Hidden above York Theater is the headquarters of the Theatre Historical Society of America. As a 1,000-member national nonprofit dedicated to the history of theater buildings, this organization was founded in 1969 by the late theater historian Ben Hall, author of the first book celebrating America's movie palaces, The Best Remaining Seats. THS has been located above the York Theater since 1992, and before that was located in a church basement on North Avenue in Chicago.
At the headquarters, there is an office from which the society's publications are created. THS publications include the quarterly journal Marquee, a special annual publication on a specific theatre or topic, and quarterly newsletters. Issues are included in the yearly membership dues.
The headquarters also includes an archive of documents that attracts researchers from around the country, and a small museum with various artifacts and information about the beautiful old movie palaces of the Chicago area.
The THS American Theatre Architecture Archives exists to preserve theatre architecture history. It includes photos, negatives, slides, clippings, programs, books and magazines on more than 15,000 theatres of every type, from movie palaces to opera houses to drive-ins. The Archives are accessible to the public by prior appointment and subject to research fees.
The museum is open Tuesday through Friday and admission is free, although a donation is encouraged. The archives are open to the public by appointment and for a fee.