North Street Arena
The North Street Arena was at 41 North Street until being torn down in late 1951 to make way for the North Street overpass. The rambling wooden structure sat in the middle of a block on the western side of North Street between Federal and Bridge Streets and had been an important venue for sports and civic events to 65 years.
It was one of the biggest attractions for wrestling matches at the height of wrestling popularity between World War I and II. On some nights the wrestling matches at the Salem facility were refereed by Jack Dempsey and Jack Sharkey.
The arena was originally built as a riding stable and converted by owner James Chalifour into a roller skating rink in 1905. It later became the home to Salem's team in the American Roller Polo League. (They played polo on roller skates instead of horses).
The arena hosted many events, including billiards, tennis matches, roller skating and indoor bicycle races. Seating capacity was 1,900 though many events drew more. Rudolph Valentino even visited.
See Also
- Vertical File in Salem Collection- Famous visitors to Salem
- Vertical File in Salem Collection - North Street - Overpass
- "Going with the flow; to eliminate traffic bottlenecks, city launched three-stage project to eliminate railroad grade crossings" Salem Evening News, July 14, 1999, p. A3
- "A famous city attracts famous people" Salem Evening News, June 7, 2000, p. A2
- The North Street Arena was a "Guy thing" Salem Evening News, July 5, 2001, p. A3
