Title	Mid-South Coliseum: hallway and concessions
Creator(s)	West, Carroll Van
Date	2000
Coverage	2000-2009
Property name	Mid-South Coliseum
Property type	Community building
National Register Reference	00001429 listed December 6, 2000
Community Name	Memphis, Shelby County, TN
Description	Color photograph of a broad walkway in the coliseum, showing the curvature of the building. Concession stands are to the left.
Historical Notes	The Mid-South Coliseum played an essential role in the unraveling of Jim Crow segregation in Memphis and the mid-south during the 1960s. Plans for the coliseum were developed in the late 1950s, at a time when many whites in Memphis were strongly resisting the desegregation of public facilities required by federal law. Designed and constructed between 1960 and 1964, the Mid-South Coliseum was the first public auditorium in Memphis to be planned as an integrated facility, rather than a so-called "separate but equal" segregated building, designed to serve both performances and sporting events. Performances before integrated audiences occurred there as soon as the building opened in 1964, including the Goodwill Review sponsored by radio station WDIA. The coliseum's period of significance extends to 1974, when Elvis Presley gave his first Memphis concerts in over a decade at the coliseum and recorded a live album there. It is the only extant building in Memphis where such significant musical groups as The Beatles, The Stax-Volt Record Revue, Ike and Tina Turner, The Who, Led Zepellin, The Rolling Stones, James Brown, and Elvis Presley performed during their period of significance in American popular music. The coliseum served as a center for cultural expression among Memphis youth, both white and black.
Collection Name	Southern History Documentary Projects
Subject-LCSH	Memphis (Tenn.) -- Auditoriums, convention facilities, etc.
Subject-TGM	Sports & recreation facilities
Type	Still image
Genre	Photograph
Extent	35 mm slide
Contributing Institution	Center for Historic Preservation, Middle Tennessee State University
Copyright status	Copyright of the creator. Reproduced with permission
Conditions for use	Credit Center for Historic Preservation, Middle Tennessee State University Reproduction permitted for non-profit educational and research purposes only
Digital Publisher	Digital Initiatives, James E. Walker Library, Middle Tennessee State University

Mid-South Coliseum: hallway and concessions

Description