The Cow Palace is an important part of California and Bay Area history.

It should be included in the California Registry of Historic Buildings. This effort is already underway.

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HISTORY OF THE COW PALACE

Since opening in 1941, the Cow Palace has welcomed 50 million visitors through its doors. The Cow Palace is officially the 1-A District Agricultural Association, a State agency of the California Department of Food and Agriculture's Division of Fairs and Expositions.

The idea for what was to become the Cow Palace was born at the 1915 Pan-Pacific International Exposition in San Francisco. When the fair's huge livestock exposition proved to be one of its most popular attractions, local business leaders met and resolved to build a permanent structure to house a great animal livestock exposition in San Francisco.

For ten years after the Pan-Pacific Expo, the idea lay dormant. In 1925, the San Francisco Exposition Company was formed to finance the project. Nineteen firms and individuals each contributed $20,000, and the land was purchased in the Marina District, the site of the 1915 fair.

A legislative appropriation of $250,000 was passed in 1931. This appropriation was to be used in part to purchase a suitable site. However, as the depression of the 1930's worsened, resistance developed to using public funds for construction of a livestock pavilion. The economy was in a state of shock. Millions were unemployed. A local newspaper asked, "Why, when people are starving, should money be spent on a "palace for cows?" A headline writer turned the phrase around, hence the origin of the world famous name.

Twenty years after the inception, and a change from the original site, the first spadeful of dirt was turned. Through the W.P.A. Program, the construction of the Cow Palace put to work thousands of the unemployed.

The Cow Palace was completed in 1941. The new arena boasted a concrete and steel roof that covered nearly six acres. The first event to be held in the new arena was the Western Classic Holstein Show in April, 1941. In November of that year, the first Grand National Rodeo was held, featuring a tribute to the late Will Rogers. The show was declared a smash hit.

Two short weeks after the close of the first show, Pearl Harbor was attacked. Rented by the Federal Government for $1.00 per year, for the next five years the huge structure was filled with troops embarking for combat zones in the Pacific Theatre. As World War II progressed, the pavilion was turned over to the Ordinance Department and converted into a huge repair garage.

Following the war in 1946, the facility was again readied to host the Grand National. The show was again a success, despite rain and wind storms that flattened the enormous outdoor livestock tents. This near disaster led to the construction of the permanent storm-proof pavilions that had been in the original plans.

In the spring of 1946, the Junior Grand National was established to encourage the youth of California in their livestock projects. In December of 1947, inter-collegiate basketball came to the arena, beginning the Cow Palace's nationwide reputation as a major sports arena. In 1948, the Ringling Bros. Barnum & Bailey Circus started its tenure as the Cow Palace's oldest continuous renter.

In 1949 legislation was passed officially opening the facility to general public use. In October of that year, the Cow Palace was host to the U.S. Heavyweight Boxing Championship. From then on, all manner of events came to the arena, such as ice shows, political conventions, Roller Derby, tennis, wrestling, professional basketball, and ice hockey.

Other Cow Palace highlights include appearances by the Royal Canadian Mounted Police, Liberace, the Billy Graham Crusade (with attendance of 696,525), John F. Kennedy, Evel Knievel, the Beatles, the Rolling Stones, and Elvis Presley. In addition to these, the Cow Palace has been the host of many successful sold-out concerts. Some of the more memorable are those by the Grateful Dead *, the Who, the Doors, Rod Stewart, Santana, ZZ Top, Yes, Paul McCartney & Wings, Neil Diamond, Elton John, U2, and Prince.

The long term tenants of the Cow Palace include the Grand National Rodeo, Ringling Bros. Barnum & Bailey Circus, the San Francisco Sport & Boat Show, the Golden Gate Kennel Club Dog Show, and Disney on Ice.

* The March 23, 1974 Grateful Dead concert was not just a landmark in the career of the Grateful Dead but in the history of concert production. This was the show that unveiled arguably the greatest P. A. system of all time, the Dead's fabled "Wall of Sound."

As the Grateful Dead's popularity as a live act grew - taking the band in the first decade after its inception from tiny clubs to ballrooms and large theaters, and then to giant sports arenas and stadiums - the band resolved to develop a sound system that was up to the daunting task of filling those larger spaces with sound that was not just loud but clear. The ultimate result of years of research and experimentation was the Wall of Sound, conceived and built in collaboration with Owsley Stanley, Ron Wickersham, Dan Healy, Bob Matthews and others in the Dead's circle of technical wizards. The Wall was a wonder to behold, rising up like the skyline of a small city with its towering stacks of speakers (641 in all) and amplifiers (putting out more than 26,000 watts) and it was even more of a joy to hear. Alas, the Wall would also prove to be both physically and financially cumbersome, requiring two (and sometimes three) separate crews to set up the stage, and five trucks to carry 72 tons of equipment. It was a huge drain on the band's resources, and would only be used by the band for thirty-seven shows spread over seven months, passing into history when the Dead took their two-year hiatus from touring in October of 1974.

But it was a glorious thing while it lasted, and the Dead gave it a rousing coming-out party at the cavernous, acoustically temperamental Cow Palace, just south of San Francisco, on March 23, 1974. This being an experimental affair, a few technical glitches were to be expected, and sure enough, they happened (as in the microphone-challenged false start to "Playing In The Band," heard here in all its glory). But for the most part, the assembled throng was treated to a huge, undistorted sound that could be heard as loud and clear up in the rafters as it was down front. And the Dead delivered a powerhouse show!

If you would like to tell your story or add any other history, please email:
info@savethecowpalace.com