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Illinois
(Smith's) Opera House
Wednesday, March 8, 1882
The Decorative Arts
Newspaper report
The Daily Republican (Decatur), Feb 2, 1882, 3
Originally advertised as 'The English Renaissance', but, owing to the smaller houses, Wilde had written to his manager, Col.W. F. Morse in early March to say:
"Kindly see that I am not advertised to lecture on 'The English Renaissance'. I have not delivered that lecture since February 11, and yet I am always advertised for it. It is very annoying, and besides, 'The English Renaissance' is printed in the Seaside, so people think they know it, and stay away. The lecture is on "The Decorative Arts'..." [1]
These two advertisements for the Decatur lecture show that Wilde's requested was heeded. although not quite with the precise title he suggested. See also The Decorative Arts.
Advertisements:
The Daily Republican (Decatur), Mar 3, 1882, 2
The Daily Republican (Decatur), Mar 8, 1882, 2
(Smith's) Opera House
200 block of North Water Street (West side; the entrance is now No. 225), Decatur, IL
Built: 1870 (Edward. O. Smith)
Operating until: 1889 (when the Powers Grand Opera House opened)
Last performance: May 29, 1889 (Frederick Warde's The Mountebank) and immediately thereafter converted for business purposes [1]
[1] Decatur Weekly Republican (Decatur, IL), June 6, 1889, 5
Decatur Weekly Republican (Decatur, IL) March 9, 1882, 1
The New Deming Hotel
Old Square (now Lincoln Square),, NW Corner, Decatur, IL
Originally: 1860, an unfinished hotel building (Rev. W. S. Crissey)
Completed by: Franklin Priest as the Priest Hotel
Renamed: 1881, The New Deming Hotel
Wilde’s room: Parlor No. 72
Renamed: 1892, The Arcade Hotel (Augustine Wait)
Renamed: 1900, The Decatur Hotel
Partially destroyed (fire): 1904, rebuilt with four floors
Destroyed (by fire): 1915
Fire destroyed the Decatur Hotel (formerly Wilde’s hotel, the New Deming) on April 21, 1915. Visible also are the seven story Arcade Building, also destroyed, and to the left, the iconic Transfer House which was moved from the square in November 1962.
The Decatur Daily Review, Feb 5, 1967, 43
Oscar Wilde In America | © John Cooper, 2025
