Rhode Island Auditorium

Rhode Island Auditorium
The Arena, The Main Event, Providence Auditorium
	Plaque commemorating the former site of the Rhode Island Auditorium.
Location	1111 North Main Street, Providence, Rhode Island
Coordinates	41°51′2.34″N 71°24′6.34″W / 41.8506500°N 71.4017611°W
Owner	Hubert Milot, Louis A. R. Pieri(1938–1967)
Operator	Louis A. R. Pieri (Manager, 1929)
Capacity	5,300
Scoreboard	Yes
Construction
Opened	February 18, 1926
Demolished	1989
Tenants
	Providence Reds (AHL) (1926–1972); Providence Steamrollers (NBA) (1946–1949); Providence Friars (NCAA) (1952–1973)

Rhode Island Auditorium was an indoor arena in Providence, Rhode Island, at 1111 North Main Street. It hosted the NBA's Providence Steamrollers from 1946 until 1949, and the Providence Reds ice hockey team until the Providence Civic Center (now the Amica Mutual Pavilion) was opened in 1972.^[3]

Description and history

The arena held 5,300 people and opened in 1926. Through the years, a myriad of events including the Ice Capades, public skating, boxing, concerts, and religious events were held at the old barn. The venue hosted 28 of Rocky Marciano's 49 fights over a 4 year span, from July 12, 1948 (his second fight) to May 12, 1952 (his 41st), just four months before winning the heavyweight title by beating Jersey Joe Walcott in Philadelphia. After the Reds departed for the downtown Civic Center, the Auditorium, for a time, became a tennis venue.^[2]

At the height of the Great Depression in 1932, the arena faced financial ruin. Industrialist and Rhode Island hockey legend Malcolm Greene Chace rescued the auditorium from foreclosure.^[4]

In 1969, a concert by Sly and the Family Stone at the auditorium was followed by a riot. This led mayor Joseph A. Doorley to ban all rock concerts in Providence; the ban only lasted for a few months.^[5]

It was torn down in 1989 and parking affiliated with The Miriam Hospital now occupies the site. In 2009, the Rhode Island Reds Heritage Society, a group formed to commemorate the hockey team, marked the site with a plaque commemorating the team's existence.^[1]

Concert dates

Date	Band	Opening Act(s)
November 3, 1965	The Rolling Stones
August 14, 1967	Herman's Hermits	The Who
July 18, 1968	The Who
November 4, 1968	Cream	The Terry Reid Group	^[6]
November 17, 1968	Jimi Hendrix
May 17, 1969	Jimi Hendrix	Buddy Miles Express, Cat Mother & the All Night Newsboys	^[7]
June 9, 1970	Crosby, Stills, Nash & Young	Country Funk	^[8]
April 21, 1971	The Grateful Dead		^[9]
July 15, 1971	Creedence Clearwater Revival	^[10]
August 13–14, 1971	Chicago

References

^ ^a ^b "With puck and pluck: Documentary tells the story of the Rhode Island Reds hockey team". The Providence Journal. Retrieved 29 November 2009.
^ ^a ^b "AIR Historical :: RI Auditorium". Retrieved 29 November 2009.
^ "RI Auditorium". www.rirocks.net. Retrieved 2024-05-28.
^ "Rhode Island Hockey Hall of Fame". Rhode Island Hockey Hall of Fame. Rhode Island Hockey Hall of Fame. Archived from the original on 4 September 2019. Retrieved 10 March 2021.
^ Stanton, Mike (2003). The Prince of Providence. New York: Random House. pp. 29, 32.
^ "The Clock That Went Backwards Again: Cream – 1968-11-04 – Providence". August 2009. Retrieved 29 November 2009.
^ "the jimi hendrix encyclopedia - jimihendrix.com". Retrieved 29 November 2009.
^ "RI Rocks". Retrieved 25 December 2016.
^ "Grateful Dead Rhode Island Auditorium - April 21, 1971".
^ "Lot Detail - Creedence Clearwater Revival Original 1971 Concert Poster".

External links

This article about a sports venue in Rhode Island is a stub. You can help Wikipedia by expanding it.

This article related to a building or structure in Providence, Rhode Island is a stub. You can help Wikipedia by expanding it.

