The Fort William Gardens is a 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 ...

, in

Thunder Bay Thunder Bay is a city in and the seat of Thunder Bay District, Ontario, Canada. It is the most populous municipality in Northwestern Ontario and the second most populous (after Greater Sudbury) municipality in Northern Ontario; its population i ...

Ontario Ontario ( ; ) is one of the thirteen provinces and territories of Canada.Ontario is located in the geographic eastern half of Canada, but it has historically and politically been considered to be part of Central Canada. Located in Central C ...

, Canada. It opened in 1951.

History

The Gardens opened on March 6, 1951. The

Fort William Canadians The Fort William Canadians were a junior ice hockey team based in Fort William, Ontario, Canada. The Canadians were members of the Thunder Bay Junior A Hockey League and were Abbott Cup finalists three times. For a while, the ''Fort William C ...

defeated the

Fort William Hurricanes The Westfort Hurricanes were a Canadian Junior ice hockey club from Fort William, Ontario. The Herks were members of the Thunder Bay Junior A Hockey League and were Abbott Cup finalists once. History In 1972, the Hurricanes broke away from the ...

by a 4–2 score in the first game, which was refereed by

Fred Page Frederick Page (September 29, 1915 – December 23, 1997) was a Canadian ice hockey administrator and ice hockey referee. He originated from Port Arthur, Ontario, where he played junior ice hockey, refereed locally and later at the Memorial ...

and with a paid attendance of 5,200 tickets. The isolation of Thunder Bay and travel costs have prevented the Gardens from retaining most teams. It hosted an NHL pre-season game in 1993 between the Ottawa Senators and Washington Capitals, and two pre-season AHL games in 2002 with St. John's Maple Leafs vs. Manitoba Moose, and 2 in 2003 with Manitoba Moose vs. Toronto Roadrunners. The Gardens has hosted the

1975 Allan Cup The 1975 Allan Cup was the Canadian senior ice hockey championship for the 1974–75 season. The event was hosted by both Barrie and Thunder Bay, Ontario. The 1975 playoff marked the 67th time that the Allan Cup has been awarded. The Thunder Bay ...

, the

1988 Allan Cup The 1988 Allan Cup was the Canadian senior ice hockey championship for the 1987–88 senior "AAA" season. The event was hosted by the Thunder Bay Twins in Thunder Bay, Ontario. The 1988 playoff marked the 80th time that the Allan Cup has been ...

, and

1991 Allan Cup The 1991 Allan Cup was the Canadian national senior ice hockey championship for the 1990-91 Senior "AAA" season. The event was hosted by the Thunder Bay Twins in Thunder Bay, Ontario. The 1991 tournament marked the 83rd time that the Allan Cup has ...

, representing the Grand Championship of Canadian

Senior hockey Senior hockey refers to amateur or semi-professional ice hockey competition. There are no age restrictions for Senior players, who typically consist of those whose Junior eligibility has expired. Senior hockey leagues operate under the jurisdic ...

. The Gardens played host to the 1967

Memorial Cup The Memorial Cup () is the national championship of the Canadian Hockey League, a consortium of three major junior ice hockey leagues operating in Canada and parts of the United States. It is a four-team round-robin tournament played between t ...

series in which the

Toronto Marlboros The Toronto Marlborough Athletic Club, commonly known as the Toronto Marlboros, was founded in 1903. It operated junior ice hockey and senior ice hockey teams in the Ontario Hockey Association and later the Ontario Hockey League. The Marlboros ...

defeated the

Port Arthur Marrs The Port Arthur Marrs were a junior ice hockey team that played in Port Arthur, Ontario (now part of the city of Thunder Bay). They were named for trucking company and sponsor W.H. Marr, Ltd., and contested the 1967 Memorial Cup, which they lost ...

for the national junior hockey championship. The Gardens hosted the 1988 Air Canada Cup National Midget Hockey Championship.

Tenants

Since 2001, the Gardens has been home to the Lakehead Thunderwolves men's university hockey program, and a Superior International Junior Hockey League team. Previous tenants include the

Thunder Bay Bulldogs The Thunder Bay Bulldogs were a Junior "A" ice hockey team from the Port Arthur section of Thunder Bay, Ontario, Canada. They were a part of the Superior International Junior Hockey League. History The Thunder Bay Bulldogs, sometimes referred to ...

Fort William North Stars The Thunder Bay North Stars are a Junior ice hockey#Junior A, junior A ice hockey team from Thunder Bay, Ontario, Canada. They are a member of the Superior International Junior Hockey League. History After the fall of the Thunder Bay Flyers in 200 ...

