Facade	Right Rear Oblique	Rear Elevation	Art Deco Lighting Fixture	Interior Lobby
Interior Seating Area

The Palmetto Theater, built in 1940, is significant for its technological advances and as an excellent example of the theater designs of Erle G. Stillwell (1885-1978), a Hendersonville, North Carolina, architect who specialized in movie theaters. Stillwell, one of the principals in the firm Six Associates, Inc., of Asheville, also designed ten other theaters in South Carolina in the 1930s and 1940s. The Palmetto Theater included the latest in design for its patrons, including state-of-the-art projection and sound equipment, air conditioning, and a staggered placement of seats so that no patron’s view of the screen would be blocked by the patron sitting in front of them, and hard-of-hearing-aids and other aids for the disabled. The theater is a one-story, rectangular plan brick building with a built-up roof on bow-string trusses and a stepped stucco façade. Exterior features include a large marquee, theater entrance recess and a separate shop storefront decorated in Carrera-glass panels in varying shades of blue. Interior features include double balconies, Terrazzo flooring, large Art Deco light fixtures, decorative wall painting, and an Art Deco plaster screen surround. Listed in the National Register April 12, 1996. It has since been demolished.

View the complete text of the nomination form for this National Register property.

Most National Register properties are privately owned and are not open to the public. The privacy of owners should be respected. Not all properties retain the same integrity as when originally documented and listed in the National Register due to changes and modifications over time.

Images and texts on these pages are intended for research or educational use. Please read our statement on use and reproduction for further information on how to obtain a photocopy or how to cite an item.