Exciting developments are underway at Bellefontaine’s historic Holland Theatre, where a long-lost icon of downtown is making an exciting return.
Crews began installation work last week on a brand-new marquee — a re-creation of the theater’s original 1931 design — taking full advantage of the spring weather to prepare for the big reveal.
To mark the installation, community members are invited to a grand celebration and inaugural lighting on Friday, May 23.
“We are thrilled to be able to share this exciting news!” said Holland Theatre board president Kris Swisher, who helped lead the Light Up the Holland campaign that raised the funds for the project. “The marquee will be a wonderful addition to our downtown, and we want to make the celebration an event to remember.”
The event will feature entertainment, food trucks, and the show-stopping moment at sundown when the new marquee is lit for the first time.
Planning for the evening is underway in partnership with Bellefontaine’s Downtown Business Partnership.
Major donors will be treated to a special dinner and drinks inside the historic theater prior to the lighting ceremony.
While the original marquee’s blade was removed in the 1950s due to code changes, and the rest taken down in the 1960s to accommodate street expansion, this new version honors the theater’s architectural legacy in full.
The Holland Theatre, known as “Ohio’s Most Beautiful Theatre,” is listed on both the National Register of Historic Places and in the archives of the Theatre Historical Society of America.
Designed by Dutch-born architect Peter M. Hulsken, the building originally opened on February 12, 1931, as Schine’s Holland Theatre.
It featured the largest movie screen in Ohio at the time and seated 1,400 patrons.
The Holland is the only atmospheric theater in the U.S. showcasing 17th-century Dutch architecture.
Inside, visitors are transported to an open-air courtyard under a painted night sky complete with twinkling stars and moving clouds, with brick and timber façades modeled after Dutch buildings — including Hulsken’s family home.
Though the theater experienced decline in the mid-1990s and was briefly converted into a Movieplex, a grassroots effort led by local sixth-grade students in 1999 helped save it from demolition.
Later that year, the Knowlton family purchased and donated the building to Logan County Landmark Preservation, Inc., launching a multimillion-dollar restoration completed in 2019.
Today, the Holland Theatre is not only a beloved historical site but a thriving cultural hub for Bellefontaine and all of central Ohio.
With the upcoming lighting of its restored marquee, the Holland is ready to shine even brighter.
Stay tuned for full event details and join the celebration on Friday, May 23 — a night when history, community, and creativity take center stage once again.
