Smokehouse Saloon Greybull, WY The Smokehouse Saloon is an

Smokehouse Saloon Greybull, WY The Smokehouse Saloon is an old West-style saloon that features an
1800s cherrywood back bar. It was established in 1991.
This Mahogany bar and back bar was originally in use at the Bison Bar in Sheridan, Wyoming. As this
establishment closed in 1973, the bar was moved to the Old Mill
Restaurant/Landmark Lounge in Newcastle Wyoming where it
was in use until recently. The bar is currently disassembled and
in storage in Sturgis, SD. The manufacturer is unknown. The
mirrors are stamped “Denver Glass and Mirror Co., 1936”. The
bar is unrestored but the overall condition is good. Some of the
glass liquor shelves need to be replaced, as well as one section
of the back mirror. Old neon tubing is still in place below the
shelves and could be restored for a great lighting effect. The left
section of the back bar is refrigerated and the working remote
condensing unit is part of the package. The measurements are
20’9” wide by 8’7” deep, the back bar is 18” wide. Asking price is
$ 12,900 or best offer.
Cowboy Bar - Meteetse, WY (NW of Thermopolis)
Big Jim" Blake, longtime owner of the Cowboy Bar in
Meeteetse, Wyo., lost half his weight and racked up
mammoth medical bills after a heart attack. To pay his
debts, he may have to sell his beloved bar. The ornate
wooden bar was shipped here in 1893 from the Chicago
World's Fair. In its heyday, Meeteetse, named from
combined Crow and Shoshone phrases, had seven
saloons, 11 brothels, three newspapers and three
banks — a stopover point for adventurers headed to the
Montana gold fields. (2015)
The Cowboy Bar has served them all — from the early gunslingers to the modern day most wanted. The
establishment has been continuously operated since 1893. During prohibition they simply took down the sign for
the saloon and started getting their whiskey shipments in milk barrels.
Jim Blake sits at a table in the same room
members of the Hole in the Wall gang used
to drink and collude. He's telling stories that
span nearly 120 years of desperados and
questionable lawmen bellying up to his bar.
The proprietor is also a local historian who
has published over 20 books on the area's
history. He has lots of stories to tell.
He tells the story of a young Robert Leroy
Parker who spent a lot of time in Meeteetse
back in the late 1900s.The same year the
Cowboy Saloon opened, Parker and a
friend faced a grand larceny trial in Lander.
The charges stemmed from a horse deal
gone bad. According to Blake, Parker had
purchased three horses that ended up
being stolen. The charge was for the theft of a single horse. In 1894, the jury came back with a "not guilty" verdict,
Parker headed to Meeteetse to celebrate his freedom with friends. After a lonely celebration (the friend he was
supposed to meet had been arrested for butchering someone else's beef), Parker walked out of the Cowboy Bar
and was arrested by Sheriff Charles Stough who had followed him to Meeteetse to arrest him for the same
charges as before — but for the second of the three horses. Parker was found guilty and sentenced to two years
of hard labor at the state penitentiary. When he got out, he traded in questionable horse deals for bank and train
robberies. His given name was also soon replaced by the
more well-known "Butch Cassidy."
Blake tells the story of a young mountain man by the name
of Earl Durand that found trouble at the Cowboy Bar back
in the 1930s when he had the misfortune of running into
Arthur Argento and his buddies. Argento's gang bullied the
quiet loner and eventually dragged him outside and tossed
him off the bridge into the freezing Greybull River. In 1939,
Durand was arrested for poaching an elk out of season.
After escaping from jail in Cody by knocking a jailer over
the head with a milk bottle, the 26-year old fled to the home
of his parents outside of Powell. He shot and killed two law
enforcement agents that tracked him there.He soon made his escape to the Beartooth Mountains. During the
standoff, Durand's marksmanship picked off two more of the
approximately 100 men in the posse. One of the men he killed
was, not-so coincidentally according to Blake, none other than
that bar bully Arthur Argento. Today, Blake isn't done telling stories. He'll tell you about other
Cowboy Bar customers throughout history. He has stories about
Tom Horn, Kid Curry, Baron Otto Franc, Broncho Nell and Buffalo
Bill Cody. Those ghosts of outlaws and lawmen now mingle with
modern cowboys and the Longhorn basketball fans — their history
memorialized by the trinkets, pictures and brands that adorn the
walls of Meeteetse's Cowboy Bar.
