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Hershey Arena

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1935–1936, D. Paul Witmer with Anton Tedesko. Hersheypark Dr.
  • (© George E. Thomas)
  • (© George E. Thomas)

Milton Hershey assigned his local builder and manager of the local lumber company, D. Paul Witmer, to design an indoor arena. He in turn contacted a regional Portland Cement Company who suggested that he work with Tedesko, then one of the premier engineers in thin shell construction, who had immigrated to the United States and was working with Roberts and Schaefer of Chicago. His design called for the largest thin-shell concrete structure in North America using a “Zeiss-Dywidag” or Z-D type vault that is only 3.5 inches in depth at the crown. Built using moveable formwork and constructed between massive two-hinged arched ribs, it was completed in less than nine months. It became the home of the local hockey team, the Hershey Bears, and for a time was a regular stop on the National Basketball Association tour. In 1962, this was the site of Wilt Chamberlain's greatest game when he scored 100 points against the New York Knicks.

Writing Credits

Author: 
George E. Thomas
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Data

What's Nearby

Hershey's Chocolate World
Hershey Civic Center
Hotel Hershey
St. Peter's Kierch
Star Barn, John Motter Barn

Citation

George E. Thomas, "Hershey Arena", [Hershey, Pennsylvania], SAH Archipedia, eds. Gabrielle Esperdy and Karen Kingsley, Charlottesville: UVaP, 2012—, http://sah-archipedia.org/buildings/PA-02-DA32.

Print Source

Cover: Buildings of PA vol 2

Buildings of Pennsylvania: Philadelphia and Eastern Pennsylvania, George E. Thomas, with Patricia Likos Ricci, Richard J. Webster, Lawrence M. Newman, Robert Janosov, and Bruce Thomas. Charlottesville: University of Virginia Press, 2012, 352-352.

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