accustomed energy and "push" which has accomplished so much in other directions, took the matter in hand and put into execution the hopes and wishes of those who, although acknowledging the need, dared not venture to undertake so great a responsibility, and the result is a beautiful building, an ornament to our city of which we may justly be proud, and an honor to Mr. Tibbits that will endure after the curtain has fallen on the last act in the drama of his life."Tibbits himself was described by one later owner of Tibbits, Dennis Vanes, as "the greatest 'pusher' in Michigan." He added, "Mr. Tibbits was a hustler by nature, broad minded and liberal and always ready to help the needy and suffering. He was outspoken in his sentiments and sometimes gave offense where none was intended." Barton was the son of Allen Tibbits, one of Coldwater's founders. After returning to Coldwater after the Civil War to start his tobacco and cigar business, Tibbits found himself involved in a variety of local projects and buildings "including the skating rink, cart factory, and oil stove industry. He even purchased a number of steamboats to navigate the local lakes." According to Tibbits himself, the opera house was one of the costliest projects of his career. He stated, "I attribute to this enterprise the Opera House my downfall, and the sacrifice of a business, which had I been selfish, would today have made me a millionaire." Indeed, the venture broke Tibbits financially by the end of his life. Tibbits hired Mortimer Smith, designer of the Detroit Grand Opera House to manifest his vision. The Coldwater Republican, the newspaper of the time, declared "the beautiful theatre will be second to none in the state except in size." The site chosen for the theatre was a plot of land on S. Hanchett street, just off the city's busiest street, Chicago Street, and nearby one of Tibbit's own cigar factories. Coldwater itself was known for its manufacture of cigars and horse breeding. Excavation began Wednesday, November 23, 1881, and the theatre opened almost a year later, September 21, 1882. In the opinion of the Coldwater Republican, Tibbits Opera House was "one of the safest and most stable structures in Southern Michigan." Tibbits Opera House greeted its first opening night audience on September 21, 1882. After parking their horses and buggies at the Livery Stable, theatre patrons,