Located on the grounds of Stampede Park, the arena was completed in 1950 at a cost of C$1.25 million ($15.7 million today) to replace Victoria Arena as the home of the Calgary Stampeders minor professional hockey club (not to be confused with the present-day Canadian Football League team of the same name), which hosted their Western Hockey League games for years.

Seating 6,475, plus standing room, it was used during the annual Calgary Stampede, with a variety of entertainment events in each year's daily ENMAX Corral Show.

[6] At the time of construction, the Stampede Corral was the largest arena in Canada west of Toronto, and the first in the region without support columns obscuring the lines of sight.

Musicians from across the province played at the Corral in its lifespan, including Joni Mitchell, Loverboy, and Tegan and Sara.

The Stampede Corral hosted several major events, including the 1972 World Figure Skating Championships, the figure skating and ice hockey events at the 1988 Winter Olympics, as well as rodeo competitions.