Original Hibbing Memorial Building opened in 1925

The Hibbing Memorial Building opened 100 years ago today — Sept. 18, 1925 — as a memorial to veterans of World War I. It included a hockey rink, eight curling rinks, a bowling alley, an auditorium and veterans’ club quarters. It was destroyed by fire in 1933 and rebuilt in 1935.

“Not a cold granite shaft, nor a marble statue, but a living structure to serve the men, women and children of this city as a public recreational center has been erected in memory of the sons of Hibbing, who paid the supreme sacrifice for their country,” an uncredited Duluth Herald staff correspondent wrote in the Sept. 16, 1925 edition of the paper.

The article mentions the building contained “the second largest hockey rink in the country,” noting the “Cleveland rink is considered the largest.”

Amphitheater and hockey rink.

Rear of auditorium showing balcony.

The Sept. 18, 1925 edition of the Duluth Herald showed photos of the Hibbing Memorial Building’s “reception room, the northwest corner of the quarters” (top) and the “canteen room” (below).