W. S. Butterfield Theatres

W. S. Butterfield Theatres, Inc. was an American operator of vaudeville theaters and later movie theaters in the Lower Peninsula of Michigan. Beginning in the early 1900s, "Colonel" Walter Scott Butterfield expanded his business from one vaudeville house in Battle Creek in 1906 to 114 cinemas across Michigan in 1942.^[1] The Butterfield circuit was reduced to 21 theaters by 1984, when it was sold to George Kerasotes.^[2]

Butterfield theaters were located in small towns in Lower Michigan, as far north as Traverse City and Alpena. Theaters built for or operated by Butterfield are the subject of multiple historic preservation efforts, and many still operate as cinemas or performance venues. Theaters built for Butterfield were constructed in various contemporary styles, including Art Deco, Streamline Moderne, Mayan Revival, and Spanish Colonial Revival.