'BAD ENGINEERING & FAULTY CONSTRUCTION' CAUSE OF THEATER ROOF COLLAPSE
Washington, D.C. (JFK+50) On February 1, 1922, Senator Arthur Capper* of Kansas concluded "bad engineering, coupled with cheap and faulty construction" were causes of the collapse of the roof of the Knickerbocker Theater.
The Senator is sponsoring a resolution proposing an investigation of the tragedy by the District committee. He made a personal inspection of the ruins with Major Carey Brown, Assistant Engineer Commissioner of the District of Columbia.
Senator Capper was also accompanied by Senators Wesley L. Jones (R-Washington), Frank R. Gooding (R-Idaho), John M. Sheppard (D- Texas), Ovington E. Weller (R-Maryland) and Representative David Upshaw** (D-Georgia) whose niece was injured in the roof collapse.
Senator Capper said...
"I believe the Knickerbocker Theater disaster was due to a bad job of engineering and cheap, faulty construction."
The Senator's view was supported by the American Association of Engineers.
*Arthur C. Capper (1865-1951) was born in Garnett, Kansas & became editor/publisher of The Topeka Daily Capital. ACC served as Governor of Kansas 1915-1919 & U.S. Senator 1919-1949. His wife, Florence Crawford Capper, was daughter of Gov Samuel Crawford & namesake of Florence, KS.
**David Upshaw (1866-1952) served in the U.S. House of Representatives (D-Georgia) 1919-1927. DU was a supporter & defender of the Ku Klux Klan.
SOURCES
"Arthur Capper," Kansapedia, Kansas Historical Society, www.kshs.org/
"Lays Theater Crash To Bad Engineering and Poor Building," The Evening Star, Washington, D.C., February 1, 1922, Chronicling America, Library of Congress, www.loc.gov/
