Inwood: The Bar Scene of Not So Long Ago

274
136469

There was a time not so long ago when Inwood had a thriving bar scene.  Up, down and between Dyckman Street and 207th, there were some 100, mainly Irish, bars. While a few bars, The Piper’s Kilt, The Liffy, Irish Eyes, as well as a few others still remain, most disappeared as the demographics of the neighborhood changed in the 1960’s and 70’s.

Hedgehog Inn, Academy and Broadway

In his tome to the neighborhood, “The Inwood Book,” John F. McMullen paid tribute to the taverns and pubs of  his generation in a poem entitled, “The Bars.”

Nugents Bar, 1979
Nugents Bar, 1979

What follows is McMullen’s poem accompanied by a series of photographs and advertisements of the Inwood nightlife of McMullen’s generation.  I hope this post sparks more memories and generates more photographs from an Inwood bar scene of not so long ago.

The Bars
Reprinted with the permission of John F. McMullen-aka “JohnMac The Bard.”

I grew up in an Irish/Jewish neighborhood.
The Jewish lads went to school and studied;
the Irish went to the bars.

To be sure, many of us also went to school
and played sports and went out with girls
(no sex, though).
But we went to the bars
underage
after games
after dates
after softball games
before and after dances
to watch the Sunday football game
and for every other damn reason.

The Broadstone
the Willow Tree, Erin’s Isle
Chambers’, McSherry’s, the Inwood Lounge
Doc Fiddler’s, Cassidy’s, Jimmy Ryan’s, Keenan’s Corner
Dolan’s, The Pig n’ Whistle, Freehill’s, Terminal, Old
Shilling
Markey’s, McGolderick’s, Carmor, Rooney’s, Grippo’s,
Minogue’s.
Well, you get the idea.

We knew the bartenders by name.
George Lynch, Pat Gallagher, “Sunshine,” Georgie Costello,
Chris, Fred, Tommy, Mara, Dan, John, Joe, Kathy-in-Erin’s
and they all bought back. “The next one’s on me, Mac”
(and you never leave after a buyback).

We hung out there
we talked
we laughed
we sang
we sometimes fought
…and we drank.

But we didn’t just drink in the bars
we drank in the park
we drank at parties
we drank at football games
we drank at dances (from a hidden flask).

Many slowed down as they grew up
many stopped altogether
and some were stopped only by the grave.

“The drink” was a macho factor.
If you told a fellow he had diabetes,
he’d stop taking sugar.
If you told some of my friends that they shouldn’t drink, they’d say
“What do you mean? I can hold my liquor.”

They planned to drink until they died
and they did.

I still think we had more fun
than the Jewish guys
(unless they were getting laid).

Burnside Pub 1978- 4742 Broadway Near Dyckman- Heights-Inwood Newspaper
Burnside Pub

Burnside Pub, Broadway Between Dyckman and Thayer
Garry Owens, Corner of Dyckman and Vermilyea
HedgeHog Inn
Melody Lounge 1974- Heights Inwood Newspaper
Wigwam Inn, 75 Sherman Avenue, 1960
Archie’s Pub ad, Heights-Inwood, July 7, 1976
Donemay Pub ad, Heights-Inwood, March 28, 1979
Long Valley Pub, 215th and Broadway, Inwood, NYC.
Donemay New Years-1979, Heights-Inwood newspaper
Fort Tryon Seafood, Heights-Inwood, July 7, 1976
Salt and Pepper, Heights-Inwood, March 28, 1979
The Last Stop, The Washington Heights Citizen & The Inwood News, March, 1990
The Last Stop, The Washington Heights Citizen & The Inwood News, May 1990
The Last Stop, The Washington Heights Citizen & The Inwood News, May, 1990
The Last Stop, The Washington Heights Citizen & The Inwood News, Sept., 1990
The Melody Lounge, Heights-Inwood, April 29, 1981
The Melody Lounge, Heights-Inwood, July 7, 1976
Melody Lounge 1974- Heights Inwood Newspaper
Keenan’s, 1979
Hitching Post 1975 Heights-Inwood Newspaper
Garry Owen, 1979
Emerald Tavern, 1979
Donemay Pub Broadway and 213th 1980 – Heights Inwood News

Again, thank you to John F. McMullen for sharing his poem. “The Inwood Book” can be purchased on Amazon. Also a special thanks to Claire Anne Gray of the Piper’s Kilt for providing the wonderful vintage photographs.

I encourage all readers to share their own memories of Inwood’s bar scene of old by using the comment box below. If you have any photos you would like to share please let me know. I will be happy to add them to this post.

Lost Inwood Amazon link

274 COMMENTS

  1. I’m particularly glad to see the photos of the Hedgehog, though I do remember the Hitching Post, Last Stop, Garyowens, Donemay, Keenan’s (some only from the outside), too. Do you know the date of the photo with the “For Rent” sign in the window? The Hedgehog had free corned beef & cabbage every St. Patrick’s Day and the beers were a dime (this may have been the regular price, I rarely found myself there when it wasn’t St. Pat’s). The place was also jumping when the Islanders were winning their Stanley Cups in the beginning of the 80s. Hockey seemed to be the Irish sport of choice. Back in the 70s, you’d see lots of kids carrying sticks and wearing roller skates (later, blades). I see that there still is a paved hockey rink in Inwood Park by the Hudson, but it seems to be more used by Central and South Americans for volleyball at this point.

