Uline Arena
From Beatles to basketball: D.C.'s historic Uline Arena
The Uline Arena, later renamed the Washington Coliseum, was an indoor arena in Washington, D.C. located at 1132, 1140, and 1146 3rd Street, Northeast, Washington, D.C. It was the site of one of President Dwight D. Eisenhower's inaugural balls in 1953, the first concert by the Beatles in the United States in 1964, and several other memorable moments in sports, show business, politics and in the civil rights movement of the 1960s. It had a capacity of over 8,000 people and was a major event space in Washington until the early 1970s. The arena was home to the Washington Capitols of the Basketball Association of America (1946–1949) and National Basketball Association (1949–1950), who were once coached by Red Auerbach. Later, the American Basketball Association's Washington Caps played there in 1969–1970. Once abandoned and used as a parking garage, it was renovated and now houses offices and REI's D.C. flagship store. It is directly adjacent to the railroad tracks heading into Union Station and bounded by L and M Street NE. It is located across from the Metrorail NoMa–Gallaudet U station southern entrance.
Quick Facts
- Demolished
- Still standing (renovated)
- Renamed
- Washington Coliseum (later)
- Primary tenant
- Washington Capitols (BAA/NBA), Washington Caps (ABA)
Lore & Background
Starting in 1938, the idea of building an arena in the area was under consideration. Michael (or Migiel or Miguel) J. Uline, president of Capitol Garden Corp., was considering it June of that year but was waiting on a decision by the local government on whether or not they were going to build an arena of their own at the intersection of 4th Street NW and Constitution Avenue NW. Michael Uline held 68 patents and was a successful businessman originally from the Netherlands. His parents decided to leave their home in the province of North Brabant due to numerous floodings in the area of the Maas river and the Uline family emigrated to the United States in 1890, when Michiel was 16 years old. His first business interests in the US revolved around the production and distribution of ice, and the site in Washington, in 1931, just south of the later Arena, was dedicated to ice manufacturing, storage, and sales. By early 1940, the arena was under construction. It was however already being criticized. On March 14, 1940, coach Bill Reinhart of the George Washington basketball team was critical of the design: there were too many seats behind the backboards and not enough on the sidelines. On March 20, the architect, Joe Harry Lapish, responded to the criticism by stating that the arena would be able to house between 6,500 and 7,000 basketball spectators including 4,500 to 5,000 highly desirable seats on the sidelines. On December 28, 1940, while the arena was nearing completion, Michael Uline announced that it would open on January 28, 1941, and would present a 15-performance engagement of 'Ice-Capades of 1941' in 13 days which would end on February 9. More details of the interior where also shared. The heated arena would feature arm-rest seats, each with a complete and unhindered view of the ice by post supports and beams. The ice surface would be 225 ft by 120 ft and be the biggest in the country. It would be frozen using the Vedder system connected to the plant located next door which would provide the brine by-pass. Raoul Le Mat was General Manager. The following day, further details of the 1941 program was announced. A rodeo was planned and other activities were in the works: roller follies, a defense exposition, possibly a Cherry Blossom Festival, professional, collegiate and amateur hockey, boxing and college basketball were also considered.
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