The Sioux City Municipal Auditorium, known as the Long Lines Family Recreation Center or Long Lines Auditorium for sponsorship reasons, is a multi-purpose facility in Sioux City, Iowa. The fifth in a line of major indoor venues built in Sioux City, it was designed by Knute E.
- Venue
- Sioux City Municipal Auditorium
- Town
- Sioux City, US
The Sioux City Municipal Auditorium, known as the Long Lines Family Recreation Center or Long Lines Auditorium for sponsorship reasons, is a multi-purpose facility in Sioux City, Iowa. The fifth in a line of major indoor venues built in Sioux City, it was designed by Knute E. Westerlind in 1938 and finally completed after many delays in 1950. In the building's original form, it was an arena that seated up to 3,500 people. In 2003, the building was replaced by the Tyson Events Center, built around the northeast corner of the Municipal Auditorium. The building was then converted to its current use as a recreation center while preserving the exterior building. The converted arena was originally named Long Lines Family Recreation Center, though in 2023 the building added the Long Lines Auditorium signing to the southeast entrance and inside the auditorium. The auditorium is referred to as either name. For countless generations, the Native American residents at the confluence of the Big Sioux River with the Missouri River held their ceremonies, performances, and sporting events primarily outdoors, without need of specialized structures. The fourth Treaty of Prairie du Chien in 1830 forced them to leave Iowa, and forty years later the new White residents built the first in a series of five major indoor venues for Sioux City: the Academy of Music of 1870, the Peavey Grand Opera House of 1888, the Old Municipal Auditorium of 1909, this one completed in 1950, and Gateway Arena of 2003. The Academy of Music was located between Pierce and Douglas Streets on the southern side of Fourth Street. Designed by local architect H.O. Ball and erected by the firm of Sharp and Beck, it employed cast iron columns, a brick exterior, and terra cotta. The first floor included the city post office and commercial space, with an 800-seat performance space on the second floor. As the city's only large hall, it held high school graduations, theatrical performances, concerts, and speeches, includi