Irma Hotel - Cody Wyoming (1902)
The cherry wood bar, was presented to Buffalo Bill by
Queen Victoria as a gift
A landmark in Cody, Wyoming, the Irma Hotel was built
by famed William F. "Buffalo Bill" Cody, the city's cofounder and namesake. Naming it for his daughter, Irma
Cody, the hotel, which boasted that it was the most
modern hotel in the Rockies, opened with a party on
November 18, 1902
Buffalo Bill was under pressure from creditors and
was forced to sign over the hotel to his wife Louisa in
1913, who was at that time on bad terms with him.
After Cody's death in 1917 the hotel was foreclosed
upon and sold to Barney Link. Before the end of the
year Link's estate sold the property back to Louisa,
who kept it until she died in 1925. The new owners,
Henry and Pearl Newell, gradually expanded the
hotel, building an annex around 1930 on the west
side to accommodate automobile-borne visitors. After
her husband's death in 1940, Pearl Newell operated
the hotel until her own death in 1965
The hotel was designed by Alfred Wilderman
Woods, a Lincoln, Nebraska church architect.
Certain exterior walls are made of river rock and
locally quarried sandstone from Beck Lake just
south of town. The fireplace is an assemblage of
rock, ores, minerals, and fossils from the Big
Horn Basin. The original part of the hotel was
built for Buffalo Bill in 1902. The northwest
addition was constructed in 1929, and the
southwest addition was added in 1976-1977.
Million Dollar Cowboy Bar – Jackson WY
The Cowboy Bar traces its history back to Joe Ruby's
Cafe and Beer Garden established about 1934 by Joe
Ruby (1885-1958). The bar was established on the on
the original site of the Jackson State Bank founded by
R. E. Miller. The bank opened in 1914 and in 1926
moved from N. Cache to a building adjacent to the
Crabtree Hotel on E. Broadway. In 1936, the beer
garden was sold to Ben Goe, Sr., a local rancher and
reputed moonshiner. It was Ben Goe's good fortune
that won the bar the first liquor license in the State of Wyoming
following the repeal of prohibition. Goe renamed the establishment
the "Cowboy Bar" and fixed it up a bit. The bar was remodeled to
include the
knobbled
pine which
graces the
bar to this
day. Mr. Goe
spent
one
whole winter cleaning and scraping the pine before it was
used for construction. Since the knobbled pine was so well
liked by the customers, Ben spent another 14 months
transporting more of the wood, for chairs, pillars, walls and
ceiling
trim. At this time they also built a long fancy bar with silver
dollars inlaid in the top. In the mid-1940's, the Cowboy Bar was
sold to Preston Parkinson, who is responsible for the present
"Million Dollar Cowboy Bar" name. Mr. Parkinson expanded the
bar, again using knobbled pine to create distinctive handles,
railings and other interior and exterior decorations. In 1953, a
gas explosion from the basement caused extensive damage to
the bar. Many of the huge pine pillars crumbled, chairs were
broken, and nearly all the elaborately decorated basement was
destroyed. The owner vowed he would restore the bar to its
original condition. He also added the huge neon sign that still marks the front of the bar on the town square. In
1973 to Ron Schultz, Bud Jensen, and Cliff Poindexter bought the bar and installed the saddle bar stools and a
London-made red carpet that bore the symbol and name of
the Cowboy Bar. Buckhorn Bar – Laramie WY
The Buckhorn is downstairs. The Parlor is upstairs. The Buck,
frequented by multiple generations of Cowboys from the
University of Wyoming, is famous both in fact, fiction, and
speculation. The saloon is "tastefully" decorated with dead
animals on the walls including both frontal and in one
instance, a rear end view. Hanging from the ceiling is a
hangman's noose. The mirror over the backbar is famous for
its bullet hole. The bullet hole was placed in the mirror by one
Charlie Phillips in August 1971. Charlie had become smitten
with Nelda, one of the bartenderesses. Nelda, however,
rejected Charlie's attentions. Having had perhaps one too
many, Charlie, possibly to get attention, whipped out his revolver and
fired a shot into the ceiling. He then went out to the alley and fired off
another shot. He then went around to Ivinson Avenue and plugged a
neat shot right through the "C" in the Coors sign. Inside, the customers
were all ducking for cover. The Coors shot went through the front
window and hit the backbar mirror. The mirror had been replaced only
a few weeks before. Mirrors are expensive. Thus, it was not replaced.
