James Wallace Conant James Wallace Conant ( August 10 , 1862 - March 14 , 1906 ) was an amusement manager who later became the manager of the Schenley Park Casino , as well as the first manager of the Duquesne Gardens , the first indoor ice rinks in the city of Pittsburgh . Conant is credited with bringing the sport of ice hockey to Pittsburgh , since the indoor ice rinks lured many Canadian players to the city . Over time several of the Canadian players were actually paid to play hockey first at the Casino , and later at the Gardens . He was also the founder of the Western Pennsylvania Hockey League , the first hockey league to openly hire and trade players . Biography . Early life . Conant was born in Portsmouth , Ohio in 1862 . At the age of 15 he moved with his mother to Pittsburgh . Upon arriving in the Steel City , he took a job as a steward on a river steamer , out of a love for the rivers . Throughout his twenties he worked in theater houses , located in the city ' s Hill District , a few downtown night clubs , and as a coordinator for a barge company with docks along the Mon Wharf . Schenley Park Casino . At the age of 36 , Conant ' s reputation in the amusements industry caught the attention of Christopher Magee , a political boss in Pittsburgh . Conant persuaded Magee that the city ' s proposed multi - purpose facility , the new Schenely Park Casino , could included an artificial ice rink . The idea of an artificial ice rink , allowed for the construction of the Casino to go forward . During this time , interest in ice hockey grew in Pittsburgh . Hockey exhibitions were scheduled for Friday nights after the public ice skating session . Many Canadians players flocked to Pittsburgh to use the artificial ice . The ice surface provided the Canadian players two months of play before they returned home to play in outdoor leagues back home . It was at this time that several players were openly paid to play in Pittsburgh . However 19 months after it ' s opening , the Casino burned to the ground . The cause of the blaze was determined to come from an ammonia pipe in the icemaking department . The pipe began began leaking and the gas mixed with grease and created an explosion resulting in a fire that consumed the equipment room in the rear of the Casino and spread to the ladies ’ dressing room . The fire not only destroyed the Casino , it also left Conant without a job . Duquesne Gardens . Coanant spent the next three winters in New York City . There he used his knowledge of artificial ice surfaces to manage the New York Ice Palace . However he returned to Pittsburgh every summer to work at Kennywood Park as a catering manager . He also ran a refreshment stand in the summers at Schenley Park on the site of old Casino . Meanwhile the Christopher Magee received the political and financial support to open a new multi - purpose facility in Pittsburgh , the Duquesne Gardens . Magee then chose Conant to manage the Gardens , a job he held from 1899 until 1903 . It was during this time , that Conant formally established the Western Pennsylvania Hockey League . Death . Conant then managed the Farmer ' s Bank Building , but that job only lasted nine months , after which he worked as a manager of a restaurant until September 1905 . Conant had hoped to move his wife and mother to either Boston or New York and began exploring business opportunities in those cities . He left for a business trip to the Northeast in March 3 , 1906 . On March 14 , Conant died under mysterious circumstances at the Navarra Hotel in New York . Controversey soon surrounded his death , since two versions of death were published the day after . While the morning newspapers said it was sudden and natural , the afternoon papers suggested Alcoholism and infidelity , were the cause of his death . He checked into hotel under the name of " J . C . Wallace " with two women ( " wife " and " friend of wife " ) . However his wife , Margaret , was in Pittsburgh when she notified of his death by a Pittsburgh doctor who was said to be traveling with Conant in New York . The doctor signed the death certificate listing cause of death as " heart attack . " A New York doctor later disputed the account of Conant ' s doctor stating , " I am not at all convinced that this man died of natural causes . " Robbery and murder were also hinted . The " Pittsburg Gazette " reported the body was moved to the Navarra and that some dispute took place in New York . His personal belongs , including $ 600 and a diamond stickpin , were missing . He was buried at Allegheny Cemetery on St . Patrick ' s Day .