North Avenue Ice Palace, Indoor ice rink in Baltimore, United States.
The North Avenue Ice Palace was an indoor rink on North Avenue between Charles Street and Lovegrove Alley, extending north to 20th Street. Its ice sat in a 4-inch watertight pan over layers of waterproof paper and wool, chilled by three and a a half miles of 1.5-inch ammonia pipe. The Arctic Skating Company built it, with Gerald T. Hopkins, Jr. as manager.
The North Avenue Ice Palace opened on December 26, 1894, with a seven-a-side hockey game between Johns Hopkins students and the Baltimore Athletic Club that ended 2–2 before about 2,500 spectators. On February 14, 1896 it hosted the first intercollegiate ice hockey game in the United States, Yale beating Johns Hopkins 2–1. It staged the Baltimore Hockey League for two seasons, 1896–97 and 1897–98, and in November 1898 the ice machinery was removed for roller skating.
The rink's name came from its North Avenue frontage between Charles Street and Lovegrove Alley. Local churches opposed its construction over crowd noise. Outside winter it hosted a Baltimore Kennel Association dog show in April 1897 and vaudeville programmes in June and July 1898.
The building was located between Charles Street and Lovegrove Alley, extending to 20th Street, making it easily accessible to the Baltimore community. As the region's first permanent indoor ice facility of this scale, it offered skating opportunities regardless of season or weather.
The February 14, 1896 Yale–Johns Hopkins match is considered the first intercollegiate ice hockey game in the United States. Yale won 2–1, captain Malcolm Chace scoring both goals, and the teams played six per side, without a rover.
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