The Midland Theatre Careers in Newark, OH

On December 20, 1928, just a few days before Christmas, the sidewalks of the Newark, Ohio Town Square were filled with shoppers in search of last-minute gifts. Amidst all the hustle and bustle, on North Park Place there was a line of people – hundreds of them – people standing in place for hours, or, according to an account in the local paper, paying young boys to stand there for them. They braved the elements so that they could be the first to get a glimpse of Newark’s newest entertainment establishment. Over the next 5 decades The Midland Theatre had great success presenting a wide variety of entertainment including: films, musical acts, plays, dance, cooking classes and more! In 1978, The Midland Theatre, showing increasing decay and decreasing attendance, closed. A power outage during the "Blizzard of '78" caused the boilers to freeze and crack, sealing the theatre's fate. Then, in 1992, Dave Longaberger and The Longaberger Company purchased The Midland. As a tribute to Dave'