DC -- NoMa -- Washington Coliseum (Uline Arena):
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- COLIS_970814_01.JPG: Wash Coliseum
Two views of the Old Washington Coliseum, later the Washington Miracle Faith Center, and now some sort of warehouse. Both were taken from a speeding Metro subway car through the railway lines so there are lots of powerlines and movement. Sorry!
This center used to be the city's main popular performing center (later replaced by the more suburban Capital Centre). The place is now in a very crappy area of the neighborhood but is has an important history in rock and roll.
In February, 1964, the Beatles first came to the United States and performed to a studio audience on the Ed Sullivan Show in New York. They then took a train down to Washington DC where a local disk jockey had been the first to play Beatles' releases in the United States. They got off at nearby Union Station and, on February 11, 1964, performed their first American concert here.
Back in the days of low-tech concerts, the equipment here was pretty sparse. The stage was in the center of the crowd and the Beatles moved their own equipment to face a different group of the crowd every few songs. (Well, Ringo's drums were on a turntable.)
- COLIS_970814_02.JPG: Wash Coliseum
Another view of the Old Washington Coliseum.
- Wikipedia Description: Washington Coliseum
From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
The Washington Coliseum, formerly Uline Arena, is an indoor arena in Washington, D.C. located at 1132, 1140, and 1146 3rd Street, Northeast, Washington, D.C. It was the site of the first concert by The Beatles in the United States.
It is directly adjacent to the railroad tracks, just north of Union Station, and bounded by L and M Streets.
While later used as a parking facility, it once hosted the Basketball Association of America's Washington Capitols, coached by Red Auerbach from 1946–49, and the American Basketball Association's Washington Caps in 1969–70. It also was host to many performances and athletic events of varying types, including ice skating, martial arts, ballet, music, circuses, and speeches. As an arena, it held 7,000 to 9,000 people for events.
History
The Uline Ice Arena, which opened in February 1941, was built by Miguel L. "Uncle Mike" Uline for his hockey team, the Washington Lions of the now defunct Eastern Amateur Hockey League. He made his fortune in the ice business.
The first act was Sonja Henie's Hollywood Ice Revue. One of its first events was a pro-America rally designed to promote U.S. entry in World War II, just weeks before Pearl Harbor.
Jewelry wholesaler Harry G. Lynn bought the arena in 1959 for $1 million, and renamed it the Washington Coliseum the next year. In 1959, Elijah Muhammad gave a speech there.
Earl Lloyd, the first African American athlete to play for the Washington Capitols of the National Basketball Association, played at Washington Coliseum on October 31, 1950.
On February 11, 1964, The Beatles played their first concert in the United States, less than 48 hours after the band's appearance on The Ed Sullivan Show. Tickets to the show at the Coliseum ranged from $2 to $4. There were 8,092 fans at the concert which was opened by The Chiffons, The Caravelles and Tommy Roe. The Beatles opened with "Roll Over Beethoven." In 2014, Roe reflected that "the marquee didn't say anything about the other acts. It just said 'The Beatles.' It was all about them. But I wasn't offended. That’s just the way it worked. I was there to do my two songs and then get off the stage." The Beatles played for approximately 40 minutes.
The photograph of Bob Dylan on the cover of Bob Dylan's Greatest Hits was taken at a concert at Washington Coliseum on November 28, 1965.
In 1967, after a riot during a performance by The Temptations, concerts were banned.
The American Basketball Association's defending Championship team, the Oakland Oaks moved to Washington as the Caps in 1969–70. The Oaks were owned by entertainer Pat Boone and had captured the ABA Championship in the 1968–69 season. However, Boone subsequently sold the team to Earl Foreman due to poor attendance in Oakland. Foreman relocated the franchise to Washington. Hall of Famers Rick Barry and Larry Brown played for the Caps, with Brown leading the league in assists and Barry averaging 27 points per game. The team finished 44–40 and was eliminated by the Denver Rockets in the playoffs. Plagued by poor attendance, the franchise relocated again and became the Virginia Squires following their one season in the Washington Coliseum.
From May 3–5, 1971, the building was used as a makeshift jail for up to 1200 male and female prisoners arrested during the 1971 May Day Protests against the war in Vietnam.
The building would fall into obscurity after the opening of the Capital Centre in suburban Landover, Maryland in 1973.
The building still stands today in the NoMa neighborhood near Union Station, what was formerly known as Swampoodle. It was used as a trash transfer station by Waste Management, the company that handles trash disposal for the District of Columbia, from 1994 to 2003. Waste Management Inc. applied for a demolition permit on May 9, 2003. The D.C. Preservation League listed the building in its "Most Endangered Places for 2003". In order to protect it from efforts to raze the building, it was added to the official protection list of the D.C. Historic Preservation Review Board in November 2006. It was listed on the National Register of Historic Places, on May 17, 2007.
It is a popular spot for graffiti. It is now used as an indoor parking lot. The coliseum is currently owned by Doug Jemal.
Outdoor retailer REI has announced that they will be developing the property into their fifth flagship store. In addition to the 51,000 sq. ft. REI store, the fully redeveloped site will also house 146,200 sq. ft. of office space and an additional 17,000 sq. ft. of retail for other users.
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