GREEN BAY – Brown County Veterans Memorial Arena, more commonly referred to as Brown County Arena, was dedicated to the nation’s World War II veterans.

The Brown County Board originally planned to divide a $150,000 war memorial fund among the cities of De Pere and Green Bay and the villages of Denmark, Pulaski and Wrightstown, which was approved by the board in 1945 following the war.

“Each would receive a portion of the $150,000 bond issue according to its population and assessed valuation, with the understanding that county funds would be matched to the extent of 65% by the area,” a Nov. 10, 1945, Press-Gazette article stated. “It was indicated that the living memorials would probably be in the form of buildings for public use and that each area’s share in its memorial could be spread out over a five-year period.”

The following year, the Green Bay City Council unanimously approved the creation of a new city hall and auditorium.

After nearly a decade of studies and talks, it was decided that a multi-purpose arena was needed and it should be taken on as a county-wide project.
After several more years of planning, the county broke ground on Sept. 22, 1957.

The nearly $2 million, 5,248-seat arena opened in November 1958 on the corner of what was then known as Highland Avenue — now Lombardi Avenue — and Oneida Street in Ashwaubenon.

It was the first large-capacity entertainment venue in greater Green Bay during a time when Lambeau Field did not accommodate stadium-size acts.
The arena allowed the city to attract more well-known acts to the area and was the only venue to do so until the Resch Center opened in 2002.

In the 1960s, the area played host to acts such as Gary Lewis and the Playboys, Dobie Gray, Sonny & Cher, Duke Ellington and The Crystals.

During the 1970s, the arena was a stop for The Association, The Beach Boys, Johnny and June Carter Cash, The Statler Brothers, The Guess Who, Chuck Berry, Muddy Waters, Santana, Loggins & Messina, Ozark Mountain Daredevils, Steppenwolf, Frankie Valli and the Four Seasons, Blue Oyster Cult, REO Speedwagon, Tanya Tucker, Johnny Paycheck, Alice Cooper, Foghat, Linda Ronstadt, Charlie Daniels Band, Aerosmith, Kansas, Styx, Head East, Chicago, Jethro Tull, Cheap Trick, Frank Zappa, ZZ Top, Eric Carmen, The Sweet, Fleetwood Mac, Boston, Heart, KISS, Dolly Parton, Mac Davis, Elvis Presley, Ted Nugent, Charley Pride, Supertramp. Tom Jones, Foreigner, Little River Band, Marty Robbins, Gordon Lightfoot, Doobie Brothers, Van Halen, Journey, Seals & Croft, Barbara Mandrell, Mel Tillis, Kenny Rogers, Dottie West, The Cars, Ted Nugent, Sha-Na-Na and many more.

The 1980s saw many of the bands from the previous decade return, along with Molly Hatchet, Rush, .38 Special, Marshall Tucker Band, Oak Ridge Boys, Whitesnake, Pure Prairie League, Ozzy Osbourne, Def Leppard, Jefferson Starship, The Greg Kihn Band, Loverboy, Quarterflash, Black Sabbath, Elvis Costello, Rick Springfield, Air Supply, Van Halen, Pat Benatar, George Jones, Quiet Riot, Judas Priest, Great White, Huey Lewis & the News, Berlin, Quiet Riot, Sammy Haga, Dokken, Joe Walsh, Sawyer Brown, John Waite, Nitty Gritty Dirt Band, Alabama, Bellamy Brothers, The Monkees, David Lee Roth, Tesla, Stevie Ray Vaughn, Ratt, Poison, Night Ranger, Helix, Megadeth, Scorpions, Lita Ford, Stryper, White Lion, Metallica, Queensryche, Cinderella, Reba McEntire, Ricky Van Shelton, Clint Black and more.

In addition to returning acts, the 1990s ushered in new acts like Motley Crue, Faster Pussycat, Slaughter, Warrant, Damn Yankees, Bad Company, Marie Osmond, The Judds, Billy Dean, Skid Row, Soundgarden, Randy Travis, Firehouse, Tesla, Travis Tritt, Steve Miller Band, America, Restless Heart, John Michael Montgomery, Aaron Tippin, Hank Williams Jr., Trisha Yearwood, Little Texas, Confederate Railroad, Barry Manilow, Bob Dylan, Alan Jackson, Billy Ray Cyrus, Crosby Stills & Nash, Kenny G, Brooks & Dunn, Soul Asylum, Vince Gill, Patty Loveless, Boyz II Men, Asleep at the Wheel, Tim McGraw, Blues Travelers, Martina McBride, Jeff Foxworthy, Goo Goo Dolls BoDeans and others.

During its last two decades, the arena added Brad Paisley, B.J. Thomas, Trans-Siberian Orchestra, Godsmack, Kenny Chesney, Lee Ann Womack, Toby Keith, Nickelback, Korn, Aaron Carter, Ludacris, Lee Greenwood, All American Rejects, Blake Shelton, Miranda Lambert, Shinedown, Skillet, Gary Allan, Luke Bryan, Papa Roach, Shinedown and others to the new acts making a stop there.

The arena also served as home to several sports teams including the UW–Green Bay basketball teams and the Bobcats hockey team, during its lifetime.
The Packers Hall of Fame

In July 1976, what was deemed as a “million dollar Packer scrapbook” opened in the Brown County Arena.

“[The] facility at nearly $1 million and places the value of the exhibits it houses at approximately $300,000. But the sentimental value of irreplaceable items from the Packers’ storied past do not have a price tag,” Don Langenkamp wrote in the Press-Gazette.

The original Packers Hall of Fame — the first of its kind for a National Football League — offered several rooms of team memorabilia.

The “Locker Room” was a two-part area offering reproductions of former players’ lockers in one half and a projector showing training room activities in the other.

A separate room hosted a mini-theater offering seating for 70 new people every 30 minutes for a Packers history film.

The “Playing Field” offered 14 exhibits of photos, memorabilia and Packers memories in what was considered the main hall.

In late 1977, work began on a 4,500-square-foot expansion on the arena.
The additional room expanded office space as well as the ticket facilities.
A decade later, work began on the Brown County Exposition Hall — later known as Shopko Hall.

A grand opening was held Sept. 27, 1986, and the facility was billed as “Northeast Wisconsin’s Entertainment and Exhibition Showplace,” now offering the arena, exposition hall and Packers Hall of Fame.

In 2019, the arena was razed to make way for a new $93 million expo center, Resch Expo, but not before one last big event.

The last show

On April 6, Bret Michaels closed down the arena before a sold-out crowd.
Michaels and his band Poison launched three tours at the arena in 1988, 1990 and 1993, and recorded their music video for their hit ballad “Every Rose Has Its Thorn” there as well.

“Bret Michaels was the obvious choice to close the building. The last time he was here with Poison a couple of years ago, he asked for a tour of the arena, he wanted to reminisce. Obviously, he has a lot of history in the building,” Terry Charles, from PMI Entertainment Group, told the Press-Gazette in 2019.
“We started off every world tour, even some of the solo tours right here in this building,” Michaels recalled to the Press-Gazette. “Besides it being great memories, it has also brought me great luck.

“The big final night, I wanted to be here for that. One of the most amazing moments in my life is when we shot ‘Every Rose Has Its Thorn’ video here. It was such a great chemistry…‘Every Rose Has Its Thorn’ is one of the longest remaining No. 1 songs on the charts, so Green Bay has brought some awesome luck.”

For more information on the Hall of Fame, read our story in the October edition of Packerland.