Thunder Bay Flyers The Thunder Bay Flyers were a Junior "A" ice hockey team from Thunder Bay, Ontario, Canada. History On July 6, 1980, the Degagne Buccaneers and Thunder Bay North Stars were informed by the TBAHA that they would not be permitted to field teams i ...

, the

Thunder Bay Senators The Thunder Bay Thunder Cats was a minor professional ice hockey team based in Thunder Bay, Ontario, Canada, and a member of the United Hockey League. The team went through a number of different names prior to being the Thunder Cats, including th ...

Thunder Bay Thunder Cats The Thunder Bay Thunder Cats was a minor professional ice hockey team based in Thunder Bay, Ontario, Canada, and a member of the United Hockey League. The team went through a number of different names prior to being the Thunder Cats, including th ...

, and the

Thunder Bay Twins The Thunder Bay Twins were an Amateur Senior and Professional ice hockey team from Thunder Bay, Ontario, Canada. The Twins won five Allan Cups as National Senior Champions from 1970 until 1991. Origin On 1 January 1970, the City of Thunder Bay w ...

Major events

The Gardens has also hosted several national

curling Curling is a sport in which players slide stones on a sheet of ice toward a target area which is segmented into four concentric circles. It is related to bowls, boules, and shuffleboard. Two teams, each with four players, take turns slidi ...

championships: * 1960

Macdonald Brier The Tim Hortons Brier, or simply (and more commonly) the Brier (''french: Le Brier''), is the annual Canadian men's curling championship, sanctioned by Curling Canada. The current event name refers to its main sponsor, the Tim Hortons coffee and ...

* 1976 Women's

Canadian Junior Curling Championships The Canadian Junior Curling Championships is an annual curling tournament held to determine the best junior-level curling team in Canada. Junior level curlers must be under the age of 21 as of June 30 in the year prior to the tournament. The even ...

* 1991 Canadian Mixed Curling Championships *

1996 Scott Tournament of Hearts The 1996 Scott Tournament of Hearts Canadian women's national curling championship, was played February 17 to 25 at the Fort William Gardens in Thunder Bay, Ontario. Ontario, skipped by Marilyn Bodogh won the title, defeating Alberta's Cheryl K ...

* 2002 M&M Meat Shops Canadian Open (Grand Slam Event) *

2022 Scotties Tournament of Hearts The 2022 Scotties Tournament of Hearts, Canada's national women's curling championship, was held from January 28 to February 6 at the Fort William Gardens in Thunder Bay, Ontario. The winning team represented Canada at the 2022 World Women's Curl ...

The arena has hosted

Remembrance Day Remembrance Day (also known as Poppy Day owing to the tradition of wearing a remembrance poppy) is a memorial day observed in Commonwealth member states since the end of the First World War to honour armed forces members who have died in t ...

ceremonies, festivals, circuses and many concerts including such artists as The Beach Boys, Johnny and the Hurricanes,

Bob Dylan Bob Dylan (legally Robert Dylan, born Robert Allen Zimmerman, May 24, 1941) is an American singer-songwriter. Often regarded as one of the greatest songwriters of all time, Dylan has been a major figure in popular culture during a career sp ...

B.B. King Riley B. King (September 16, 1925 – May 14, 2015), known professionally as B.B. King, was an American blues singer-songwriter, guitarist, and record producer. He introduced a sophisticated style of soloing based on fluid string bending, shi ...

The Guess Who The Guess Who are a Canadian rock band formed in Winnipeg, Manitoba, in 1965. The band originated in 1962 and achieved an international hit single with a cover of " Shakin' All Over" in 1965 under the name Chad Allan and the Expressions. After ...

, John Lee Hooker, Burton Cummings, Roy Orbison,

Celine Dion Céline Marie Claudette Dion ( ; born 30 March 1968) is a Canadian singer. Noted for her powerful and technically skilled vocals, Dion is the best-selling Canadian recording artist, and the best-selling French-language artist of all time. Her ...

Willie Nelson Willie Hugh Nelson (born April 29, 1933) is an American country musician. The critical success of the album '' Shotgun Willie'' (1973), combined with the critical and commercial success of '' Red Headed Stranger'' (1975) and '' Stardust'' (1 ...

, Bee Gees, Rush, REM, AC/DC, Slade, Ted Nugent, Skid Row, The Black Crowes, Foreigner, Bachman-Turner Overdrive, Black Oak Arkansas, Pearl Jam, Our Lady Peace, Nickelback and The Tragically Hip.

References

External links

TBShows.com Concert information at Fort William Gardens
{{coord, 48, 23, 09, N, 89, 15, 02, W, type:landmark_region:CA-ON, display=title Indoor ice hockey venues in Canada Sports venues in Thunder Bay Indoor arenas in Ontario

History

Tenants

Major events

See also

References

External links