The Jefferson Nickelodeon, located at 4768 N. Milwaukee Ave, first opened in 1914. It was a small single-screen theater of a Neoclassical design, designed by architect E.M. Newman. Seating 294, it primarily served the growing Jefferson Park neighborhood, and by 1917 became the Progress Theatre. It closed as a theatre in 1923, several years before movies had sound. In the ninety years since it closed as a theater, it has housed many small business, the latest of which was a cabinet maker. Currently, it is vacant and for rent (according to the signs).
Many people pass this small building up without ever noticing the "Jefferson" epigraph. Recently, the entire building was painted a dark maroon color, further obscuring the word. Previously, the building was painted in such a way that the word "Jefferson" really stood out. This building is one of my favorite buildings due to its historical significance as one of the neighborhood's earlier (if not earliest) theaters, and because of its low-key existence and mysterious nature.
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