Originally opened in 1928 as Fountain Square Recreation, a bowling alley and billiard hall on the fourth floor of the Fountain Square Theatre Building, the business closed and was gutted in 1957, remaining vacant until 1993. Restored as an original 1930’s era duckpin bowling alley, Action Duckpin Bowl has eight lanes of duckpin bowling, a vintage billiard table and seating for 110 guests in the cafe area. Atomic Bowl Duckpin is housed in the basement level of the building and is furnished with authentic 1950’s and 60’s equipment. It has cafe seating for up to 98 guests. Please refer to Pricing & Reservations for more information. We offer a Menu featuring Appetizers, Salads, BBQ Sandwiches, Burgers and Pizza in both alleys. Both Alleys also have the option for a Catered Menu to be ordered for private parties or group outings. Catered food options must be ordered in advance and are served buffet style. We do not allow any outside food or beverages to be carried in for consumption.
For those unfamiliar with duckpin bowling, the game was born in Baltimore, Maryland in 1900 and it was one of Babe Ruth’s favorite games! Ten-pin bowling used to strictly be a winter sport and most alleys closed during the summer except for a few that remained open to play odd bowling games using the smaller balls. Summer bowlers suggested that it might be interesting to trim the standard pins down to match the size of the small ball. Because it was much harder to get strikes and spares, the rules were changed to allow three bowls on each turn but only counted as a score of ten if all ten pins were knocked down with the third ball. Duckpins became so popular that during the 1920’s duckpin bowling spread along the east coast, from New England to Georgia. Today duckpin houses are still found only in the eastern states with the exception of our two locations here in Fountain Square, the only authentic Duckpin Bowling in the Midwest! Action Duckpin Bowl and Atomic Bowl Duckpin can be booked for private party rentals or lanes only reserved for smaller groups. Walk ins are welcome if there is space available, but we always recommend a reservation.
