SMYRNA – The history of the Smyrna Town Hall is long and complex. The building has been used as an opera house, a movie theater and as classrooms for the area school.

Now, 101 years after the facility was built, it has been added to the New York State Historic Registry.

According to Smyrna Historian Robert Matteson, the town’s first meeting was held in 1808, but for nearly 100 years, there was no official meeting place. Meetings were held in various offices around the town. It wasn’t until Feb. 12, 1907 that the town passed a proposition to build the Town Hall.

The current Smyrna Town Hall is located on the Corner of School Street and Academy Street. Until 1900, a house stood on the current site, but a large fire in 1900 wiped out much of the town’s center, including many businesses located on the main street, the Opera House and many of the homes lining Academy Street.