Occidental
Buffalo WY
Hotel
1908
One visitor in the early
days
called
the
Occidental Saloon "a
regular gambling hell,"
where
high-stakes
poker
games
sometimes continued
for days.
In 1908, the original
rough barroom was
replaced with one of
the
most
elegant
saloons in Wyoming. An imposing back bar with stained glass accents was installed, along with an intricately
embossed tin ceiling, and impressive period
decorations everywhere. All of this has been
preserved and restored, for you to admire
today as you enjoy a soda pop... or something
stronger.
When you mosey up to the 25-foot bar, you will
be standing in the exact spot where cowboys,
sheriffs, desperados and cattle barons
gathered. You may almost hear them arguing
and making deals. In your imagination, you
might even hear shots ring out - and if you look
around you and up at the ceiling, you can still
count numerous original bullet holes!
When you step through the front door of the
Historic Occidental Hotel in Buffalo, Wyoming,
you are truly stepping back into the Old West.
In fact, everywhere you walk in this famous hotel, you will be walking where many famous people of the Old
West walked – Butch Cassidy and the Hole-in-the-Wall Gang, Calamity Jane, Buffalo Bill, Tom Horn, the young
Teddy Roosevelt... and many more. Located
near the Bozeman Trail at the foot of the
Bighorn Mountains and founded in 1880, the
Occidental Hotel quickly became one of the
most renowned hotels in Wyoming.
In 1880, the hotel boasted six rooms upstairs
in the main building, with a lobby, restaurant
and saloon on the ground floor. The
outbuildings contained a livery stable and a
kitchen. Early in its existence, the Occidental
established a reputation for hospitality and fine
food. Owen Wister, author of The Virginian,
spent many happy hours in the Occidental
lobby and saloon, and based characters in his celebrated novel on cowboys and gunslingers that he observed
there. Many historians believe that the shoot-out at the climax of the book — the first "walk down" in Western
literature — took
place in front of the
Occidental.
As time passed, the
Occidental
was
expanded and rebuilt until it became
a "grand" hotel, with
elegant decor and
fine
service.
Cowboys
and
ranchers from miles
around, and many
business travelers
and tourists, went miles out of their way to enjoy the many pleasures offered by the Occidental. Among the
famous people who visited the hotel at this stage were
President Theodore Roosevelt, President Herbert
Hoover and Ernest Hemingway. Then, during the Great
Depression of the 1930s, the splendor of the hotel began
to fade. As everybody in Wyoming tightened their belts,
money became scarce. As business dried up, the owners
of the Occidental began a long struggle to keep the doors
open. During World War II, business picked up
temporarily. But after the war, the slow decline of the
hotel continued, as motels began to take business away
from hotels. By the 1970s and 1980s, the Occidental was
barely functioning as a hotel, and many of its rooms had been
turned into apartments for retirees. In 1986, the hotel finally
closed its doors. A few small businesses continued to occupy shops on the
ground floor of the building, but very little money was available
to keep up the structure. Year after year, the building became
more and more dilapidated and unsafe. By 1997, the final
demolition of the Occidental seemed close at hand. But the
Occidental was not demolished. Instead, 1997 proved to be
the year in which the grand old hotel was re-born. In that year, Dawn
and John Wexo purchased the building and began a 10-year
restoration process that has returned the Occidental Hotel to its status
as one of the fine hotels of the West. As a result of this Award-Winning
Restoration, you can visit
an authentic Frontier
hotel today that looks as
it did almost 100 years
ago. You can stay in
elegant
suites
and
rooms... eat at the finest
restaurant in Northern
Wyoming...and enjoy one of the most beautiful saloons in all of the
West. The good old days at the Occidental Hotel are back! Miners and Stockmans Bar – Hartville WY
The back bar was crafted in Germany in 1864 and travelled the
final miles of its long journey to Hartville by wagon in 1881.
