Listed on the National Register of Historic Places in 2009.
“The World Theatre is a historic movie theater and performing arts center in Kearney, Nebraska. The building, which also housed a Masonic Temple on its upper three floors, was designed by James T.”
Wikipedia article World Theatre, CC BY-SA 4.0.
One of 21 National Register listings published here for Buffalo County · listed in 2009 · category: Building.
Sources: the Wikipedia article · the case file at the National Archives · the National Register database, National Park Service
Regional context, not property-specific evidence. The federal wildfire occurrence database lists 99 fires within 5 miles of Masonic Temple and World Theater Building between 2007 and 2020, burning about 750 acres in total. 1 started naturally. None was recorded as arson. Distance is straight-line from the map coordinates, so a fire counted here may appear on a neighbouring settlement's page as well.
| Reported cause | Fires |
|---|---|
| Missing data/not specified/undetermined | 37 |
| Debris and open burning | 31 |
| Equipment and vehicle use | 13 |
| Fireworks | 9 |
| Smoking | 3 |
| Recreation and ceremony | 2 |
| Power generation/transmission/distribution | 2 |
| Railroad operations and maintenance | 1 |
| Natural | 1 |
The most recent of them, most recent first, with the day each was reported and the service that recorded it.
| Date | Cause | Size | Reported by | Name on the report |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 29 September 2012 | Missing data/not specified/undetermined | under an acre | Nebraska Forest Service | not named |
| 29 September 2010 | Debris and open burning | under an acre | Nebraska Forest Service | not named |
| 27 September 2010 | Missing data/not specified/undetermined | under an acre | Nebraska Forest Service | not named |
| 24 September 2012 | Debris and open burning | under an acre | Nebraska Forest Service | not named |
| 22 September 2012 | Fireworks | under an acre | Nebraska Forest Service | not named |
| 21 September 2015 | Equipment and vehicle use | under an acre | Nebraska Forest Service | not named |
| 10 September 2012 | Smoking | 1.0 acres | Nebraska Forest Service | not named |
| 8 August 2012 | Missing data/not specified/undetermined | under an acre | Nebraska Forest Service | not named |
Regional context, not property-specific evidence. The federal mineral resources record lists 4 workings within 5 miles of Masonic Temple and World Theater Building: 4 producers. All of them still produce. What was taken out: Sand and Gravel, Construction. Distance is straight-line from the map coordinates, so a quarry counted here may appear on a neighbouring settlement's page as well.
| Where | Site | Commodity | Status | Recorded |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Broadfoot Pit | Sand and Gravel, Construction | Producer | ||
| Cook Sand and Gravel | Sand and Gravel, Construction | Producer | ||
| Johnson Sand and Gravel Co | Sand and Gravel, Construction | Producer | ||
| Kearney Pit | Sand and Gravel, Construction | Producer |
Regional context, not property-specific evidence. The National Weather Service names Kearney, the town this property stands in, in 156 storm reports between 1994 and 2024: 78 hail, 53 thunderstorm wind, 13 heavy rain, 4 flash flood. The reports record 15 injuries. Each account below is quoted exactly as the forecast office filed it, from the NOAA Storm Events Database, and each date opens the federal record of that event.
