One of the members of the construction team was a young Robert Marella, who later achieved fame as professional wrestler Gorilla Monsoon.

The first event at the facility was a public trade show held in the exhibition hall and featured such famous Rochester-based companies as Eastman Kodak, Haloid (now Xerox), Bausch & Lomb, General Railway Signal and Rochester Products.

Judy Garland performed a one-night stand concert at the War Memorial on her comeback tour, the night of October 17, 1961.

[12][13][14] World Wrestling Entertainment has run many shows at the arena, most notably several television tapings 1997's In Your House 14: Revenge of the 'Taker Pay Per View event.

On Saturday and Sunday, March 8–9, 2008, the Blue Cross Arena played host to the 46th NYSPHSAA Wrestling Championships, just the second time the annual interscholastic event has been held in the Rochester area.

On November 1, 1965, The Rolling Stones played here in a concert that lasted only 7 minutes, when several thousand fans rushed the stage causing police to cancel the show.

[20] The Grateful Dead's performance, on November 5, 1977, was recorded and later released as a live album, entitled Dick's Picks Volume 34.

On November 12, 2003, the Buffalo Sabres and the defending Stanley Cup champion New Jersey Devils played the first National Hockey League regular season game in the venue.

A second regular season game was held at the arena on October 26, 2005, with the Sabres falling to the Washington Capitals, 3–2 with 8,552 in attendance.

Additionally, the 2007 NCAA Men's Division I Ice Hockey East Regional was held at the Blue Cross Arena.

[22] The Rochester Institute of Technology men's hockey team has played periodic regular-season games at Blue Cross Arena instead of at their smaller on-campus rink, due to the large capacity.

[23] The RIT women's hockey team hosted an exhibition game at the arena on October 16, 2021, after the Gene Polisseni Center was temporarily shut down for an ammonia leak.