Gordon's Scollay Sq. Olympia Theatre, Boston Mass. facade drawing

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The drawing shows the street front of Gordon's Olympia theater, one of the houses that gave Scollay Square in downtown Boston its reputation for vaudeville, burlesque and late-night entertainment. Scollay Square was a crowded, lively district of theaters, cafes and arcades until the city cleared most of it in the early 1960s to make room for Government Center. Facade drawings like this one were often used to promote a house or record its appearance, so the marquee and signage show how the theater presented itself to the street. Today it stands as a reminder of a neighborhood that no longer exists.

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