Designed by the architect Willis G. Hale, it opened to the public in 1901 and remained active as a theatre as late as January 1936.
[1] Designed by architect Willis G. Hale, the theatre sat 1,561 people.
[3] Built and originally owned by the chemical manufacturer and Philadelphia real estate businessman William Weightman,[4] the Garrick Theatre was leased and managed by Frank Howe Jr.[2] The theatre opened on October 11, 1901, with a performance of Booth Tarkington's Monsieur Beaucaire; a stage adaptation of his novel which starred Richard Mansfield.
[4] Not long after its opening, the theatre, while still managed by Howe, was acquired by the Shubert family and became a part of their circuit of American theaters which housed productions which they toured across the country in the many theaters they operated.
[6] The Girard Trust Company (GTC) acquired the theatre along with adjacent property on November 4, 1929;[7] just one month after the Wall Street crash of 1929.