Michigan State Fairgrounds Coliseum (also Hockeytown State Fair Coliseum) was a 5,600-seat multi-purpose

arena An arena is a large enclosed platform, often circular or oval-shaped, designed to showcase theatre, musical performances, or sporting events. It is composed of a large open space surrounded on most or all sides by tiered seating for spectators ...

Detroit, Michigan Detroit ( , ; , ) is the largest city in the U.S. state of Michigan. It is also the largest U.S. city on the United States–Canada border, and the seat of government of Wayne County. The City of Detroit had a population of 639,111 at ...

. The coliseum, built in 1922, was part of the former Michigan State Fairgrounds until its demolition in early 2022. The

Michigan State Fair The Michigan State Fair is an annual event originally held from 1849 to 2009 in Detroit, the state's largest city. In 2009 the governor declined to fund it because of other priorities. Because agriculture still has a major place in the Michigan ec ...

, the oldest state fair in the United States, was held here until 2009. The coliseum has also been the long-time venue of Detroit performances by the

Shrine Circus The Shrine Circus is a circus founded in Detroit, Michigan on Woodward Avenue in 1906. It travels to roughly 120 cities per year in the United States and a separate unit travels to about 40 in Canada. It is affiliated with the former Ancient Ara ...

. Between 1999 and 2008, the Coliseum was home to the

Wayne State University Wayne State University (WSU) is a public research university in Detroit, Michigan. It is Michigan's third-largest university. Founded in 1868, Wayne State consists of 13 schools and colleges offering approximately 350 programs to nearly 25,000 ...

Warriors

ice hockey Ice hockey (or simply hockey) is a team sport played on ice skates, usually on an ice skating rink with lines and markings specific to the sport. It belongs to a family of sports called hockey. In ice hockey, two opposing teams use ice hock ...

team A team is a group of individuals (human or non-human) working together to achieve their goal. As defined by Professor Leigh Thompson (academic), Leigh Thompson of the Kellogg School of Management, " team is a group of people who are interde ...

. Wayne State played its first collegiate hockey season in 1999 at the arena following the coliseum's renovation. Wayne State played its next three seasons at the

Great Lakes Sports City Superior Arena Big Boy Arena (formerly Fraser Hockeyland and Great Lakes Sports City) in Fraser, Michigan, is a ice center and entertainment venue offering five rinks for hockey, figure skating, inline skating, camps, clinics, private lessons, leagues, and sp ...

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and then two seasons at the Compuware Sports Arena in

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before returning to the Coliseum in 2005. The arena was also host to the 2006 men's and women's

College Hockey America College Hockey America (CHA) is a college ice hockey conference in the United States. It participates in the NCAA's Division I as a hockey-only conference. The conference is made up of five women’s teams, with two in Pennsylvania; two in New Y ...

conference tournament. Between early 1999 and mid-2000, the Michigan State Fairgrounds Coliseum was the site of three

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. In 2006 the Royal Oak-Shrine Catholic High School Knights

team began playing at the State Fairgrounds Coliseum. The team left in 2007; they returned in the 2008–2009 season for their first varsity season. The

Motor City Mechanics The Motor City Mechanics were a minor professional ice hockey team in the United Hockey League. The Mechanics played two seasons from 2004 to 2006 at Great Lakes Sports City Superior Arena in Fraser, Michigan. History The team got a major boost ...

of the

United Hockey League The United Hockey League (UHL), originally known as the Colonial Hockey League from 1991 to 1997 and last known as the International Hockey League from 2007 to 2010, was a low-level minor professional ice hockey league, with teams in the Unite ...

, which had suspended operations in 2006, planned to resume in 2008 and play at the Coliseum. But this never took place, and the UHL (rebranded as the International Hockey League) closed in 2010. The exterior of the coliseum was used as the Flint Fairgrounds Coliseum in the 2008 movie ''

Semi-Pro ''Semi-Pro'' is a 2008 American sports comedy film. The film was directed by Kent Alterman in his directorial debut, written by Scot Armstrong, and produced by Jimmy Miller. It stars Will Ferrell, Woody Harrelson, André Benjamin and Maura Tier ...

''. In 2020, the state fairgrounds were sold to

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; the company plans to convert the site into a $400 million distribution center. As of this date, it is planned that the buildings on the site, including the Coliseum, will be demolished. Demolition began on the building in January of 2022, and was completed by the next May. The facade of the building, however, will remain preserved.

References

External links

Wayne State Men's Hockey To Play At State Fairgrounds (from WSUAthletics.com)

{{National Register of Historic Places in Michigan Event venues established in 1922 Sports venues completed in 1922 College ice hockey venues in the United States Indoor ice hockey venues in Detroit Sports venues in Detroit Event venues on the National Register of Historic Places in Michigan Wayne State Warriors men's ice hockey 1922 establishments in Michigan National Register of Historic Places in Detroit Sports venues on the National Register of Historic Places Historic district contributing properties in Michigan