NOVEMBER 24, 2016 // 11
Continued from Pg. 10
PHOTO BY ALEX PAJUNAS
Astoria’s old train depot was reopened to the public and renamed the Barbey Maritime Center in January 2013 after an extensive renovation.
It was a bit of a prestigious gig,
too: Skate setters got to skate for
free.
One day a week, the rink served
double-duty as a silent movie the-
ater, complete with a piano player
to accompany the films. Folding
chairs were placed on top of the
rink for seating, and adults paid 15
cents while children paid 10.
Vacationing beach-goers weren’t
the only ones to enjoy Wave Roller
Rink; during the 1940s, U.S. Coast
Guard personnel would frequent
the rink during off hours while they
were stationed in Cannon Beach.
As business dwindled at the rink,
different ideas emerged as to the
direction the building should take.
“Maurie Clark had a real passion
for theater,” says Elaine Mur-
dy-Trucke, executive director at the
Cannon Beach History Center &
Museum. “He wanted to see more
art, theater and live music in town.”
The transition to a working the-
ater began in the 1960s, highlighted
by Portland State University’s Hay-
stack Program and Summer Stock
Company.
Now, the Coaster Theater is
synonymous with volunteerism.
The nonprofit community theater’s
annual lineup of plays and musicals
are brought to the stage by local vol-
unteer actors and backstage crew.
“It was definitely a passion
project for the Clarks and everyone
involved,” Murdy-Trucke says. “It
still has that community volunteer
spirit.”
‘A real gem’
When a community’s history is so
closely entwined with its geography,
saving a building to better preserve
that relationship takes on a sense
of urgency. Such was the case with
Astoria’s Barbey Maritime Center for
Research and Industry.
Thanks to the extensive $2.5 mil-
lion restoration undertaken by the Co-
lumbia River Maritime Museum, the
Barbey Maritime Center — named in
honor of the Barbey family, which ran
the Barbey Packing Company, a front
runner in the Columbia River salmon
packing industry — was dedicated in
January 2013.
SUBMITTED PHOTO
SUBMITTED PHOTO
Repairing and remodeling the building that would become the Coaster
Theatre was a community effort.
Maurie Clark presented Cannon Beach with the Coaster Theatre as we know
it today.
Continued on Pg.19