    “Sic transit gloria mundi”

    • I remember the Hedgehog in its final days. It was a real dive, surpassed only by the Lakes of Killarney. The dregs of Inwood hung out there, all dead now of OD’S. The mutt they harbored jumped my dog one day and I bounced a trash can off its back. The owner was a real scumbag. I came back later that night and shot out the neon lights on the sign with a pellet gun.

      • Sooooo….when would you say it closed? What years were you/your family in Inwood? My late godfather, a german guy, lived down on Arden Street..”bounced around”…his LOCAL was on Broadway and Arden…recall it being called The Whale or similar. Recently closed…its’ successor called The Irish Brigade Pub.

  2. Where is Knudsons or the Park View,Johnny Loftus on Arden or The Lakes on Nagle?Walter Winchel,once wrote of Inwood, “it is the valley of Bars and Liquor stores”. I know the next question’ Who is Walter Winchell”? Oh to be young again in Inwood

    • I remember on the NW corner of Arden St and Sherman Ave, there was an Irish Bar, by name, Bob Byrnes, right next to Woodnick’s Furniture store and a Chinese Hand Laundry.. On weekends, some of the locals from the bar would play stickball ( with the rubber Spauldine) along Sherman Ave, right by the bar.

      Hey, as a Jewish kid growing up in the neighborhood, i can attest that the aforementioned poem is accurate. We had better times ’cause we were getting laid. LoL.

      • I walked in that bar, and the knuckleheads there broke through the wall to the furniture store and had the furniture in the bar. The bartender was asleep on the bar. Nuff said.

  3. My friend Dave in Boston has the Hedgehog Inn sign at his home (and old firehouse) in Boston. He has one of the countries largest collections of vintage neon signs (like the original Times Square Howard Johnson’s Simple Simon and the Pie Man) and one day in the late 1980s I convinced him to get the sign (yes he paid for it) and we dismantled it and it lives, restored, at his place.
    A few bars that frequently get left off a list of long lost Inwood bars are Lakes of Killarney and Barones. I played on the LofK Little League team in Inwood and Barones is the only team I remember playing against.

    • Matt O, my grandmother lived above the Hedgehog for many years. Does your friend Dave in Boston have a website or email address? Would like to get in touch with him. Thanks.

    • …became The Irish Brigade Pub…at least by early 90s. Closed in past @3-4 years. My late godfather, a little german guy, named Barney Bott, lived at 32 Arden Street….for decades. He and my father, Eddie, both wire lathers, took me on several pub crawls when I was 3, 4 years old usually after me/my father had done some needed shopping at BOND’s…Modell’s…with a stop at The Park Side on University/Fordham and/or at The Hub or Clarke’s Bar on Fordham/off Webster-Decatur Avenue.

  4. I believe The Whale is now the Irish Brigade bar. With Patrick’s Bar closed it leaves Piper’s Kilt (our own family room as the 7th year old calls it), Liffey II, Irish Eyes and the Brigade as the only Irish bars left in a neighborhood that had 5 dozen in the not too distant past.

    • The Brigade closed on Sunday January 3rd, 2016. Irish Eyes closed on Jun 29, 2015. Leaving P&Ks and Liffey II with a newcomer Tryon Public House as the Irish bars in the hood,

  5. Hey Cole – – While the Whale is no longer there, the space is still a bar — it’s the Irish Brigade now. That name change took place in about 86 or 87, I’d say. Before it was the Whale it was the Park Gate.

  6. Ah, Grippo’s Torch Cafe. 207th near Bway. I was 16, you sat in booth, beer was .15. Great memories. I was in Inwood from mid 50’s until mid 60’s. Every New Year’s McSherry’s would have a fire. We would drink in Inwood Hill Park, near handball courts. It was cold, but who knew? Also, there was a bar owned by Carmel Quinn, who was on the Arthur
    Godfrey Show. It was on 207th, on a triangle, near Post Avenue. I go back a long way. Also, the Campus Inn on 207th and 10th, it had windows that opened to the street, great place after swimming at the Miramar Pool. Thank you again for the memories, must get the book.

    • Mc sherry bar you’re right burned down this one new years it was hit by Jewish lightning…myself and John Muldoon climbed out of a second story window onto the roof of the A&P on 207th st and made our way acrossed to a gaping hole in Mc Sherry roof we got down in there and got about 10 bottles of Teachers Scotch out there that the firemen must have missed, got drunk on some of it the next day went to a Good Shepherd dance in the gym and I upheaved the scotch on the gym floor much to the delight of Brother Daniel

        • I grew up on 207th near Cooper. From 46 to 70. Knew John Muldoon well. Lost contact through the years. Does anyone know where he Is, or if he has passed? Please!

          • Hi Michelle, Patrick Power aka as Chris Powers we talked before as I said your father and i hung out together we had some wild times indeed!.. I had mentioned to you I’m a retired Ironworker local 11 Newark NJ and you said your husband was also an Ironworke out of local 580?.. I’ll date this text 2-12-24 the last time I saw your dad it was circa 1962 I had joined the Army and got discharged March 1965 happy new year..ps Ive been backed to Inwood many times I live Florida..

