Ludwig Abt was the architect who designed the 4th Street Theatre in Moberly, Missouri in 1911, one year after entering the United States from Germany. After several years in the US, he returned to Germany to study, among other things, the use of reinforced concrete in building design. He returned to the US and settled in Kansas City, Missouri. The home that he built in Moberly, Missouri withstood until 2010 when it was demolished for new construction. Today the 4th Street Theatre is undergoing restoration as the oldest purpose-built motion picture theater in the US.