The first event was the first ice hockey game ever played in Jacksonville, featuring the New York Rovers and Charlotte Clippers on November 30.

[7] Hundreds of thousands of Duval County high school students received their diplomas at ceremonies in the Coliseum, and the Ringling Bros. and Barnum & Bailey Circus train stopped in Jacksonville for two weeks of shows every January for decades.

The fairgrounds were adjacent to the Coliseum, and the Greater Jacksonville Agricultural Fair incorporated the facility into their November event, hosting music concerts, entertainers and exhibitions.

[4] The Coliseum hosted hundreds of concerts and shows during its 43-year history, including Grand Funk Railroad in 1970,Rush, Bob Dylan, Duran Duran, Billy Joel, Black Sabbath, Bon Jovi, Frank Sinatra, Jimi Hendrix, Elvis Presley, New Kids On The Block, The Smashing Pumpkins, David Bowie, Bruce Springsteen, Led Zeppelin, Jacksonville's Lynyrd Skynyrd, Journey, AC/DC, Deep Purple, Wishbone Ash, Grateful Dead, Judas Priest, Three Dog Night, Def Leppard and Iron Maiden.

[7] Considered a mid-sized venue at best against its larger competitors, concert promoters for the most popular acts wanted venues with at least 15,000 seats; performers disliked the building's poor acoustics and the structure couldn't support the elaborate special effects lighting and sound equipment which rock concerts had come to require.

[7] The venue was still able to house exhibition shows, special events and several country acts including Alan Jackson, Garth Brooks, Reba McEntire, Wynonna Judd and the Dixie Chicks.