Rhode Island Auditorium was an indoor arena in Providence, Rhode Island, at 1111 North Main Street. It hosted the BAA'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.
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.
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.
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.
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.
Concert dates Date July 30 1972 Band Black Sabbath Opening Act(s)November 3, 1965The Rolling Stones August 14, 1967Herman's HermitsThe Who July 18, 1968The Who November 4, 1968CreamThe Terry Reid Group November 27, 1968Jimi Hendrix May 17, 1969Jimi HendrixBuddy Miles Express, Cat Mother & the All Night Newsboys June 9, 1970 Crosby, Stills, Nash & YoungCountry Funk April 21, 1971The Grateful Dead July 15, 1971 Creedence Clearwater Revival August 13–14, 1971Chicago
See also Valley Arena Gardens, a similar venue of the era based in Holyoke, Massachusetts
References
External links JPEG Karl Robert Rittmann...Rhode Island Artist – Image of Rhode Island Auditorium