Another Monday history challenge...

... taking an archive picture as the starting point.

The top picture shows an interesting Harrogate building when it was the Empire Theatre. The building was originally a Primitive Methodist Chapel started in 1872. When the chapel closed in 1910, it became a theatre. Digging a little deeper in its history we find it closed in October 1931. 

Then came the challenge - to find a reasonable date for the original photograph. It is possible to read the poster on the outside announcing the performance for the week beginning Monday 26 September. A quick bit of research reveals that, in the 21 years of the theatre's existence, there were only two Mondays with that date, in 1921 and 1927. After that maybe the car in the picture could narrow it down but my skills don't stretch to old vehicle recognition.

I also couldn't quite get the correct angle on today's picture without standing in the middle of a busy road to take it.

The building has had for all sorts of uses, including a garage, since the theatre closed. It became a restaurant in about the late 1970s; the old proscenium arch of the stage has been restored and preserved.