North Platte, Nebraska (And Its Fox Theater)

North Platte, Nebraska

November 12, 2022

It is soooooooo cold here!

I've gotten pretty good at figuring out towns -- head downtown first and get a sense of the town. Then go from them in circles to see more of the place.

Great fun to find a Fox theater here!!

Fox Theatre, also known as the Neville Center For The Performing Arts, is a historic building in North Platte, Nebraska. It was built in 1929 by Alex Beck for the North Platte Realty Company, headed by Beck and Keith Neville, and it was designed by architect F. A. Henninger. Neville had served as the 18th governor of Nebraska from 1917 to 1919. The building was acquired by the North Platte Community Playhouse in 1980. It has been listed on the National Register of Historic Places since May 9, 1985.

Fox Theatres was a large chain of movie theaters in the United States dating from the 1920s built by Fox Film studio owner William Fox. It subsequently merged in 1929 with the West Coast Theatres chain, to form the Fox West Coast Theatres chain. Fox West Coast went into bankruptcy and was sold to The National Theatres Corporation, led by Charles Skouras, on November 20, 1933, for $17,000,000. Eugene V. Klein later became CEO of National, and turned it into the conglomerate National General. Mann Theatres bought National General's theatres in 1973.

This chain should not be confused with the Reading, Pennsylvania-based Fox Theaters, founded by Richard Allen "Dick" Fox in 1957 and primarily based on the East Coast.

Buddy was, too.

Fox Theatre or Fox Theater or Fox Theater Building may refer to:

• Fox Tucson Theatre (Tucson, Arizona)

• Fox Theater (Bakersfield, California)

• Fox Theatre (Fullerton, California)

• Fox Theater, Westwood Village (Los Angeles, California)

• Fox Oakland Theatre (Oakland, California)

• Pomona Fox Theater (Pomona, California)

• Fox Theatre (Redwood City, California)

• Riverside Fox Theater (Riverside, California)

• Fox California Theatre, now called the California Theatre (San Jose, California)

• Fox Theatre (Visalia, California)

• Fox Theatre, the original name of Copley Symphony Hall (San Diego, California)

• Fox Theatre (San Francisco), California

• Fox Theatre (Boulder, Colorado)

• Fox Theater at Foxwoods Resort Casino (Ledyard, Connecticut)

• Fox Theatre (Atlanta), Georgia

• Blue Fox Theatre (Grangeville, Idaho)

• Fox Theater (Hutchinson, Kansas)

• Fox–Watson Theater Building (Salina, Kansas)

• Fox Theatre (Detroit), Michigan

• Fox Theater (Joplin, Missouri)

• Fox Theatre (St. Louis), Missouri

• Fox Theatre (Las Cruces, New Mexico)

• Fox Theatre (Portland, Oregon)

• Fox Theater (Spokane, Washington)

• Fox Theatre, the original name of Meyer Theatre (Green Bay, Wisconsin)

• Fox Theater (Stevens Point, Wisconsin)

North Platte is a city in and the county seat of Lincoln County, Nebraska. It is located in the west-central part of the state, along Interstate 80, at the confluence of the North and South Platte Rivers forming the Platte River. The population was 23,390 at the 2020 census.

North Platte is a railroad town; Union Pacific Railroad's large Bailey Yard is located within the city. Today, North Platte is served only by freight trains, but during World War II the city was known for the North Platte Canteen, a volunteer organization serving food to millions of traveling soldiers.

North Platte is the principal city of the North Platte Micropolitan Statistical Area, which includes Lincoln, Logan, and McPherson counties.

North Platte was established in 1866 when the Union Pacific Railroad was extended to that point.[6] It derives its name from the North Platte River.[7][8]

North Platte was the western terminus of the Union Pacific Railway from the summer of 1867 until the next section to Laramie, Wyoming, was opened the following summer. Even though Congress had authorized the building of the Transcontinental Railroad in 1862, it had been extended only as far as Nebraska City by the start of the summer of 1867. The 275-mile (443 km) section from Nebraska City to North Platte was completed in less than six weeks.[citation needed]

In the 1880s, Buffalo Bill Cody established his ranch, known as Scout's Rest Ranch, just north of town. It is now a National Historic Landmark.

On July 13, 1929, a black man shot and killed a white police officer. The black man reportedly took his own life, being trapped by a mob. This led to the formation of white mobs combing the city, and ordering black residents to leave North Platte. Fearing mob violence, most of North Platte's black residents fled.

The North Platte Canteen was one of the largest volunteer efforts of World War II, originating in 1941. Tens of thousands of volunteers from North Platte and surrounding towns met the troop trains passing through North Platte, offering coffee, sandwiches, dessert, and hospitality to nearly seven million servicemen.

Climate

North Platte experiences a dry continental climate similar to that of the Nebraska High Plains, classified as hot-summer humid continental (Köppen Dwa), and, with an annual average precipitation of 21.08 inches (535 mm), barely avoids semi-arid classification; it is part of USDA Hardiness zone 5a. The normal monthly mean temperature ranges from 26.3 °F (−3.2 °C) in January to 75.6 °F (24.2 °C) in July.[19] On an average year, there are 3.8 afternoons that reach 100 °F (37.8 °C) or higher, 39 afternoons that reach 90 °F (32.2 °C) or higher, 31.4 afternoons that do not climb above freezing, and 12.2 mornings with a low of 0 °F (−17.8 °C) or below.[19] The average window for freezing temperatures is September 30 thru May 13,[19] allowing a growing season of 139 days. Extreme temperatures officially range from −35 °F (−37.2 °C) on January 15, 1888 and February 12, 1899, up to 112 °F (44.4 °C) on July 11, 1954; the record cold daily maximum is −15 °F (−26.1 °C) on January 14, 1888, while, conversely, the record warm daily minimum is 80 °F (26.7 °C) on July 25, 1940.

Precipitation is greatest in May and June and has ranged from 10.01 inches (254.3 mm) in 1931 to 33.44 inches (849.4 mm) in 1951. Snowfall averages 29.6 inches (0.75 m) per season, and has historically ranged from 3.0 inches (0.08 m) in 1903–04 to 66.3 inches (1.68 m) in 1979–80; the average window for measurable (≥0.1 inches or 0.0025 metres) snowfall is November 1 thru April 12, with May and October snow being rare.

2010 census

As of the census of 2010, there were 24,733 people, 10,560 households, and 6,290 families residing in the city. The population density was 1,873.7 inhabitants per square mile (723.4/km2). There were 11,450 housing units at an average density of 867.4 per square mile (334.9/km2). The racial makeup of the city was 93.1% White, 1.0% African American, 0.7% Native American, 0.7% Asian, 2.8% from other races, and 1.7% from two or more races. Hispanic or Latino of any race were 8.8% of the population.

There were 10,560 households, of which 30.4% had children under the age of 18 living with them, 44.5% were married couples living together, 10.7% had a female householder with no husband present, 4.3% had a male householder with no wife present, and 40.4% were non-families. 34.8% of all households were made up of individuals, and 13.9% had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older. The average household size was 2.29 and the average family size was 2.95.

The median age in the city was 37.1 years. 24.9% of residents were under the age of 18; 9% were between the ages of 18 and 24; 25% were from 25 to 44; 25.6% were from 45 to 64; and 15.5% were 65 years of age or older. The gender makeup of the city was 48.8% male and 51.2% female.