      • Is John Muldoon still around? He was one of my best friends growing up in Inwood. Lost contact over the decades. Does anyone know where he is?

    • Carmel Quinn was a silent partner in the Tally-Ho, I believe, and I think the Hitching Post was owned by Ruthie Morrissey at one time.

  7. How about Green Acres? Broadway and 211th st I believe. I remember drinking cokes and having chips at the bar while my dad had his beer!

    • Cable TV came to Inwood in the late 1960s but was not available in the Bronx until much later.When the Rangers would play the Bruins and the Knicks would play the Celtics in the plaoyffs at MSG games were often only on cable. Lots of guys from the Bronx wound come to Inwood to watch the games on cable. Green Acres would get so crowded that tap beer was not served. took too long to pour-just beer in bottles.

  8. How about Sam’s Tavern on Sherman between Academy and 204th st. And the Inwood Lounge accross the street from Sams. And Chambers on Sherman and 207th street. And Barry’s on Academy between Sherman and Post Ave. And Barrones on Nagel and Dykman. They had great food in there. During the 50s and early 60s Inwood had more bars than any other neighborhood in NYC. Do you remember the Rheingold Girls? Schaffer beer? Knickerbocker beer? Peals beer? And we also had the 52 lane bowling ally on Broadway and Nagel. Great place to drink. Drank in there when I was 16 and the day I got my draft card Don’t you know I was asked for proof. Needless to say the bartender who had been serving me for years was pissed. LOL. We also used to drink in the Hi Ho chinese restaurant on Dykman Street.

      • I was at that bar when Ed Hand was shot outside. His last words were “hey, if your going to take my girl, you might as well shoot me”. Then the guy shot him in the head and took the girl down Sherman Ave.

    • Remember Hi Ho Chinese restaurant on Dyckman. Went to P.S. 52 on Academy St.
      Anyone remember the “Tropedera”?
      Catering on Dyckman St right next to HiHo.

      • Yes my family went out to eat a couple of times a year to the Hi Ho. Going out for dinner was always considered a special splurge. Luckily my Mom was a great cook so we never felt deprived.

  9. The father of the American poet and Inwood native, Jim Carroll, ran a bar in Inwood in the 60’s/70’s– can anyone tell me what the name of it was and where it was located?

      • While researching my heritage for the yrs Ive realized my Dad was Sam Chambers…my mom only gave me bits and pieces…he passed in the mid 90s I heard it was a cool place…wish i knew more…Im 48 now but found out through the old timers more than anything else from Dorney maleness…wierd feelings bee well.my best friends father worked for him and jack they have good stories 🙂

          • ….you may have known the late Dan Healy…lifelong Bronxite…who went to Iona…knew Frank Frisch…”the Fordham Flash and both McGuire brothers/basketball…Frank and Al. Dan lived and worked in the Punchbpwl//238th-Broadway going back to the 1980s….passed way @5 years ago in the Jewish Home/Kingsbridge Road-Bronx. Dan knew all of the Bronx and Manhattan bar trivia…worked for years as an insurance investigator and process server out of the Bronx courthouse.

  10. Rob, Green Acres closed in the mid-90s. The site is now first class cab service.

    In a related note, “Dick’s” hardware store closed recently on Broadway near 207th st (across street from Pipers Kilt) and after the signage was taken down, there was an imprint of the name “Mahoney’s” left behind. I wonder if that was the site of a bar a long time ago?

  11. Tom, Mahoney’s was a Irish Deli back in the good days spent countless hours hanging outside or inside that store

  12. I’ve hears about all the bars in Inwood,Grippos owned by Lorraine Grippo,but two of my favorites were: The “Triangle bar”at post ave and 10 and the very famous Fays on broadway next to Connors funeral home,right accross fron MCSherrys,ans how abou Fords next to the subway entrance(big cops hangout )because of Broadway beus stopped there and 8the ave sobway stopped there and bronx crosstown stopper there

  13. I visited Nugent’s bar in the summer of 1977. I had bragged to my boyfriend, soon to be husband, Drew Nugent, about how beautiful Inwood was. So one summer afternoon, Drew and I and a friend, took the subway up to Dykeman St. and hiked through the park. I showed them that view of the Hudson, that we all love so much, and we exited near 207th St. Thirsty and in need of a beer, we eyed “Nugent’s bar” and thought it would be a hoot to go in there. We proudly introduced ourselves to the bartender, announcing that Drew’s name was Drew Nugent. The bartender was singularly unimpressed. Later I realized that it was Drew and our friend’s long hair that put him off.
    A few weeks ago, a friend from church who grew up in Inwood told me that the owner of Nugent’s was Shaemus Nugent. The friend thinks Shaemus was from Tipperary or Galway. He was definitely not from County Cork, where Drew and “my Nugent’s” ancestors were from. I’m sure Sheamus would have been relieved to know he was ‘no kin” to those “long-haired Nugents”. The “county thing” in Ireland is huge…as I’m sure most of the readers know.
    My friend from church grew up in Inwood. He tells me that when he was a boy scount, in about 1970, he earned a merit badge by counting all the bars in Inwood. He counted them from 196th St. to 218th St., river to river. There were 103. Only in Inwood could a boy scout earn a merit badge counting the bars.

