International Amphitheatre

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The International Amphitheatre was an indoor arena located in Chicago, Illinois. It was just west of Halsted Street, where 43rd Street T-ed into Halsted. It was adjacent to the Union Stock Yards, and was built in the 1930s after a 1920s fire had destroyed Dexter Park, a horse race track that had stood there for over 50 years. The western boundary of the site was called Dexter Park Street.

The arena, which sat 9,000, was the first home of the Chicago Packers of the NBA during 1961-62, a team which soon transferred to the Baltimore-Washington area. It was also the home of the Chicago Bulls during their inaugural season of 1966-67. It was also the primary home of the Chicago Cougars of the WHA from 1972-1975. It was originally intended to be only a temporary home for the Cougars, but the permanent solution, the Rosemont Horizon, was not completed until 1980, five years after the team folded and a year after the WHA had gone out of business.

The Amphitheatre hosted several national political conventions:

The 1968 convention was one of the most tumultuous political conventions in American history, marred by rioting stemming from anti-war protests.

The original purpose of the building was to hold the International Livestock Exhibition. The Stock Yards closed in 1971, but the Amphitheatre stayed open, hosting rock concerts and the like. With more modern arenas becoming available in the Chicago area, the Amphitheatre's concert business dried up. The building was demolished in 1999. Currently, an Aramark Uniform Services plant is located on this site.