Hartville, population 62 is the oldest incorporated town in
Wyoming. While its days as a mining boom town in the late 19th
century are long gone, there is still one local business that’s
thriving. Miner’s
and Stockmen’s
Steakhouse and
Spirits
was
established in 1862, proudly holding the title as Wyoming’s oldest
bar. Longhorn Saloon Grill Sports Bar - Sundance WY
The Brunswick dates to around 1890 and was locally refinished.
Mint Bar - Sheridan WY
Founded in 1907 as the Mint Saloon, the tavern became the Mint
Cigar Company and Soda Shop in 1920. Then came Prohibition.
The original wooden bar was removed, but the owners managed to
covertly run a speakeasy in the back. The bar reopened following
Prohibition’s repeal, much to the joy of the ranchers and
townspeople of Sheridan, who could legally enjoy their "ditch," or
whiskey mixed with water, once again. an addition was built on the
back of the building to make room for slot machines, roulette wheels
and gaming tables.
The Mint was completely redecorated in the late 1940's in the rustic
style seen today. The Mint saw a heyday in the 1950s and ‘60s,
when cowboys and ranch hands would draw their wages once a
month and come into town. As co-owner Monty Buckmaster tells it,
some of them even
had
their
mail
delivered to the Mint. The bar’s interior
décor includes a hodgepodge of taxidermy pieces, some
originating from a trip to the Yukon made by previous owner L.L.
“Mac” McVean in the 1950s; a black timber wolf, a wolverine, and
two caribou all gaze down watchfully from their mounts. Hot Springs County Historical Museum Thermopolis WY
In the museum, you discover the most famous, or infamous,
piece in the collection – the historic cherry wood bar from the
old Hole-in-the-Wall Saloon. Butch Cassidy and his gang
frequented the Hole-in-the-Wall Saloon and sat at this very
bar during their train robbing heyday!
This world famous bar was owned by Tom Skinner.
Mr. Skinner worked for a time at the Embar Ranch
on Owl Creek in Wyoming. After watching the
sheepherders and cowboys spend their money on
whiskey, Mr. Skinner decided he could make more
money as a bartender than a cowboy. He settled in
Old Town Thermopolis, where he opened a saloon
in a tent and kept his bed roll under the bar.When the new
town of Thermopolis, Wyoming was founded in its present
site in 1897, Mr. Skinner built an 18’ x 32’ cabin close to
the corner of 5th and Arapahoe. Mr. Skinner had become
a popular figure in town and his saloon was usually
bustling. A sign on the front of the building read “free drinks
served at all hours” but, anyone inquiring about it soon
learned that the free drinks came from a well by the front
door. Mr. Skinner’s business was so profitable that he had
a new two story building constructed that covered 1½ lots.
Beside his saloon the building housed a café, barbershop
and a hotel. Mr. Skinner named his establishment the
Hole-In-The-Wall Saloon after the hideout which was
located east of town and used by the “Wild Bunch Outlaws”
who were among his patrons and friends.The bar was
handcrafted in Ireland and shipped to Thermopolis by steamship, train, and finally mule drawn wagon. The
notorious bar was purchased by the Pioneer Association and now rests in our museum.
