{"nrhp_refnum":"73001375","name":"J. S. Dorton Arena","other_names":[],"category":"building","location":{"address":"North Carolina State Fairgrounds, W. Hillsborough St.","address_restricted":false,"city":"Raleigh","county":"Wake County","state":"NC","lat":35.793762419000075,"lon":-78.70972829699997,"geom_source":"nps_gis"},"listed_date":"1973-04-11","is_nhl":false,"nhl_designated_date":null,"areas_of_significance":["Engineering","Architecture"],"significance_levels":["national"],"summary":{"what_it_is":"A large covered public arena at the North Carolina State Fairgrounds on West Hillsborough Street in Raleigh, Wake County, dedicated in 1953 and originally built as a livestock judging pavilion.","why_significant":"The nomination argues the arena is an internationally known prototype of a parabolic suspension structure, combining tension and compression in an early and rare integration of architecture and engineering. It won major design awards and was named in 1957 among ten twentieth-century buildings expected to most influence American architecture. Its adaptation to many uses and the many imitations it inspired are cited as signs of success.","narrative":"Dorton Arena is a large covered pavilion on the North Carolina State Fairgrounds in Raleigh. Dedicated in 1953 as the Livestock Judging Pavilion and renamed in 1961 for longtime fair manager J. S. Dorton, it is built of concrete and steel with a light skin of metal and glass. Two parabolic concrete arches rise ninety feet and carry a saddle-shaped roof of steel cables, leaving the interior open. The concept came from Polish-born architect Matthew Nowicki, who made about 100 conceptual drawings before dying in a 1950 plane crash. Raleigh architect William H. Deitrick's firm, working with New York engineers, carried out the design for a $1,500,000 state appropriation. The building earned the American Institute of Architects' First Honor Award in 1953 and a gold medal from the Architectural League of New York, and it was exhibited in Milan in 1957. Its seating holds thousands, and it later hosted a wide range of events beyond livestock judging.","period_of_significance":"1953","architect_builder":"Designed by Matthew Nowicki, with Raleigh architect William H. Deitrick and engineers Severud, Elstad and Krueger; built by the William Muirhead Construction Company","architectural_style":"Parabolic suspension structure (\"paraboleum\"), modern","criteria":[],"status_note":"Listed in excellent condition and unaltered, with later additions such as acoustic baffles, wind stability cables and a raised stage; it remains in use for exhibitions and performances.","vacant_flag":false,"machine_generated":true,"model":"claude-sonnet-5-5","prompt_version":"v1.0-2026-10-29","generated_at":"2026-10-29 02:58:58.350324-05","source_pdf":"https://s3.amazonaws.com/NARAprodstorage/opastorage/live/76/7225/47722576/content/electronic-records/rg-079/NPS_NC/73001375.pdf"},"photo":{"url_800":"https://nationalhistoricalregister.com/media/73001375/54a2c02d08-800.webp","url_1600":"https://nationalhistoricalregister.com/media/73001375/54a2c02d08-1600.webp","licence":"CC BY 2.0","author":"Justin Doub","credit_html":"<a href=\"https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Dorton_Arena.jpg\" rel=\"noopener\">Justin Doub</a>, <a href=\"https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/2.0\" rel=\"license noopener\">CC BY 2.0</a>, via Wikimedia Commons","source_page":"https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Dorton_Arena.jpg"},"district":null,"sources":{"nps_snapshot_date":"2026-05-22","nara_catalog":"https://catalog.archives.gov/id/47722576","wikipedia":"https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Dorton_Arena","wikidata":"https://www.wikidata.org/wiki/Q5299016"},"indexable":true,"url":"https://nationalhistoricalregister.com/north-carolina/wake-county/j-s-dorton-arena-73001375/"}