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The Home Show began in 1948 as the "Home Builders Exposition," the Rhode Island
Builders Association's (RIBA's) prime contribution to National Home Week, and has become the association's premier public event.
That first show, chaired by RIBA charter member Albert J. Lamarre of Pawtucket, had 52 exhibitors and created an immediate sensation. In 1949, it
became "The Home Builders Show" and, until 1952, the show took place at the Rhode Island Auditorium in Providence.
The only interruption came in 1954, courtesy of Hurricane Carol, when the show had to be cancelled, but RIBA caught up again in 1955 with "The
Home Festival" that spring.
Over the last half century, RIBA's annual show has gone through 16 names, has been managed by eight different production companies and has taken
place in seven different locations, reflecting the ever-wider scope of home ownership.
In 1994, the Home Show moved into the brand new Rhode Island Convention Center in Providence. Since that year, the show has basked in
100,000 square feet of exhibit space and is enjoyed by thousands of visitors each day, a far cry from that humble start in 1948!
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