The Sundance Owl Bar was moved to
Sundance (Provo Utah) from Thermopolis,
Wyoming. The restored 1890's bar is the
original Rosewood Bar once frequented by
Butch Cassidy's Hole-in-the-Wall Gang.
For More pictures see Utah section
Wolf Hotel - Saratoga WY
At the corner of state Highway 130 and Bridge
Street in Saratoga, Wyo. stands a worldfamous landmark long frequented by locals.
The Hotel Wolf, a two-and-one-half story red
brick building with gabled roof, was built in
1893 by German-born Frederick Wolf on the
west side of the North Platte River. The
purpose of the Hotel Wolf was to serve as a
stage stop, although from the beginning the
accommodations were considered quite
elegant. Built with local bricks, the Victorianstyle Hotel Wolf opened to the public on Jan.
10, 1894. Passengers on the stages running south from Walcott Junction on the Union Pacific Railroad, or north
from Encampment, Wyo., could rest and enjoy lunch in Saratoga after the morning’s ride. In 1900, the Wolfs’
son, Frederick M. Wolf, repainted and replaced
wallpaper on the bottom floor. The Wolfs remodeled
the hotel in 1902, the same year that electricity
became available in Saratoga. A new south wing was
built, and sleeping rooms were added. Frederick G.
Wolf died in 1910. The following year, Christina Wolf
leased the hotel to George “Baldy” Sisson, who
purchased it in 1913 and renamed the structure the
Hotel Sisson. In 1937, J. Earle Moore purchased the
hotel. He died 10 years later, and his widow, Mary
Moore, operated the business, known again as the
Hotel Wolf, for another 30 years. The Campbells
purchased the hotel with Michael Self in 1977; that
partnership ended in 1983 and the Campbells remain
sole owners. In the early 1970s, the hotel was named to the National Register of Historic Places. The Campbells
re-bricked the west exterior wall, refinished the Georgia pine in the saloon and installed posts similar to those
used in 1893 on the porch. Campbell decided to add a restaurant in 1978, and he moved the bar back to the
original barroom and turned the vacated space into a dining room.
Saratoga, the place “where the trout leap in Main Street,” - the actions of an impatient early day Encampment,
Wyo., freighter, “Gee-String” Jack Fulkerson, tired of waiting for someone to help him unload supplies at a
Saratoga saloon, probably contributed to the slogan. Fulkerson
tossed lighted sticks of
dynamite off the bridge
and into the North Platte
River. This blasted water
all over and also fish all
over Main Street.
Mountain man Jim Baker
and other trappers were
the first whites to come to
the area in 1838. The
construction of the Union Pacific Railroad along an east-west route about
20 miles north of present-day Saratoga and the establishment of Fort
Steele on the UP line brought more whites and settlers to the region. William Cadwell, a former hunter for the
Overland Stage Company, built a cottonwood log
structure and a bathhouse near the springs to
accommodate soldiers from Fort Steele and others
who came to enjoy the mineral waters. A post office,
named Warm Springs, was established there Oct. 4,
1878. In 1883 Wilbur Hugus managed the Hugus and
Chatterton store at Warm Springs. The next year, at
Chatterton’s suggestion, the town was renamed
Saratoga. By the summer of 1889, there were two
general stores in Saratoga as well as a stable and
livery, a blacksmith shop, two hotels and two saloons.
The town thrived in the 1890s. Businesses included a
photography studio, jewelry store, cigar factory, a dairy, two hotels and two saloons.
In 1884, construction was completed on the Saratoga Springs Hotel, which had a large dining room that seated
60 people as well as a barbershop, drug store, billiard room and ladies’ reception room. A fire destroyed the
building in 1902. ,
Scribner's famous six white horse team on the
Encampment-to-Walcott stage, in front of the Hotel
Wolf, Saratoga, around 1900.
Charlie's Rustic Bar - Saratoga, Wyoming
Historic bar that has served Saratoga since 1915. Sporting a hardwood
dance floor with live music band stage and lots of wildlife mounts to look
at. Recently for sale.
