International Hockey Hall of Fame

The International Hockey Hall of Fame (IHHOF) and Museum located in Kingston, Ontario on the Kingston Memorial Centre grounds features many exhibits within their museum about the history of ice hockey.

Historic Hockey Series
Each February since 1969 the IHHOF presents its annual Historic Hockey Series. The series is both a competition and demonstration of the first organized hockey game played on the Kingston Harbour in 1886 between Queen's University and the Royal Military College of Canada. The original style sticks and uniforms as well as the original rules of that era are used including a square puck, seven players per side and with no forward passing. Queen’s University and the Royal Military College of Canada compete along with the 2nd Regiment from the Royal Canadian Horse Artillery from Petawawa who represent the garrison soldiers stationed in Kingston in the 1880s in a round-robin tournament. The 38th Annual Historic Hockey Series took place on Sunday February 5, 2006 on the new outdoor rink at Kingston’s downtown historic Market Square.

History of the IHHOF
Founded on September 10, 1943 and incorporated as a non-profit charity by the National Hockey League and the Canadian Amateur Hockey Association. By 1958, NHL President Clarence Campbell announced that the NHL was withdrawing their support for the International Hockey Hall of Fame in Kingston to establish the NHL Hockey Hall of Fame in Toronto. Despite this major setback, the Board of Directors of the International Hockey Hall of Fame moved forward. In 1962, a grant was awarded by the City of Kingston for the construction of a new building. In 1965 the International Hockey Hall of Fame moved into their new building located on the Memorial Centre grounds in Kingston. In 1969, the NHL and the NHL Hockey Hall of Fame in Toronto made unsuccessful overtures to obtain the IHHOF exhibits and the rights to the name “International Hockey Hall of Fame”. The IIHF exhibits had been located at the IHHOF from 1992 through 1997. The IIHF relocated them to the HHOF in Toronto, in 1998.