    • that’s funny. I’d say the count in the old Baindbridge section of the Bronx–Webster to 204th to Gun Hill was much the same….Kingsbridge in the Bronx…from 225th to 238th to 242nd Street as well. By the mid/late 1980s, seems that the immigrant guys…many of them anyways, perhaps more Dubliners, than the country counties had the longest hair on an American hippy. By then, I’d say almost everyone was used to it, except perhaps the older trade union guys…who’s argue that long hair was o good for safety on the job.

      • I remember getting trashed in Dirty Nellies in the 70s and some off-the-boaters were trying to get me to run some guns for them. I declined.

    • Across from Nugent’s was O’Donnell’s. I got a kick out of the fact the my Uncle tended bar in Nugent’s and his mother in law was a Nugent and his Mother was an O’Donnell. My Dad worked in O’Donnell’s and his mother in law was an O’Donnell and his mother a Nugent. No relation to the bar owners. If you’re confused my mother’s brother married my father’s sister.

  14. Thanks for the memories, lads and lassies. I was a Good Shepherd kid and my dad drank in every bar in Inwood, after tending his own saloon all day–the Blue Bar of the Algonquin Hotel. As kids, no trip to Inwood Park or Ft Tryon was complete without stopping at McSherry’s, the Park Gate or Keenan’s for a bracer. Does anyone remember Jimmy Goode’s, on Broadway and 204th? My brother and I would sip Cokes and munch Bon Ton potato chips or a fistful of broken cashews from the vending machine. Of course I remember Mahoney’s grocery store. Fay’s was before my time but my parents spoke highly of the place… my dad ate a lot of his meals there as a bachelor. Good times!

    • I grew up in the building above Keenan’s Piano Bar on 204th and b’way and spent many a time in there with my dad Harry Tate back in the 80’s. He also spent time in many of the other Irish establishments mentioned in the comments and played ball for Sam’s. Inwood was a great place to grow up and I have so many great memories. This was a great trip down memory lane.

      • terrific. I grew up in KIngsbridge-238th-Bailey Avenue…my late step-father, who stopped drinking in the late 1960s after his divorce, grew up on Kingsbridge Terrace next to the Keenan Family…Bill, Jim, and Tommy. The piano lounge…@204th…Keenan’s on W 231st in the Bronx. Their nephew, Tommy, now very heavy in the “bar game” on Maclean Avenue/Yonkers and in Woodlawn/Katonah Ave.Bronx. recent years. .

        • Hello Glenn, I came across this site by accident – do you remember Kennedy’s bar (my father), across from Carvel and Joyland on 236th Street? It was the Dutchman’s before that and, sometime after he left, it became Pauline’s.
          Jim Kennedy

  15. I remember reading that Walter Winchell also called Inwood “Ginwood.”

    Thanks for the memories. I was a denizen of Doc Fiddlers.

  16. OMG! This page just brought me 2 my knees. My folks had the Outlet Store- corner Payson Ave. Across from Payson Park. As u were going to the river. Oh yes, we drank there also.
    Thanks 4 the memories.
    Remember, I was in LOVE w Jimmy Pladl ( Scully) lol.

  17. How about Farrells on 207 corner Tenth Ave by the IRT
    El train 1 —

    The Ol’ Shilling was on 207 on the triangle at Post. Remember 1967_69 they had bands play weekend usually from Ireland. We would go in and listen to them rehearse in the day………we were kids……….they let us listen…….Does Anyone know what it was called before Ol’Shilling..

  18. I remember Mahoney’s as Peter Reeves, run by Casey (whose real name, I believe, was Mike Mahoney, and thus he took over the place?). I had my first job there, stocking the beer shelves for minimum wage — then $1.85/hour. It kept me busy.

    And what about the Sloop, on Broadway down by Dyckman? I spent many a night there in the 1970s.

    And who else remembers the song that had this couplet?:

    From the steps, to Peter Reeves, to Garryowens, and all the bars.
    God Bless old Inwood, my home, sweet home.

  19. My favorite was Markey’s on Broadway between Dyckman and Thayer Streets. Glenn, the bartender was nicknamed “Eagle” by Danny Darby. Glenn was bald. Charlie the bartender/waiter could make the most wonderful corned beef and cabbage I ever had.
    I was so lucky to have experienced the warmth and cameraderie of Markey’s and all the wonderful patrons, drunk or sober, who ever crossed it’s threshhold. So, why did the deer wear the sailor hats??????

    • a friend, John Phelan, whose dad was lifelong Con Edison, lived at 20th and Sherman until late 80s…then Bailey Avenue…late in Yonkers.

  20. i cant believe that i couldn’t remember the name Hedgehog since i lived down the street from there on academy. i think i blocked a lot of those days out lol

  21. what was the name of the bar under the #1 el down 207 th? i called it Lynch’s as i knew someone whose father worked there and they were named Lynch.

  22. The Bar Scene Of Inwood’s Social Brought Out Either The Best Or Worst In All. Between The Bar Leagues For Softball & Football All Had A Great Time Even Bowling. As A New Guy On The Block I Played Some Softball For Minogues Met’s The Team With Many Older Players Who Won One Very Important Game Defeating Barry’s . The Fast Paced Area Of Bars With Very Good Food Came Along After The Old Time Foster’s Beer Garden Became Doc Fiddler’s Which Gave An Upgrade To The Area Along With Chambers Who Always Had A Great Following With Teams & Both Moved Up Into The Greater Riverdale Area Of The Bronx/Yonkers Border Line Area.

