Milton Theatre Milton DE – Once Flooded now Fine!

The story of the Milton Theatre is similar to the legend of the phoenix, but instead of rising out of the ashes, it rose out of the water. That would be the floodwater of the infamous 1962 Great Atlantic Storm that hit Delaware hard and is thought to be one of the ten worst US storms of the 20th century.

The theatre was built in 1910 just alongside of the Broadkill River, and was completely flooded in that Great Storm. There’s a famous photo in the Delaware State Archives of the storm aftermath, showing people in a rowboat in front of the theatre. The water damage was so bad that the theatre closed, not to reopen until decades later.

The Milton Theatre that you see now has risen from her watery past thanks to community residents who rallied to reopen it throughout the late 20th and early 21st century. This iteration of the theatre has been open since 2014 with a jam-packed schedule of live entertainment and specialty film programming.

While the original neon marquee is long gone, you can still see some layers of history, from the art deco panels flanking the stage, to the ceiling, originally built high enough to accommodate the long-ago removed balcony. Even the rough exposed brick walls are a reminder of the damage that had been done to this little theatre, but better instead to think of it as a sign of the work that is still being done to restore it.

PS - Mod Betty’s pals who film the Retro Roadmap videos host the Revival House Movie Series - check it out!