As the towns Ashland and Medford grew in the 1880’s, residents sought a place to gather for musical, dramatic, educational, and social entertainments. Join us to hear the stories and histories of these “public amusement” spaces like the Rialto, the still-standing Craterian and Holly, and the forgotten ones like the Ugo, the Isis, the Liberty and the Savoy.

Ron Kramer was the executive director of Jefferson Public Radio from 1974 to 2012 and since 2021, he has served as the Southern Oregon Historical Society’s Executive Director.

The monthly Windows in Time lunchtime lectures feature well-known writers and historians and bring alive the people, values, and events that shaped our southern Oregon heritage. Lectures are jointly sponsored by the Southern Oregon Historical Society (SOHS) and Jackson County Library Services. Programs are presented in Medford (first Wednesdays, in-person and online) and again in Ashland (second Wednesdays, in-person). Recordings of Medford presentations are available on the JCLS Beyond YouTube channel.