World Famous Wonderbar – Casper WY
Two frame buildings were joined in 1918 to make Middleton's Pool
Hall. Except during Prohibition, liquor sales and billiards have
been the main business at this site. In 1941, the building's bestknown occupant, the Wonder Bar, began business here. Casper's
original Wonder Bar, on South center, for 50 years stirs up a host
of memories from the Saloon Row on the south side of the 200
block on South Center, going back to the end of the Prohibition era
in 1934.The only tavern on the street in 1933 was the Mint Bar at
256 S. Center, the present location of the Wonder Bar.
Al Swanson, the proprietor in 1942, allowed cowboys to ride up to the bar and buy beer for both rider and mount.
Then both would ride out the back door to the alley … hopefully leaving no calling cards. One of these riders
was Joe Lowndes, once a member of the “Wild Bunch.”
In the '40s and '50s, the New Wonder Bar was the life of the town.
And it has outlasted four other taverns on South Center. The
Wonder Bar has
always
been
noted
for
attracting crowds
and celebrities.
Ernest
Hemingway,
Dizzy Dean, Ty Cobb, Rex Allen, and Ken Curtis. In 1954,
baseball star Dizzy Dean stopped in while on a Wyoming hunting
trip. Children gathered at the bar entrance, eager to catch a
glimpse of their hero. Upon hearing about these young fans,
Dean gave a waitress $20 and asked her to go and purchase as many baseballs as possible. In 1954, baseballs
could be bought for only a few cents each. He autographed the balls, and handed them out to the adoring crowd.
Jordans – Gillette WY
JORDANS bar came out of the original “Log Cabin
Saloon” in the historic district of Baker City,
Oregon. Baker City is located about 125 miles
northwest of Boise, Idaho along the old Oregon
Trail between the Elkhorn and the Wallowa
Mountains. It was known for its gold mining and
lumber industries. History says that the town was
part of our rugged frontier heritage and was known
for its all-night saloons. It was crowded with
gamblers, miners, ranchers, and cowboys. Mike
Hoff (shown in white) was the original owner of the
Log Cabin Saloon. The saloon was also known as
“The Silver Dollar Log Cabin Saloon” and
continued until
2010.
A client whom I
had done work
for several years
ago contacted
me
for
this
challenging
project. He had
acquired
an
1896 Brunswick
bar from the Log
Cabin Saloon in
Baker
City,
Oregon, one of the original
settlements along the
Oregon
Trail.
In
a
photograph showing the
bar in the Log Cabin
Saloon, the bar top was also inlayed with silver dollars but at some point
in the history of the bar, those pieces were lost. By the time the bar
came to me, a lot of the bar had been cut apart. Much of the original
front bar was simply not in existence any more, and what was there was
in poor condition, with much of the wood rotting away. My challenge
was to deconstruct the bar and
rebuild it, restoring it to its
original glory and adding to
it in order to extend the
length
and
make
it
functional in a modern
restaurant setting. Great
care was taken to make
sure that everything that
was added fit the historical
style. (Pin and Scroll
Antique Designs - Colorado) Sheridan Inn – Sheridan WY
The Sheridan Inn is a historic hotel in Sheridan, Wyoming.
Designed by the architect Thomas R. Kimball of Omaha,
Nebraska in 1893, it was constructed by the Chicago,
Burlington, and Quincy Railroad as part of its development
program in Wyoming associated with extension of the railway.
Equipped with the first bathtubs and electric lights in that part of
Wyoming, the inn was considered the "finest hotel" between
Chicago and San Francisco. It was declared a National Historic
Landmark in 1964.
Designed in the style of hotels which Kimball had seen in
Scotland, the three-story, wood-frame inn is 145 feet long under
a gambrel roof, with broad porches 30 feet wide on two sides.
