State Theatre of Virginia since 1946, founded in a converted 1833 church — founder Robert Porterfield is still said to watch from his favorite balcony box on opening nights
127 W Main St, Abingdon, VA 24210
Research updated June 2026
Age
All Ages
Cost
$$
Tickets from $20; varies by production and seat. Box office: Tue-Sat 10am-6pm, Sun 1-3pm.
Access
Wheelchair OK
Historic theatre building on Main Street; wheelchair seating available
Equipment
Photos OK
Est. 1833 · State Theatre of Virginia (1946) · Longest-Running Professional Equity Theatre in the US · National Register of Historic Places
The building at 127 West Main Street was constructed in 1833 as Sinking Springs Presbyterian Church, making it the second-oldest surviving theatrical building in the United States. Before Porterfield's arrival, it had also served as Abingdon's town hall and fire hall from 1890 forward.
Robert Porterfield founded the theatre on June 10, 1933, at the depth of the Great Depression. The concept was direct: unemployed New York actors would perform, and local audiences who had produce but no cash could pay the 35-cent admission with vegetables, dairy, and livestock. In the first season, four out of five patrons paid with goods rather than money. The theatre processed the surplus produce — cows, hams, and bushels of vegetables — and traded what it couldn't use to maintain the company.
Barter received its State Theatre of Virginia designation in 1946, the first professional theatre in any state to hold such a title. Furnishings salvaged from New York's Empire Theatre, including lighting equipment originally installed by Thomas Edison, were incorporated into the building during early years.
The Smith Theatre, Barter's second stage at 110 West Main Street, was constructed in 1829 as a Methodist church and was adapted by Barter in 1961. Porterfield received a commendation from President Kennedy in 1963 and continued as the theatre's artistic director until his death in 1971. The company he built has operated without interruption for over 90 years.
Sources
Robert Porterfield died in 1971 after nearly four decades running Barter Theatre. By most accounts from staff and long-term company members, his attachment to the building continued after his death. The consistent description places him in the far two seats on the stage-right side of the balcony — his favored vantage point during his lifetime. Witnesses describe a man in a white seersucker suit. Sightings cluster around opening nights, which fits Porterfield's documented pattern of attending every premiere.
A second locus of reported activity is the tunnel beneath the theatre. A tunnel is documented to have once run between the Barter and the Martha Washington Inn across West Main Street. Local accounts hold that two Confederate soldiers were killed in the tunnel when discovered by Union troops; the tunnel partially collapsed, and the remaining section is no longer accessible. Staff and maintenance workers have described an uncomfortable presence in the basement sections nearest the tunnel's remnant.
The Martha Washington Inn, directly across the street, is itself one of the more documented haunted sites in southwest Virginia — the connection between the two buildings was a well-known feature of Abingdon's antebellum geography. Whether the tunnel accounts at Barter are independent or influenced by the Martha Washington's lore is not established in any primary source.
Notable Entities
Barter Theatre presents a full season of professional Equity productions in the Gilliam Stage (main house) and Smith Theatre. The theatre is the longest-running professional Equity theatre in the United States.
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