    • yup. for years, the bronx Softball leagues including a diminishing number of Inwood teams…with some games in Inwood Hill Park…others in Van Cortlandt. Darts seems to be THE game of choice among the next set of Irish immigrants, with a mix of African and Caribbean players readily joining in. There’s still some Tuesday/mixed and Wednesdays/women only dart league play…and pool league still continues in most area bars that have a table and some younger players.

  23. I remember all of these places vividly and I enjoyed looking through this website that my daughter found. I owned “The Inn Between” bar in the 70’s and 80’s on the corner of 207th st & sherman ave. Great Memories…mostly of the softball games!

    • Hey Joe

      Hope all is well.
      Larry Gray here. It was grea to work with you at the In Between. I too remember all the softball games and the money games we plaayed when Jimmy was alive. WE won most of those. We were not so bad at flag football either. I am sure you remember the trophy shef above the bar. I have grea tmemeories on inwood in the seventies. Do yiu ever hear from Mike Castro? Be well

  24. Does anyone remember Bob Byrnes Bar on the corner of Arden St and Sherman Ave? During the spring and summer , the patrons would also play stickball along Sherman Ave next to the telephone company building. What a dramatic difference the neighborhood has become now….

  25. Does anyone know when the Inwood Lounge went out of business? Use to go there in the late 60’s, good times until four years in the Navy got in the way.

    • Remember Hi Ho Chinese restaurant on Dyckman. Went to P.S. 52 on Academy St.
      Anyone remember the “Tropedera”?
      Catering on Dyckman St right next to HiHo.
      The bartender at the “Inwood Lounge”
      was Johnny Ryan. If I remember correctly it was the downstairs bar. All the girls were crazy about him. A real nice guy..

    • Just after Highschool 1964, The lounge was my favorite place .My parents had signed the paperwork (I was 17) to join the Navy.Vinny Foley and the Gents rocked the place and seeing that I was Navy bound, did some heavy partying as a civilian before I went to who knows where.On occasion,I would wet my whistle in the “Tree Bar” next to the lounge.I wish I could remember its name,someone said it might be “The Wilds”.The owners daughter was a knockout and the best pool player that I ever met,till Navy Time.Do you happen to know the exact address of the original Innwood Lounge ? After my navy as a gunner on a WWII Fletcher can,”The Bunratty Pub” on Kingsbridge Rd.became my new watering hole for quite a few years.Take Care and Enjoy !

  26. I worked at Miramar Swimming Pool and used to go to Farrell’s to get stuff for the kitchen when we ran out of it…
    I frequented Gary Owens, Inwood Lounge and some others…perhaps too many times!!!
    LOL!

  27. My Dad, George McFadden, owned the Inwood Lounge and I have great memories of it although I was just a kid. The names I remember – Edna the hatcheck girl, Jimmy Dowling was the porter, Pat McBride was the chef, Joe Spillane at the door, Vinnie Foley and the Gents. After the Lounge closed in the early 70s (?) my Dad opened McFadden’s Tavern at 231st and BWay next to the OTB. Would love to see any pictures anyone has of these places.

    • Hmmm…a longtime dart mat of mine, eddie Sliva, of 238th Street, MAY have worked for your father. I know he definitelyy worked some shift when it became renamed Rich Willie’s. What year did McFadden’s close/change names? (before my time as a patron…brn 1963)

      • Glenn – McFadden’s Tavern at 231st and BWay burnt down 38 years ago TODAY. April 17, 1982. It was my dad’s second fire in that location and he did not rebuild

      • Hello Glenn,
        Sorry to tell you, Ed Sliva passed in late 2022.
        His wife, Carolyn, and daughter, Susan, preceded him.
        Son is a pro golfer.
        Grandson still lives on 238th St./Sedg.

  28. Jeanne G
    Thanks for the memories of Markey’s. My hangout back in the late 50’s.
    Glen & Charlie, you’re right, best hamburgers I ever tasted.
    I heard that Dan darby had passed away – is that true?

    • Hi Jim Burns I was just researching Inwood and my father’s family when I saw your name. We’re you married to Barbara and moved to NJ. If this is true I was at your wedding. Please reply if you are the same Jim Burns.

  29. There were six bars between our little streets of arden and thayer. Bob Burns did most of his business before the late mass at Queen of Martyrs. Fr. O’connor was known to pop in and threaten slakers who didn’t clear out for the opening bell at mass. Every Sunday a group of guys who worked for Sanitation and hungout at McGouldricks, cleared out lower arden and played stickball. The Park Gate was where George Lynch sr.worked and then the best bartender of all time George Lynch jr. got his start. We brought $.10 cents a w eek to OLQM for dance class from Ms.Dugan . She had lunch everyday at Markey’s and got tanked for her afternoon classes. I remember word got out that Sal Maglie was coming to the Wig Wam .There were a hundred kids packed outside when he showed up .I stuck a little piece of paper through the little window on the side and got his autograph.I forget the name of the bar on the bottom of thayer but it was beautiful inside . Word had it that way back in the day it was a popular hangout for baseball players who drove up on the speedway from Yankee stadium and the Polo Grounds. My only memory of The Lakes of Killarney was in its fading days during the Eighties when I owned Jeannie Cambells Irish Shop on broadwayand its owner Pete Sheridan came to get his Irish paper. He was a wonderful sweet fellow and a big IRA supporter at the time

    • wow. I remember trekking down from the Bronx to get mass cards down at the Irish Shop. Did the Irish Shop eventually move north to W 231st Street//off Kingsbridge Avenue (south side of street….near Godwin terrace)?

