B. F. Keith Memorial Theatre, 539 Washington Street, Boston, Suffolk County, MA

Significance: The B.F. Keith Memorial Theatre is one of the finest examples of the moving picture palace at its highest stage of development. Designed in the grand Baroque manner by Thomas W. Lamb, one of the foremost theatre architects of his day, it was erected at the behest of Edward Franklin Albee (1857-1930) to memorialize his late partner, Benjamin Franklin Keith (1846-1914), co-founder of the Keith-Albee theatres and originator of the refined vaudeville entertainment that flourished from the turn of the century until the 1930s. The theatre gained added significance in 1978, when it was acquired by the Opera Company of Boston through the initiative of Artistic Director Sarah Caldwell as the home of grand opera for a major metropolitan area.
Survey number: HABS MA-1078
Building/structure dates: 1927- 1928 Initial Construction
Building/structure dates: 1945 Subsequent Work
Building/structure dates: 1965 Subsequent Work
National Register of Historic Places NRIS Number: 79000370