George and Lucy Canfield were the Inn’s first managers,
catering to people who stayed at the Inn when their
homes were being built, and the area ranchers who
would spend their weekends at the Inn. In 1894 Buffalo
Bill purchased the business, but not the building, and
kept it until 1901, retaining the Canfield’s as managers.
Across from the Inn, Bill Cody operated the W.F. Cody
Transportation Company, the stage that ran from the Inn
to Deadwood, South Dakota.
The historic Sheridan Inn remains home to a ghostly
spirit by the name of Miss Kate Arnold. In 1901,
Catherine B. Arnold, familiarly known as "Miss Kate,”
came to Sheridan from Virginia with her parents. At the age of 22 she started working and living at the Sheridan
Inn and continued work there for the next 64 years as seamstress, desk clerk, housekeeper, hostess and
babysitter. She stayed at the hotel until 1965 when it was closed
and sold to a developer, who planned to tear it down and use
the land for other purposes. However, the Sheridan Historical
Society started a "Save the Inn” campaign that lasted for the
next two years. After condemnation in 1967, the inn was
purchased by Neltje Doubleday Kings, who undertook
renovations and in 1968, "re-opened the Inn’s saloon, which
was followed a year later by the re-opening of the dining room,
the Ladies Parlor and the Wyoming Room, an all-new addition
to the Inn. In 1968, Miss Kate passed away and her last request
was to return to the Sheridan Inn. Her remains were cremated
and her ashes buried in the wall of the room that she occupied
on the third floor for so many years. Today, legend has it that Miss Kate continues to act as guardian over the
Inn.
In 1990, the Sheridan Heritage Center purchased the Inn from bankruptcy court and reopened it to the public in
1991. It closed in 2012 due to bills incurred while trying to renovate the inn. As of October 2013, the inn was
purchased by Bob and Dana Townsend and Custom Services out of Tulsa Oklahoma. The first floor ballrooms
have been reopened and a new restaurant named Open Range Bar & Grill opened in January 2015.
B&W bar photo about 1933
Plains Hotel -Cheyenne, WY
History of the 1911 opening: The Plains
Hotel lobby is in the center of the grand floor
and receives its day light through a mission
art panel skylight. Brilliantly lighted at night
by numerous lights shedding soft rays of
light from heavy brass fixtures. The floor is
tile and mahogany and genuine leather furniture graces the room. The stairway leading from the lobby is of
marble and steel. A roomy alcove on Central Avenue side is the Cigar
Stand, managed by Clara Frey. The bar of the lobby is regal in its
gleaming plate glass and mahogany. Across from the bar is the famous
Indian Grill Room and Cocktail
lounge - a mecca for the
unconventional.
There's
a
Mezzanine Floor where the Plains
Orchestra holds forth and comfy
lounges and seats where guests
may rest and enjoy themselves.
Off the Mezzanine Floor is the Tea
Room with its lovely drapes and
dainty tables, awaiting mi-lady.
Also off the Mezzanine is a huge
Ladies Rest Room.
The Plains opened in 1911 as
Cheyenne, Wyoming’s premier full
service hotel. Distinctive features such as the Range Room Banquet
Facility, Wigwam Lounge and two-story lobby mezzanine with stained
glass skylight, and finely appointed guest rooms, made The Plains
Hotel unequaled in the Intermountain West. The front desk was solid marble guarded by an
expensive bronze figure, stated to be an art
masterpiece. The dining room was equipped
with windows of art glass, a mahogany buffet
and tables and chairs for 85 guests. Appearing on scene in the mid-1930’s was a
furniture maker in Cody, Wyoming, names Thomas Molesworth. He used polished
native woods with American rugs, and motifs were also used to create handsome chairs
and couches. He designed bars incised with tomahawks and chandeliers of wrought
iron with silhouettes suggesting Indian villages. The lampshades were stretched hide
colored with Indian designs. In 1933, Mrs. Hynds redecorated the old hotel using a full complement of
Molesworths finest creations. Today, pieces of Molesworth craftsmanship are highly sought after by collectors
and that style set the theme for the 2002 renovation. Since
the ‘face lift’ in 2002, The Plains Hotel has been brought back
to its former glory. And along with that, the traditions of fine
Western Hospitality still exist today. The elegance of the Old
West awaits you at The Historic and Colorful Plains Hotel!