      • The Irish shop on 231st was owned by Jimmy McNicholas the “Bishop of Ballyhaunis”. He also owned the bar (no name but just known as McNicholas’) at 238th and Broadway which eventually became the Punch Bowl. Did a great business on Sunday from the people leaving Gaelic Park. The Irish goods shop opened in the early 60s and was run by his wife.

  30. Does anyone remember the bar that was around the corner from the Inwood lounge, it was called daily and sheridans. I lived across the street, ay 578 academy street My family were the supers of the building. I was underage but we would get in and play pool in the little side room they had. Oh! and also how about GANDY’S in back of the in wood lounge, I remember we had dug under ground forts there and on a saturday or sunday, on many occasions we would find under garments from the girls from the Lounge and sometimes we would find pocket books and wallets with money still left in them. AH!!! THOSE TRULY WERE GREAT MEMORIES OF A GREAT CHILDHOOD IN THE GREAT INWOOD OF OUR TIME!!!!

    • Hi. I knew you and your family..
      You were a little younger but your brother John and sister Roseanne definitely. I remember Roseanne’s deep laugh…
      How is everyone…hopefully doing well. Please give them my regards

  31. I grew up on W 238th Street in the Bronx, but am considered “honorary Inwood” because by godfather was the late Barney Bott, who lived at 32 Arden Street. I think Barney regularly visited up to 10-12 Inwood pubs a day…always one…two and o-u-t! and then on to the next one. You could set your clock by his ins and outs.

  32. Great memories, thanks! Here’s something that I wrote about the bar scene a few years ago. I hope that you enjoy it.

    UNDERAGE DRINKING IN INWOOD

    Grippo’s, which was on the north side of 207th between Vermilyea and Broadway, was another great place for underage drinking, at least up until a point in the summer of 1959. Brian McDonough and I, after having previously passed some phony proof (most likely baptismal certificates, with the date altered with the help of Clorox) to John the Bartender, became regulars at the bar for several months that summer.

    It was a warm summer night and Brian and I were enjoying our cold draft Schaeffer’s, Grippo’s great air conditioning and wonderful jukebox (Theresa Brewer, et.al.) and, of course, John’s regular buyback on the third, when the dreaded ABC inspectors arrived on the scene. I remember it very clearly; I was 16 and big for my age and Brian was 15 and even bigger. One ABC guy stood by the door, barring any desperate attempts at escape, while the other began at the end nearest the door and began working his way down the bar.

    Brian and I quickly assessed the situation and decided that it was smarter to say we had left our proof at home, rather than show them the phonies. In the meantime, John the bartender, having assayed the scene and determined that he was okay as only “regulars” were there, leaned against the back bar and watched the ABC guy move on down the line.

    No problems, until he got to Brian! Needless to say, all eyes, including John’s were now on us, the last ones to be checked. I had a direct view of John’s face and cannot describe the look of incredulity that came over it, as Brian was asked for his proof, mumbled some lame excuse and was asked to stand up and step away from the bar while the ABC guy moved on to me. That was the last time I saw John the bartender, for I couldn’t look him in the eye as Brian and I were led out the door in ignominy.
    We didn’t know what to expect, but were to become very old in the next 15 minutes. First we were taken to their car and were made to sit in the back, while they asked us all sorts of questions: how long were we in the bar – just got there; did we go there often – first time; were we asked for proof – they had us there, had to say no; were our parents home so they that they could take us there and tell them what we were doing – nope, nobody home.

    After that, one of them went back inside. He came out a few minutes later and told his partner that everything was okay. They then proceeded to give us a stern lecture on the evils of underage drinking, warned us to stay out of the bars and told us we were free to go.

    With great relief we got out of the car and headed for the safety of the park, trying to figure out what had just happened, and why we weren’t on our way down to the 34th. Then we had our epiphany, the wheels of government had just been greased! Our idealistic attitudes about government were instantly crushed, and we never went back to Grippo’s, even after we were legal.

    Richard M. Scarlata
    March 29, 2000

    • How are you Rich I think you used to lived on Indian Road and your Father work for the Post Office if I remember correctly I was supprised to see you on here and eqully surprised I didn’t bump into in a bar with Brian Mc Donough he lived Park Terrace east correct up near Isham Park at the circle anyway it was good to see you on here
      Chris Powers 10/19/16

  33. Yes, it was Daly and Sheridans on Academy St (between Sherm and Post) the bar was Nunzies in the 40’s and 50’s,,No one looked up when you entered, they were too soused to raise their heads..No one in this article mentioned Barrys’ on Sherman (between Academy and Dyckman, near Horn and Hardarts.. Sam’s was the preferred imbibing palace for me and then we’d go to Chambers (Isham and 207th) on Sherman Ave or should I say Amya, yeah, that’s it Moe, Amya,,woo wooo wooo nyuk nyuk nyuk,, No one including my father could pronounce “Avenue”

