Yale Hill Road and East Main Street. It is a two-story wood-frame structure, with a hip roof and clapboarded exterior. The roof is capped by a cupola, mounted in eight small round columns which are surrounded by a low balustrade. On the front roof face, the cupola flanked by round-headed dormers. The main facade has a projecting two-story center section, composed of three bays articulated by engaged round columns. Each of these bays has a paneled first floor and a rounded window on the second. Entrances are located flanking this projecting bay, accessed via stairs at differing elevations. The interior has undergone some alterations from its original appearance, due to its conversion to a theatrical performance space. Designed by

, the casino was built in 1887 near the western end of Main Street at the base of Prospect Hill, and for many years was a popular recreational and social attraction (according to older usages of the word "

casino A casino is a facility for gambling. Casinos are often built near or combined with hotels, resorts, restaurants, retail shops, cruise ships, and other tourist attractions. Some casinos also host live entertainment, such as stand-up comedy, conce ...

", it was not necessarily a gambling establishment). After falling into decline, the property was purchased in 1927 by

Mabel Choate Mabel Choate (December 26, 1870 – December 11, 1958) was an American gardener, collector and philanthropist. Biography Born on December 26, 1870, in New York City, Mabel Choate was the fourth of five children of Joseph Hodges Choate, Joseph ...

, owner of the nearby

Naumkeag Naumkeag is the former country estate of noted New York City lawyer Joseph Hodges Choate and Caroline Dutcher Sterling Choate, located at 5 Prospect Hill Road, Stockbridge, Massachusetts. The estate's centerpiece is a 44-room, Shingle Styl ...

estate. She sought the property as a location for the

Mission House The Mission House at Kerikeri in New Zealand was completed in 1822 as part of the Kerikeri Mission Station by the Church Missionary Society, and is New Zealand's oldest surviving building. It is sometimes known as Kemp House. History Samuel ...

, and was not interested in the casino building. She sold it for $1 to businessman and artist

Walter Leighton Clark Walter Leighton Clark (1859–1935) was an American businessman, inventor, artist, and philanthropist based in Stockbridge, Massachusetts and New York City. Biography Among other achievements, in 1923 Walter Leighton Clark founded with John Si ...

on the condition that it be moved. Together with sculptor

Daniel Chester French Daniel Chester French (April 20, 1850 – October 7, 1931) was an American sculpture, sculptor in the late 19th and early 20th centuries. His works include ''The Minute Man'', an 1874 statue in Concord, Massachusetts, and his Statue of Abr ...

and Dr. Austen Fox Riggs, he founded the Three Arts Society, which purchased the building and moved it to its current location. The building was renovated and reopened in 1928 as the Berkshire Playhouse, which later became the

References

External links

* {{National Register of Historic Places in Massachusetts Event venues on the National Register of Historic Places in Massachusetts Buildings and structures in Berkshire County, Massachusetts National Register of Historic Places in Berkshire County, Massachusetts Stockbridge, Massachusetts 1887 establishments in Massachusetts Queen Anne architecture in Massachusetts Event venues established in 1887

Description and history

See also

References

External links