[www.projo.com-1] "With puck and pluck: Documentary tells the story of the Rhode Island Reds hockey team". The Providence Journal. Retrieved 29 November 2009.

[www.artinruins.com-2] "AIR Historical :: RI Auditorium". Retrieved 29 November 2009.

[3] "RI Auditorium". www.rirocks.net. Retrieved 2024-05-28.

[RIHHOF-Bio-4] "Rhode Island Hockey Hall of Fame". Rhode Island Hockey Hall of Fame. Rhode Island Hockey Hall of Fame. Archived from the original on 4 September 2019. Retrieved 10 March 2021.

[StantonPOP-5] Stanton, Mike (2003). The Prince of Providence. New York: Random House. pp. 29, 32.

[6] "The Clock That Went Backwards Again: Cream – 1968-11-04 – Providence". August 2009. Retrieved 29 November 2009.

[7] "the jimi hendrix encyclopedia - jimihendrix.com". Retrieved 29 November 2009.

[RI_Rocks-8] "RI Rocks". Retrieved 25 December 2016.

[9] "Grateful Dead Rhode Island Auditorium - April 21, 1971".

[10] "Lot Detail - Creedence Clearwater Revival Original 1971 Concert Poster".

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v t e Hartford Wolf Pack
Formerly the Providence Reds, Rhode Island Reds, Binghamton Dusters, Binghamton Whalers, Binghamton Rangers, Hartford Wolf Pack, and Connecticut Whale Founded in 1926 Based in Hartford, Connecticut
Franchise	History Records Players All articles
Arenas	Rhode Island Auditorium Providence Civic Center Broome County Veterans Memorial Arena XL Center
Coaches	Keith McCambridge Kris Knoblauch Steve Smith
Calder Cup	1938 1940 1949 1956 2000
Rivalries	Bridgeport Islanders Springfield Thunderbirds
Affiliates	New York Rangers (NHL) Bloomington Bison (ECHL)

v t e Providence Friars men's ice hockey
Playing venues	Rhode Island Auditorium (1952–1973) Schneider Arena (1973–present)
Head coaches	Joseph T. Landry (1926–1927) John Graham (1926–1927) Clement Trihey (1926–1927) Dick Rondeau (1952–1956) Tom Eccleston (1956–1964) Zellio Toppazzini (1964–1968) Lou Lamoriello (1968–1983) Steve Stirling (1983–1985) Mike McShane (1985–1994) Paul Pooley (1994–2005) Tim Army (2005–2011) Nate Leaman (2011–present)
Seasons	1926–27 1952–53 1953–54 1954–55 1955–56 1956–57 1957–58 1958–59 1959–60 1960–61 1961–62 1962–63 1963–64 1964–65 1965–66 1966–67 1967–68 1968–69 1969–70 1970–71 1971–72 1972–73 1973–74 1974–75 1975–76 1976–77 1977–78 1978–79 1979–80 1980–81 1981–82 1982–83 1983–84 1984–85 1985–86 1986–87 1987–88 1988–89 1989–90 1990–91 1991–92 1992–93 1993–94 1994–95 1995–96 1996–97 1997–98 1998–99 1999–00 2000–01 2001–02 2002–03 2003–04 2004–05 2005–06 2006–07 2007–08 2008–09 2009–10 2010–11 2011–12 2012–13 2013–14 2014–15 2015–16 2016–17 2017–18 2018–19 2019–20 2020–21 2021–22 2022–23 2023–24 2024–25
Conference affiliations	ECAC Hockey (1961–1984) Hockey East (1984–Present)
Rivalries	Brown
Culture & lore	Mayor's Cup
All-time leaders	Ron Wilson (250 Points) Rob Gaudreau (103 Goals) Hayden Hawkey (72 Wins)
National championships	2015
Frozen Four appearances	1964 1983 1985 2015 2019
NCAA Tournament appearances	1964 1978 1981 1983 1985 1989 1991 1996 2001 2014 2015 2016 2017 2018 2019
Conference Tournament titles	ECAC Hockey: 1964 1981 Hockey East: 1985 1996
Providence College · Providence, RI

Description and history

Concert dates

See also

References

External links