Edmonton FROM THE ARCHIVES

Feb. 24, 1982: Edmonton Gardens won't go down after second attempt

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Crews resorted to a wrecking ball to take the building down

Show more On Feb. 24, 1982, demolition crews blasted the Edmonton Gardens a second time, but the building wouldn't fall. 0:52

The Edmonton Gardens, the city's indoor hockey arena built in 1913, stood tall after two attempts to bring it down with dynamite.

On Feb. 24, 1982, demolition crews tried to bring down the building with 50 pounds of dynamite. The week before, the same crew tried to demolish it with 100 pounds of the same explosive.

Spectators of the demolition were left with large amounts of both smoke and disappointment.

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Instead of trying for a demolition spectacle a third time, Northlands decided to use a wrecking ball the day after to put an end to the 69-year-old building.

The Gardens was the home to the Edmonton Oilers and Oil Kings but the aging building became obsolete once the Northlands Coliseum was opened in 1974.

In the video, CBC's Havard Gould describes buildup to the explosion and the eventual disappointment of the Edmonton Gardens standing after the blast.