Gentleman's club demolished after fire destroys historic building in Coopersburg, Lehigh Valley

COOPERSBURG, Pa. (WPVI) -- A gentleman's club that caught fire early Monday morning in Coopersburg has been demolished. The establishment was housed in one of the oldest buildings in the Lehigh Valley borough.

"It is one of the three oldest buildings in Coopersburg Borough. It was built in 1865 but with the way it is now, I don't see rebuilding it as a possibility," Coopersburg Fire Company Chief Dave Huber told WFMZ.

In addition to the Silhouettes Showbar, the historic 160-year-old building also had 12 apartments on the second floor.

The fire broke out around 12:30 a.m. on Monday in the 100 block of Station Ave. The fire destroyed the building but, luckily, no injuries were reported.

The property was empty when the fire broke out on Monday after being temporarily shut down following another fire that started in the basement two weeks ago.

"The building was unoccupied as it was under renovation and repairs," Huber said.

Another fire broke out on the second floor of the same building less than two years ago.

Video from November of 2023 shows crews removing a burned mattress, which they say was the cause of that fire.

Silhouettes Show Bar, historically known as the Baldwin House, was a hotel in the mid 19th century named after Baldwin Locomotive Works in Philadelphia. The hotel served railway traffic as a restaurant and was part of Coopersburg's original train station. Many watched in silence Monday as the property was razed.

Pennsylvania State Police and the ATF are investigating the fires.