Hishtory

When I bought an old bar in Jefferson City 16 years ago, the rumor had been propagated for many years, by previous owners and others, that it was the oldest bar west of the Mississippi River. At the time, I was working for the State Historic Preservation Office, and I knew that the bar wasn’t even considered to be the oldest in our state. Folks who live here will come to the bar, usually with friends from out of town, and they’ll say, “Tell them, tell them- isn’t this the oldest bar west of the Mississippi?” It takes a little diplomacy to tell them that it isn’t true without embarrassing them in front of their friends. I usually say something like, “Well, we used to think that it was, but some research has shown that it isn’t,” or “yeah, it’s easy to make that mistake, but it’s just the oldest bar here in town.” They always look disappointed. Sometimes even miffed, I guess because I shattered their cherished beliefs, something they had boasted to others; “Our pub is the oldest bar west of the Missi