Completed in 1941 , it hosted the San Francisco Warriors of the NBA from 1962 to 1964 and again from 1966 to 1971 . The Warriors temporarily returned to the Cow Palace to host the 1975 NBA Finals as the Oakland – Alameda County Coliseum Arena was booked for an Ice Follies performance . It was the site of both the 1956 Republican National Convention and the 1964 Republican National Convention . During the 1960s and 1970s , the SF Examiner Games , a world-class indoor track and field meet , was held annually at the Cow Palace . The Cow Palace was also an important venue for professional boxing until the early 1980s , having staged regular shows , including ten world title fights and appearances of all-time greats like Joe Louis , Sugar Ray Robinson , and Alexis Arguello . Additionally it has hosted professional wrestling and the Bay Bombers of roller derby ; the Derby 's world championship playoffs were held at the Cow Palace every fall beginning from 1959 through 1973 , when the organization was disbanded . The Ringling Bros. and Barnum and Baily circus first visited the Cow Palace in 1956 when the circus abandon the circus tent format for established arenas . From 1966 until 1999 , the Ringling Bros. and Barnum & Bailey Circus visited the Cow Palace , joined in later years by what is now Disney on Ice ; both events were later held at Oracle Arena , where Disney on Ice still plays since the demise of the Ringling Bros. organization
1956 Republican National Convention
1956 Republican National Convention
Cow Palace