Visiting the Historic Robey Theatre in Spencer West Virginia

The small town of Spencer lies tucked into the hills of central West Virginia. During the oil boom of the early 1900's the community flourished as it was centrally located to many of the West Virginia oil fields and became a supply and transportation hub for this important industry. It was during this time, 1907 to be exact, that the Robey Theatre first opened its doors to moviegoers. In this era of silent films the theatre would be packed as locals and out of town workers flocked to see what for many was there first moving picture show.

Though the Robey Theatre has moved locations a few times, added sound for the 'talkies' as they were called back then, the theatre still retains many old time charms. Today the theatre is surprisingly competitively priced given that the nearest competitors are an hour or more away. I found that the movie prices were lower than in Parkersburg and best of all the candy was very cheap. While the enormous theatre was pretty empty, the Robey appeared well cared for as it has just passed its 100^th birthday.

Visitors to the Robey Theatre will find that parking is available on the street or in the city lot located behind the theatre. The city lot is metered parking but like most things in Spencer, it is very reasonably priced. Spencer is full of small interesting businesses including numerous antique and collectible shops. For the antique shopper, don't miss the Salvation Army Thrift Store located nearby which during my visits has had a good supply of collectible glassware among its other offerings. There are also a variety of diners and small restaurants downtown in which to dine. For those who are less adventurous Spencer does offer a Wal-Mart, Pizza Hut, McDonald's, and Wendy's.

While in town there is also a civil war site to visit located on the hill behind Wal-Mart (yes, seriously). The area also provides many opportunities to fish in either the Elk River or nearby lakes. Public Hunting is also available in the area. Mountain bikers also have many trails available to them in this region.