  34. How about SAM’S bar on the corner of Sherman and 204th ST. A couple of nice old ladies invited myself, GARY K and TOMMY O up for breakfast around 4:30 a.m. after SAMS finally got rid of us. They lived right around the corner on 204th. IT was a night to remember, just ask GARY K lol

  35. I tried to buy my wife her first”LEGAL” drink when she turned 18 at Markey’s but Charlie wouldn’t serve her because she didn’t have her birth certificate with her.My favorite spot to stop off was the Park View(Knudsen’s)where Marie,the owner,would make me a hamberger before I drove back home to NJ.There was no finer place to grow up than INWOOD.PS George Lynch a good bartender who knew everyone and never smoked died of lung cancer.Graduate of OLQM Class of 1949

  36. Inwood was great even for us Tolentine guys & girls. drinking at the Blast at 16 and the Inn Between Happy Hr 2-1 with 4 backed up at 7 Jim Rayhill was a good guy. The lady”s of Inwood was always nice must have been the Bx charm the St Nick’s gentlemen showed lol

  37. Ruthie Morrisey sang at the Old Schilling and was one of the owners. I also remember Vinny Foley (of the Gents) getting arrested because he was going to Bimani to defend Adam Claton Powell. George McFadden also owned a bar off Westchester Sq with his Nephew Steve who now has a famous Pub in Mahattan by the Daily News Building (Ryan & McFaddens). Willie Walsh (The Whale) passed away last year. What ever happened to Rory ? I was great friends with all of them including Joe Spillane Jack Chambers & of Course Pete McKenext to (remember the bar with the tree in the middle) And some might remember the Fife & Drum in the North Bronx which I owned, GREAT TIMES & GREAT MEMORIES forgot to mention Richie Tinker

  38. Inwood – what a place! We would go to the Good Sherpherd dances and I would do the savoy with a guy named Matty Devine. He was a fabulous dancer. I dated a guy named Phil Sullivan from Inwood.
    The Inwood Lounge was the spot to go on Sunday nights. What a blast! I had my first dance with my future husband at the Tally Ho. What a great neighborhood it used to be. I’m from Kingsbridge which was also great!

  39. I also went to the dances at Good Shepherd and to Inwood Lounge with my friend Betty and others. Attended SHM up on the hill. What good times we had.

  40. Took the buses from 204th & Bainbridge Av over to Inwood with our phony proof all set to be inspected & approved by the bouncer Mr. Spillane after we would wait on line to get into the Lounge. We got in everytime even when the nameplate around our neck didn’t match the name on our cloroxed w milk baptismal certificate! It was fabulous! Vinny Foley singing “Roll a Silver Dollar “, savoying, madras, mini skirts, SUNDAY Ladies Night and always using our cover ticket for the free drink! Thurs at Ray’s In-between, 10cent drinks for ladies, who rarely made it to work on Fridays. The Ponytail, Chambers, Docs and, of course, the Pig n’Whistle w Gerard Dunne bartending. And, I not only had great times in Inwood, I met my husband right there in the Lounge! He seems to think it was in the Pig n’Whistle! Details!!! Great great times & memories!

  41. Being born and raised on 207 st. & Bway. I had the oppertunity to have a pint in most of the great places of worship mentioned above. How abouth “The Bunch of Grapes”
    on 207 just east of Sherman and “The Wrong Number” on 10th. ave. I met my wife of 48 years in Garry Owens on Dyckman St. It was owned by Gene McCormick and Harry McShane. Great-Great memories. We are all fortunate to have experianced them.

  42. Chambers was at SHERMAN Ave & ISHAM ST. Jack Chambers paid the rent for the people living above the bar because of the noise on the week end.

  43. Thanks for the memories!! I worked at The White Horse which then turned into the Wrong Number for many years down on 214th and 10th Ave. I didnt see a mantion of Ray Vans Nest Bway and 215th st. Great bar with super people. The place to go late 60’s early 70’s.

  44. We went to Chambers many a’nite…..so much that we didn’t have to wait on the line….just walked up gave the thumbs up and in we went….the music and the crowd was great…..had many a beer with the Guys….Phil Lynch…..Bobby Fink…..Larry Kangro

  45. I had the pleasure (I think) of walking the beat on 207st in the mid sixties. There was enough going on on the midnight tours to keep me going but because they were my own kind I would look the other way at times, But when the bars closed I had to position myself in front of the capital diner on Broadway and 207 st , where all the drunks went and sometimes tried to wreck the place Ah The Good Old Days!

  46. Loved Chambers. Our gang hung out there and Georgie Lynch was our favorite bartender. Also went to Harry McShane’s Garryowens, Barry’s, the Pig ‘n Whistle (Pete McGee’s place) and the Inwood Lounge. Great times!

  47. I still remember going up and down 207th street on one side and coming back up the other visiting all the Irish bars. It was a great neighborhood and Inwood Hill Park was a great place to play ball and hang out with the gang.

  48. Anyone remember Nunzie’s on academy st?
    Off Post ave
    My grandparents sat for me & my brother in the 50’s at 65 Post
    And Grampa often had to be retrieved from there
    I think child care then was letting us run rampant on the “white rocks”

  49. Attending Fordham university graduate school was a short course in fun and dancing to the Black. Velvet Band at that Hitching Post. Lots of fun and partying.

