Audubon Ballroom, Historic theater and ballroom in Washington Heights, US
The Audubon Ballroom is a former theater in Washington Heights at the corner of Broadway and West 165th Street. The facade shows terra-cotta decorations with Neptune figures and fox head motifs, while inside a converted space remains that once served as a large dance hall.
William Fox opened the building in 1912 as a cinema with more than 2,300 seats, showing talking films from 1927 as one of the first in the area. The function changed several times over the decades before the ground floor was converted into retail space and the upper part into an office center.
The name comes from the American naturalist and painter John James Audubon, who lived in this part of Manhattan during the 1840s. Visitors can see the former entrance hall, now part of a modern office building, which recalls the social gatherings where people from Harlem and neighboring areas came together.
The building sits directly at the 168th Street subway station and is clearly visible from the street. Those who want to observe the outer facade will find a small area in front of the entrance from which the ornaments can be recognized calmly.
On February 21, 1965, Malcolm X was shot here during a speech, an event that deeply shaped the American civil rights movement. A small memorial plaque on the ground floor recalls that day and draws people who want to learn more about his life and ideas.
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