The Denver Auditorium Arena began life as the sporting half of the Denver Municipal Auditorium, a massive downtown hall that opened on July 7, 1908, and briefly ranked as the second-largest public auditorium in the country after Madison Square Garden. The building first made history by hosting the 1908 Democratic National Convention, but it spent most of the 20th century as Denver’s go-to venue for basketball, concerts, and civic gatherings.
In 1953, the southern half of the complex was walled off and converted into a dedicated sports arena, seating 6,841 for games. That space became the longtime home of the Denver Rockets of the American Basketball Association, who played there from 1967 until renaming themselves the Nuggets and moving on in 1975. The arena closed in 1990 and was later demolished, with the Temple Buell Theatre rising in its place as part of the Denver Performing Arts Complex.
- Denver Nuggets played here 1967–1975. See every Nuggets arena →
Stats at a Glance
- Team(s): Denver Nuggets (NBL/NBA, 1948-50); Denver Rockets/Nuggets (ABA, 1967-75)
- Location: 1323 Champa Street, Denver, Colorado
- Opened: July 7, 1908 (arena configuration from 1953)
- Closed: 1990 (demolished; site now the Temple Buell Theatre)
- Capacity: 6,841 (arena, after 1953 renovation); 12,500 (original 1908 hall)
- Notable fact: Hosted Led Zeppelin’s first U.S. concert on December 26, 1968
The Ride Experience
Fans packed into tight, steeply raked seating that put them close to the action, a holdover from the building’s original design as a multipurpose civic hall rather than a purpose-built sports venue. During the ABA years, the Rockets drew sellout crowds in the spring of 1970, and the Auditorium Arena earned a reputation as one of the league’s most stable and electric home courts, hosting the franchise for all but one season of its decade in the ABA.
From Convention Hall to Demolition
Beyond basketball, the arena’s calendar included early rock concerts, including Led Zeppelin’s 1968 American debut, as well as tennis with the World Team Tennis-era Denver Racquets and volleyball’s Denver Comets. After the Nuggets departed for McNichols Arena in 1975, the arena’s bookings thinned out, and the city shut it down in 1990. The arena wing was torn down while the original auditorium shell was preserved and later reborn in 2005 as the Ellie Caulkins Opera House.
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Denver Auditorium Arena FAQs
Is the Denver Auditorium Arena still standing?
No. The arena portion was demolished in 1990 and replaced by the Temple Buell Theatre, though the adjoining original auditorium building survives and now houses the Ellie Caulkins Opera House.
Which teams played at the Denver Auditorium Arena?
The NBL/NBA Denver Nuggets used it from 1948-50, and the ABA’s Denver Rockets (renamed the Nuggets in 1974) called it home from 1967 to 1975.
How many people could the arena hold?
After a 1953 renovation split the original 1908 auditorium, the dedicated arena side seated about 6,841 for sporting events.
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