Historic Black cinema near downtown Columbia to be renovated back into a working theater
It appears the lights of Hollywood will once again shine on Harden Street in downtown Columbia.
Officials with Allen University have confirmed that the historically Black school plans to renovate and reopen the Carver Theatre at 1519 Harden St., right across the street from Allen and Benedict College. The building has not been a movie theater in more than 50 years.
Details are still scarce at this point, but Tiana Scarlett, director of communications for Allen’s division of institutional advancement, said the school is excited about bringing the Carver back to life.
“We are in the initial planning stages right now,” Scarlett said. “We intend to reopen the theater within 15-18 months as a first-run cinema. It will also be used as a facility for local meetings and presentations.”
As noted by a historical marker at the site, the Carver Theatre opened in the early 1940s and was one of two theaters for African-Americans in Columbia during the segregation era. Aside from films, the theater often hosted talent shows based on the popular Amateur Hour program out of Harlem, N.Y. The theater closed in 1971.
The historical marker notes that, at its inception, the Carver was run by Black operators but was owned by the Dixie Amusement Company, a white-owned company. The building is now owned by Allen University, per Richland County property tax records.
The Carver was listed on the National Register of Historic Places in 2003. According to an entry on Historic Columbia’s website, the theater was named for Dr. George Washington Carver, the agricultural scientist and professor at Tuskegee Institute. On its opening night, the Carver showed the 1940 John Wayne film “Dark Command,” per Historic Columbia.
