Sorg Opera House 

204 S. Main Street

Middletown, Ohio

Cover of the first program on opening night

The Sorg Opera House first opened its doors on September 12, 1891.  Middletown's first multi-millionaire, Paul. J. Sorg, had the opera house built as a gift to his hometown.  Samuel Hannaford, who designed the Cincinnati Music Hall, was hired to design the 1,200 seat opera house. 

The image is of Gough and Galt, a clothing retailer in 1909.  It shared a wall with the opera house lobby. Sign above stairway reads "Clothing Department Up Stairs".

Image source:  Midpointe Library, George C. Crout Collection 

When the Sorg Opera house was built, there were 4 ground level store fronts.  Each space was uniform in design and were approximately 20x40 feet and had a stairwell leading upstairs to the 1st floor of the Commercial Building.  They were used as different departments or for storage. These storefronts housed numerous businesses including Ohio Electric and Gas (which had most of the 3rd floor), Middletown and Cincinnati Railroad, various clothing outlets, confectionaries, tobacco stores, a piano store, discount stores and a newspaper stand which included one named, Broadway News. 

The Sorg Opera House at Christmas.

The Sorg Opera house in Middletown, Ohio has long been "rumored" to be haunted.  Local legends tell of the ghost of Paul J. Sorg, the orginal owner, still sitting in his favorite balcony seat.  Witnesses have reported hearing a mysterious "lady in red" singing from the dressing rooms, only for her to vanish upon approach.