Dorton Arena

Last crawled date: 2 years, 11 months ago

Completed in 1952, The building is 300 feet in diameter, elliptic in shape, with a central concrete floor 221 feet long and 127 feet wide at the widest point of the ellipse. The metal roof, suspended on a network of cables, which extend crosswise from the 90-foot parabolic arches, is saddle-shaped. The 14-foot wide arches reach a maximum height of 90 feet. They cross each other at about 26 feet above the ground, then extend into a tunnel below the surface at the east and west ends. The weights of the roof is equalized by tension cables, with 14 two-inch strands connecting each end of the parabola through the stress tunnel. #Fair_Grounds #Historic #NC_State_Fair #parabolic_arches #Raleigh #very_ugly_building