| When | Event | Place named | Harm | What the report says |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| June 2002 | Hail | Kearney | 15 hurt, $50,000,000 | All injuries were minor |
| May 2008 | Tornado (EF2) | Kearney | $11,000,000 | This tornado was the most organized tornado that hit the city of Kearney this night and was the most persistent. It appeared to stay on the ground for the majority of its 22 mile path in Buffalo County. The tornado did exit Buffalo County and entered Hall County. The tornado started in the northwest part of the city of Kearney where it damaged an apartment complex. It took the roof off of part of the complex, blew out a wall and stacked a couple of cars in the parking lot. The tornado then moved east, damaging trees in Harmon Park and took a part of the roof off a building near the hospital. At the Buffalo County Fairgrounds, it caused a portion of the Expo Center building to collapse. Two people in this building were shook up but not injured. The tornado then continued east to the Kearney Airport where it destroyed a hanger and the cooperate jet housed inside. The tornado then continued on east and northeast through rural parts of Buffalo County. Several farmsteads were hit but damage was limited to shingles removed from roofs, outbuildings damaged and empty grain bins destroyed. There were multiple power poles and lines down by this storm. |
| May 2023 | Hail | Kearney | $8,000,000 | Hail up to the size of ping pong balls was reported across Kearney. |
| December 2016 | Thunderstorm Wind | Kearney | $2,000,000 | Wind gusts estimated to up to 80 MPH caused damage in the Kearney area. Around 10 pine trees were blown down, as were a few irrigation pivots. Construction trailers were blown over near Kearney High School and a barn lean-to was damaged on 46th Avenue. |
| May 2019 | Hail | Kearney | $1,000,000 | Hail ranging in size from 1 to 2 inches in diameter was reported across Kearney. |
| April 2013 | Thunderstorm Wind | Kearney | $1,000,000 | Considerable tree damage was reported, including trees blocking roadways. Winds destroyed a mobile home, damaged residence halls on the University of Nebraska-Kearney campus, and also blew part of the roof off the UNK library. |
| May 2005 | Hail | Kearney | $1,000,000 | Hail ranging in size from golf balls to baseballs pounded Kearney. Nine sheriff's deputy cars were damaged by the hail. |
| April 2003 | Hail | Kearney | $500,000 | no account filed |
| May 1998 | Heavy Rain | Kearney | $500,000 | no account filed |
| September 2015 | Hail | Kearney | $400,000 | Hail ranging in size from quarter to tennis ball size was reported in the area. Inside the city of Kearney itself, hail was quarter to golf ball size. |
| May 2004 | Thunderstorm Wind | Kearney | $350,000 | no account filed |
| June 2022 | Thunderstorm Wind | Kearney | $300,000 | Wind gusts estimated to be near 70 MPH resulted in three flipped irrigation pivots. |
| September 2019 | Hail | Kearney | $150,000 | Most hail stones along and near this path were quarter to half dollar size, but hail up to 2 inches in diameter was reported north of Riverdale. |
| June 2024 | Thunderstorm Wind | Kearney | $125,000 | Wind gusts were estimated to be near 60 MPH. A power line was knocked down, resulting in starting a house fire. |
| July 2011 | Thunderstorm Wind | Kearney | $100,000 | Wind gusts were estimated at 70 MPH. A large tree was uprooted and a power pole was knocked down in Kearney. |
| June 2009 | Hail | Kearney | $100,000 | no account filed |
| June 1999 | Thunderstorm Wind | Kearney | $80,000 | no account filed |
| August 2017 | Thunderstorm Wind | Kearney | $75,000 | Wind gusts were estimated to be near 70 MPH. A trailer home was damaged when 3 trees were downed. Part of a tree knocked a hole through the roof, allowing water to get inside the home. |
| June 2008 | Hail | Kearney | $75,000 | no account filed |
| August 1999 | Thunderstorm Wind | Kearney | $75,000 | no account filed |
| June 2003 | Lightning | Kearney | $73,000 | Lightning struck a paint store and resulting fire caused $73,000 in damage. |
| June 2008 | Flash Flood | Kearney | $70,000 | Widespread flooding occured across southern Buffallo county when 2 to 5.5 inches of rain fell during the early morning hours. The most significant flooding was found in and around Gibbon where they saw 5.26 inches of rainfall. |
| June 2000 | Hail | Kearney | $70,000 | no account filed |
| August 2014 | Thunderstorm Wind | Kearney | $50,000 | Wind gusts were estimated to be near 70 MPH. Trees branches were downed, a pole barn was damaged and a trailer was tipped over. |
| August 2007 | Thunderstorm Wind | Kearney | $50,000 | Widespread tree damage in town. |
| July 2023 | Hail | Kearney | $50,000 | no account filed |
