Maryville Roller Drome – “First and Only Plastic Floor in America” at Fifth and Main. Maryville Forum (Maryville Hi-Lights high school newspaper section), November 22, 1947, caption reads: “We skate at the Maryville Roller Rink,” exclaim Jack Ward, Joy Corbin, and Doyle Watkins.
The Rink was owned by Ernest O. “Mickey” Ellis and opened in October 1943 in the former Cummins Furniture Store in the Lippman Building.
Ellis owned the Lippman Building, which was destroyed in a 1939 fire that also destroyed the Earl May Seed Store, the Cummins Furniture Store, and Bosch Hardware. It was rebuilt to look similar but more fireproof. Kansas City architect Harry L. Wagner designed the building.
While claiming to be the first and only plastic skating floor. Plastic has become very popular with skating rink design, per AI.
Plastic (polypropylene) floor tiles are excellent for roller skating due to their superior grip, durability, and versatility. They offer a smooth, consistent surface, are easy to install for both indoor/outdoor use, require low maintenance, and are often designed to be shock-absorbing, reducing fatigue and enhancing safety.
Prior to Roller Drome’s opening, there was a skating rink on the east side of the square with J.C. Boydston as the proprietor. In 1940, there was a rink on 71 by the Engelmann Greenhouse.
The rink’s name was changed from is simple skating rink name to reflect the popular Rollerdrome name of the era. Per AI: Roller skating rinks were commonly called “rollerdromes” from the 1930s through the 1960s to sound modern, large-scale, and, in some cases, to suggest a venue suitable for competition or velodrome-style racing. The term combines “roller” with the suffix “-drome,” derived from the Greek dromos (meaning a running course or racetrack), often used to describe arenas like velodromes or hippodromes. Probably the most famous rink with the Rollerdrome name in this era was the Empire Rollerdrome in Brooklyn.
Ernest O. “Mickey” Ellis, 81, Maryville died Tuesday, January 24, 1984, at his home unexpectedly.
He was born August 23, 1902, in Pattonsburg.
Mr. Ellis married Emma Lippman on May 26, 1926, in Maryville. She died July 16, 1971. On May 7, 1978, he married Kennie Mayfield in Hopkins.
He lived in Maryville for 60 years. He was a horse trainer and he raced trotting horses. Mr. Ellis was also a farmer and he owned a roller rink.
Mr. Ellis was in the U. S. Navy during WWI. He was a graduate of Maryville High School and Northwest Missouri State University. He belonged to the United Methodist Church and the U. S. Trotter Association.
He is survived by his wife, Kennie Ellis, of the home; two daughters, Elaine Hartman, Kansas City, and Charlene Sry, Westfield, New Jersey; three sons, Fred Ellis, San Jose, California, Richard Ellis, Brighton, Colorado, and David Ellis, Cincinatti, Ohio; five stepdaughters, Gwen Coldwell, Plattsmouth, Nebraska, Lorna From, Maryville, Joyce James, Hopkins, Donna Spaulding, Hopkins, and Pat O’Riley, Hopkins; four grandchildren; 12 great-grandchildren; one brother, Charles Russ, Panhandle, Texas; and two sisters, Alma Russell, Panhandle, Texas, and, his twin sister, Erma Sherwood, Klemme, Iowa.
Services are set for 3:30 p.m. Thursday, January 26, 1984, at Price Funeral Home.
Burial is to be at St. Mary’s Cemetery in Maryville.
Visitation is planned for 7-8 p.m. tonight, January 25, 1984, at Price Funeral Home.
Memorials may be sent to the Heart Fund.
- The Roller Drome has a plastic floor — finally, a place where my skating skills and my life choices can both be glossy and slightly questionable.
- Skating on a plastic floor at the Roller Drome: where every spin is part circus, part slip ’n’ slide.
- I went to the Roller Drome for balance practice — the plastic floor went for dramatic effect.
- They call it a Roller Drome, not a Roller Spa — but that plastic floor sure gives my ego a soothing wax.
- The plastic floor at the Roller Drome really brings out the shine in my confidence… right before it peels away.
- Roller Drome tip: if you hear a squeak, it’s either your wheels or the floor silently judging your form.
- At the Roller Drome, the floor’s so plastic I half expect it to roll up and leave when I lose my footing.
- The Roller Drome promises a smooth ride — they didn’t say anything about the occasional surprise slide-show.
- I tried an impressive trick at the Roller Drome and the plastic floor replied, “Cute. Try again when you bring more gravity.”
- Skating on that plastic floor is like dancing on a vinyl record — nostalgic, glossy, and someone’s probably about to skip.
- The Roller Drome’s plastic floor is the only place my skating career and my phone case share the same finish.
- Best part about the Roller Drome: even if you fall, the plastic floor gives you a clean, Instagram-ready wipeout.