CORINTHIAN HALL

Inscription

CORINTHIAN HALL
FROM 1849-1898, SITE OF
SOCIAL REFORM MEETINGS AND
APPEARANCES BY JENNY LIND,
FOX SISTERS, SUSAN B. ANTHONY,
FREDERICK DOUGLASS & OTHERS.
WILLIAM G. POMEROY FOUNDATION 2021

In 1849, William Reynolds financed the construction of the Athenaeum Building, located near the Reynolds Arcade on Exchange Place (now Corinthian Street), to house the Rochester Athenaeum and Mechanics’ Literary Association. Designed and decorated by architect Henry Searle, the three-story building featured stores on the first floor, a hall and library with reading rooms on the second floor, and an auditorium on the third floor. Following the dedication of the Athenaeum as Corinthian Hall on June 28, 1849, the Daily Democrat described it as:

“a building which is at once an ornament and one of the most desirable edifices for the purposes to which it is to be devoted, that can be found in the State…there are not many like it, or that combine its elegance, appropriate construction, in principle and detail, and commodiousness.”

Corinthian Hall was the site of presentations by entertainers and social reform leaders alike. Shortly after it opened, it hosted a series of Spiritualism meetings. In 1849, lecturer E.W. Capron relayed his communications with a ghost inhabiting his house and invited the audience to investigate his story for deception. The Fox Sisters and other Spiritualists and mediums also made appearances. Later performances included a concert by singer Jenny Lind in 1852, a reading by novelist Charles Dickens in 1868, and a play by Buffalo Bill in 1876. Frederick Douglass and Susan B. Anthony also gave addresses here in 1852 and 1873, respectively.

By 1871, Samuel Wilder assumed ownership of Corinthian Hall and an adjoining lot from William Reynolds for $39,000. The hall was reopened in 1879 as the Corinthian Academy of Music and later conveyed to various owners. In December 1898, a fire was discovered near the stage; however, it quickly engulfed the building before it could be contained. The former Corinthian Hall was destroyed, with the total loss estimated at $200,000.

As of 2021, the marker stands near the original site of Corinthian Hall, which is now a parking lot.