A landmark historic hotel in Cheyenne that is more than a
century old will be heading to auction later this month - The
Historic Plains Hotel in downtown Cheyenne will sell at
auction on Dec. 14 2015
The Bozeman Trail Inn - Big Horn Big Horn WY
Although the nearby Bozeman Trail dates back to the mid 1860’s,
the town wasn’t founded until 1881. A year later, in 1882, The
Bozeman Trail Inn officially opened for business and is still going
strong. Positioned dead center on the Bozeman Trail, the Bozeman
Trail Inn is listed on the National Historic Registry
The back bar, the focal point of the establishment, was bought from
an Elk's Club in Omaha, Neb., shipped to Miles City, Mont., and
picked up by three teams of freight wagons and brought to Big Horn. The railroad did not make it to this part of
Wyoming until 1893. In the late 1890s, it became an Italian restaurant. In 1939, interior plumbing was installed
when workers made do with that was available. Local ranchers
used old car exhaust pipes for the sewer pipes.
2006 Local and state fire officials are investigating a fire that
damaged the Bozeman Trail Inn, a 124-year-old tavern in Big
Horn that is thought to be among the oldest operating bars in
the state. The fire appeared to have started outside the back of
the bar. The building had to be gutted. During reconstruction,
however, the original doors, windows and hay doors were
discovered. The floor timbers were hand-hewn with hand-held
axes, held together with hand-made square nails. Initially built
to be a stable, the original owner, John Custis, later turned the
Bozeman into a billiards parlor and beer hall. It was called
theLast Chance saloon (there is one in town currently). The
Bozeman was built by local contractor J. W. Austan in 1882,
an immigrant who brought his saw mill with him as he traveled
to Wyoming. Austan built coffins on the side along with the
Sheridan Commercial building in Sheridan. It was also during
reconstruction that poor building design was discovered. The
structure was built on the ground, on skids; the Bozeman had
no foundation. The interior was finished to replicate the
original building, with stucco walls and a reproduction tin
ceiling. Completely rebuilt, the Bozeman now boasts a dining
room with fine dining and a restored bar, complete with
fireplace and pool table.
The new name is Big Horn Smokehouse
The historic Bozeman Trail of the mid-1860s passed through Big Horn. Scouted by John Bozeman through
eastern Wyoming to the rich gold fields of Montana, the trail was the scene of many battles between those
attempting to secure and use the trail and the Indians who relied upon the rich hunting grounds in the area.
Those skirmishes earned the trail the nickname “The Bloody Bozeman”. The U.S. Cavalry forbade parties of
fewer than 100 wagons to take the trail through Big Horn.
College Inn Bar – Douglas WY
The College Inn Bar is the oldest established business in Douglas,
Wyoming and Converse
County to survive in its
original
location.
Established in 1906 by
Theodore (Lee) Pringle,
succeeding an 1887 bar
known
as
"Lee
Pringle's." The 1906
structure is a two-story
masonry
building,
occupying the site of the
frame Pringle's bar,
which was moved two
blocks away and which
still survives. The bar,
made by the BrunswickBalke
Calendar
Company of Chicago,
features
elaborate
woodwork,
with
a
mirrored marble and
wood back bar. The mirrors
were painted with western
scenes in 1953. The barroom
features taxidermy mounts and
an arched vision screen with
stained glass inserts, crowned
by two stuffed golden eagles. Beyond the barroom is a lounge that used
to feature ten curtained private booths, removed during Prohibition. The
lounge retains call buttons and painted murals.
B&W photos 1979
The College Inn Bar was placed on the National
Register of Historic Places on July 10, 1979.
McDermott Bar – Douglas WY
built around 1906
Pioneer Museum - Douglas, WY
It has an original bar from a local saloon in it.