The Jersey City news. (Jersey City [N.J.]) 1889-1906, 1900-03-24
old Time HOBOKEN
Demolition Of the Star
Theatre Recalls Many
Stories.
TALES TOLD BY An OFFICIAL
The Building Housed Varying
Schemes and Notorious
People.


The trouble over the demolition of the
old Star Theatre building in Hoboken,
which was told in '"The News yesterday,
revives an interesting story in connection
with that now famous ramshackle. Ready
as it now is for the junkman's axe, the
old landmark presents such dilapidated
appearance that one unacquainted with
it's history would never dream of the
scenes of revelry and splendor its now
crumbling walls once witnessed.
"If those decaying timbers could speak
they could tell many an interesting tale,
remarked one old Hoboken official to
reporter last evening. ''They saw theat-
rical stars made; they saw fortunes won
and squandered at gambling; they saw
the beginning of intrigues which led up to
| public scandals and divorce cases; they
saw political games hatched; they saw, in
| fact, decade of reigning Bohemianism
| that gave to Hoboken the unique, if not
enviable, reputation that still sticks to it.
An old dreamer like myself experiences
| some enjoyment in recalling incidents
! connected with the old Star
| cit was probably the only one of its
| kind in the State. The ground on which
the building stood originally was prom
inence 1t is probably quarter OF
| century back since the building was occu-
| pied by an old man named Lewis. This
| Lewis was known throughout town as a
| niser and lived with two unmarried
daughters The dwelling was a bleak
| looking one. remember the time the
| two daughters died. Their deaths occur
! red within a short time of one another
| and the old man followed shortly after
| wards There were no other living rela-
/ tiyes, and by the will of Lewis, his for
! tune which amounted to nearly million
| and a half went to the Federal Govern
mentt. News of the strange will created
a big interest at the time.
shortly after the funeral a man claim
ing to be a Dr. Ward and woman,
who it was subsequently learned was
notorious Tenderloin character, started to
contest the will Ward claimed to be
/ distant relative, and the woman, Jennie
| Hammond swore she was the old mlser
widow. Attorney General Gilchrist, with
the aid of Secret Service men, succeeded
| in proving that the two claimants were
humbugs. They were both members OF a
gang which had planned to secure the
big fortune The entire gang could not pc
apprehended, but the Hammond woman
and Ward were sentenced to long terms
in State prison.
"a theatrical man named Weber pur-
chased the property and moved the build
ing down to its present site. He enlarged
it considerably and converted it into
summer resort with show attractions 1t
/ was a good sort of a free and easy and
was well patronized by New Workers and
others visiting the Elysian Fields. The
| late Robert Waring purchased the place
| from Weber and turned it into regular
vaudeville house. He made big money
there for a time Weber and Fields, the
comedians, made their debut in this place.
Peter Jackson, the pugilist, visited it fre-
ouentIy and Ernest Roeber, the wrestler,
who was defeated for the world champion
ship Thursday night gained his first
| reputation as a professional there The
place was a great RENDEZVOUS for the
sporting fraternity and many a big game
of poker was played in the rooms up
stairs.
"Waring was a hypnotist and used to
frequently entertain his friends after the
| shows with an exhibition of his powers.
One night remember he put a chap to
/ Sleep Just as he had him off, some of
his particular friends came along and
asked him down stairs. Bob forgot all
| about his subject and it was several hours
| before he went back to wake him up
again. When Waring sold out the the
| atre passed into other hands in quick sue
cession. Up to the time of its close as
many as dozen men had assumed charge
| of it, Siegfried Cronheim was one of
these and his arrest and conviction for
maintaining it as a disorderly house is
not too far back for the younger genera
ton to remember. The late Father Cor
rigan, pastor of Our Lady of Grace
Church. was among the people who inter-
ceded for the proprietor. The clergyman
created something of a sensaT n at the
time by declaring that there WIRE other
places as uisorderly as the theatre kept
open on Sunday and that Cronhe1m
should not be made to suffer if others did
not Yes, the old building was great
place. 1 can't remember half of the
things that helped to make it notorious,
but they were great times. Hoboken viii
probably never see the like again