| April 2007 | Flash Flood | Kearney | $50,000 | no account filed |
| August 1997 | Thunderstorm Wind | Kearney | $40,000 | no account filed |
| June 2006 | Thunderstorm Wind | Kearney | $30,000 | no account filed |
| July 1996 | Hail | Kearney | $30,000 | no account filed |
| May 2012 | Hail | Kearney | $25,000 | Hail was accompanied by wind gusts estimated at 50 mph. |
| May 2012 | Thunderstorm Wind | Kearney | $25,000 | Wind gusts were estimated at 65 to 70 mph. |
| August 2007 | Flash Flood | Kearney | $25,000 | Widespread street flooding in town. Some cars stalled in bumper deep water. |
| April 2013 | Hail | Kearney | $25,000 | no account filed |
| May 2012 | Hail | Kearney | $25,000 | no account filed |
| June 2008 | Thunderstorm Wind | Kearney | $25,000 | no account filed |
| July 2004 | Thunderstorm Wind | Kearney | $25,000 | no account filed |
| July 2004 | Thunderstorm Wind | Kearney | $25,000 | no account filed |
| June 2003 | Lightning | Kearney | $22,000 | Just minutes after one lightning ignited fire, the Kearney Volunteer Fire Department was called to another lightning started fire. This time the fire was at a detached garage and resulted in $22,000 in damage. |
| December 2021 | Thunderstorm Wind | Kearney | $10,000 | Local television station reported downed power lines on the southeast side of Kearney. |
| May 2008 | Hail | Kearney | $10,000 | Hail was accompanied by 45 MPH winds. |
| June 2008 | Thunderstorm Wind | Kearney | $10,000 | Large tree limbs blown down by winds estimated at 50 to 60 mph. |
| June 2009 | Hail | Kearney | $10,000 | no account filed |
| June 2004 | Thunderstorm Wind | Kearney | $10,000 | no account filed |
| July 2000 | Thunderstorm Wind | Kearney | $10,000 | no account filed |
| July 2002 | Thunderstorm Wind | Kearney | $6,000 | no account filed |
| July 2023 | Thunderstorm Wind | Kearney | $5,000 | Peak wind gusts included: 62 MPH, measured by a mesonet station located one mile west-southwest of Kearney; 59 MPH, measured by a mesonet station located one mile west of Kearney; 58 MPH, measured by a mesonet station located three miles southwest of Kearney. Some minor tree damage was reported in the southwest part of Kearney. |
| June 2008 | Hail | Kearney | $5,000 | Hail accompanied by wind gusts estimated at 60 mph. |
| May 1998 | Hail | Kearney | $5,000 | no account filed |
| May 1998 | Thunderstorm Wind | Kearney | $5,000 | no account filed |
| July 1996 | Hail | Kearney | $5,000 | no account filed |
| July 1996 | Hail | Kearney | $5,000 | no account filed |
| July 1996 | Hail | Kearney | $5,000 | no account filed |
| August 2023 | Thunderstorm Wind | Kearney | $3,000 | Minor tree damage was reported in Kearney. |
| June 1995 | Thunderstorm Wind | Kearney | $1,000 | A line of thunderstorms moved southeast across central Nebraska producing wind gusts to 60 mph. A windshield was blown out of a car in Kearney. |
| April 2022 | Hail | Kearney | - | Hail ranging in size from nickels to golf balls was reported in Kearney. |
| April 2022 | Thunderstorm Wind | Kearney | - | A wind gust of 63 MPH was measured by a mesonet station located three miles east-southeast of Kearney. |
| May 2022 | Thunderstorm Wind | Kearney | - | A wind gust of 64 MPH was measured by a mesonet station located three miles east-southeast of Kearney. |
| June 2022 | Thunderstorm Wind | Kearney | - | A wind gust of 59 MPH was measured by a mesonet station located three miles east-southeast of Kearney. |
| July 2022 | Thunderstorm Wind | Kearney | - | A wind gust of 64 MPH was measured by a mesonet station located three miles southwest of Kearney. |
No historic map-sheet match is published for this property yet. That does not mean no map exists. This record needs a coordinate-quality review before it can be joined to a sheet boundary. Browse the county's mapped places while that work is pending.
Other National Register properties close enough to walk or drive between, ordered by distance from this one. Both positions come from the same geocoding pass that matched these properties to their map sheets.
| Photograph | Property | Distance | Listed |
|---|---|---|---|
 | Lowe and Fair Commercial Block | 0.3 miles | 2015 |
| Kearney Downtown Historic District | 0.3 miles | 2017 | |
 | Fort Theater | 0.3 miles | 2006 |
 | U.S. Post Office | 0.4 miles | 1981 |
 | Kearney National Guard Armory | 0.4 miles | 2009 |
| Kearney Junior High School | 0.6 miles | 2000 |
| National Archives record | The nomination case file for reference 09000903 in Record Group 79. |
| Wikipedia article | Community-written account of this property, licensed CC BY-SA. |
| Buffalo County | All 21 listed properties in this county. |
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