  50. I grew up directly across from good shepherd. Worked at mahoney’s where many six packs were stolen. McSherry’s was a bit too close for my dad though-shot and a beer!!!

  51. my first memories of drinking in a bar was Garryowens in the late 1960s. We would drive in from Jersey and go up there and and would sit around feeling great to be drinking pitchers of beer when not a one of us had reached the age of 18 although we had some crappy Ids. I believe mine was a drivers license from Wisconsin for a 38 year from Milwaukee. Even had pitchers of Sloe gin fizzs for about $2.50.

  52. After graduating from CCNY, our favorite bar, The Vinegar Hill relocated from Amsterdam Ave. to 214th St. It was run by three brothers, Ed. Atrie and Rodney Guy

    • hello John and Leslie, I remember the SLOOP I grew up in the apartment building above it/ 4761 bway. Do you recall the D.J. who played at the SLOOP…..it was DONOVAN.

  53. My little brother Phil worked at the Rac/Aechies pub when he was only 16. Someone blew the whistle on him, but Archie told phil as soon as you rerach 18 come back and he did. My little bro would get me laid some times. especially when I came home from the service. What great times. i lived on 207th and Vermilyea. Only recently moved out last Dec. I am not far away though. Still hang out at Litty II, Kilt and Irish eyes, Still here after all these years.

  54. My brother phil, Tim Slain, Eddie ? ands Dennis Becker we had a group. We had a few names Blue Seekers, Dirt, Street Corner Society. LOL We actually sang at the wrong number and a few other places in 1969. We had a ball there. We also auditioned at the Inwood Lounge, but my brother got pissed off because on drunk patron was giving us advice. Phill didn;t like it and packed up his drums and walked out. What a bumma LOL

  55. Bobby T.from 9/29/12
    I saw your post, I too was very good friends with the three guys you mentioned. I just can’t figure out who you are? (Bobby T.)Get back to me at my email address.

    • OMG……
      Was just wasting time looking up bars in Inwood and found my post fro 2012…..then your post also….

      Yes, I hung with those guys, however, I went to Our Lady Queen of Martyers school, class of 1958……they didn’t……Lost track of Phil Lynch, after I married and moved to NJ……Hung out with Bob Fink as both of us worked at Hetrz Corp……until Bob Passed away…..Larry Kangro was killed in Vietnam….late 60’s

      Went many nights to Chambers bar with Phil Lynch and Bob Fink

      • Hi Bob,
        I graduated OLQM class of 1969.
        We lived on Arden Street. What street were you on?
        I learned to play guitar in the “Folk Mass” at OLQM. I’ve been a guitarist ever since.
        St Jude Bazaars were such big events in the neighborhood. OLQM and Good Shepherd dances had good bands.
        Dan

  56. “Pass the sugar” was the trip word for an all out brawl at Bickfords (B’way & Dyckman) The sugar jar was torpedoes to you from one of the other gang members..The police were called and 2 squad cars would sit outside until the fray ceased..No one has mentioned Sam’s Bar Sherman Ave between Academy and 204th St,,That was where Tom and Lou were the best bartenders in the neighborhood..Inwood was the”THE BEST” and I’d give a million dollars to back there and relive it..I lived at 121 Sherman and didn’t walk far to have a beer,,Daly and Sheridans, Barry’s, Wigwam, Inwood Lounge, Pig & Whistle, Barones and my watering hole Sams’ .

  57. The Inwood lounge, where Larry Chance and the Earls signed to do
    a two week stint and stayed for two years.
    How did I ever drive home to The Bronx from that place ?

  58. Ah . .the memories of when I was a teenager. My friends and I would hang out on “2-4th” which was the corner of 204th Street and Broadway before heading out to either Garryowens, “slipping” at the Sloop because by the end of the night the floor was a slippery beer / alcohol mess, or at Doc Fiddler’s where we use to go hear “Alive N Kicking”. The band which I had at my wedding decades later but sounded just as great! We were 16 and 17 years old at then and had the time of our lives!!

  59. I worked at the Inn Between at 207th and Sherman for a number of years. It was originally called Ray’s but when the owner Jimmy Rayhill decided to change the name he named it the Inn Between because it was the inn between Garry Owens, Chamber’s, Doc Fiddlers, The and the Inwood Lounge, Sam’s, Bunch of Grapes, Sloop John and the Blarney Star. What memories

  60. When I was 16 I joined the soft ball team at the Inn Between so Ray and the other bartenders would know me. This way I could get in without getting proofed.

  61. I cant forget hanging out at Lou Browns pool room on Vermilyea near Dyckman, and playing softball in the bar league for either Inwood Bar or Garryowens and playing fgootball for the Terriers and softball and stickball in the PS52 shoolyard and basketball against Good Shephard and hitch-hiking up to GW High. Sports melded the Irish, the Jews and the Greeks together.

  62. Can’t believe Barone’s Bar hasn’t been mentioned! It was on the corner of Nagle and Dyckman. As kids my friends and I would sneak in to use the bathroom, years later would watch sporting events and drink like the old timers did. I think its a bodega or restaurant now. I live in Delaware now.

  63. I remember dancing at Doc’s with my friends to the jukebox music and Tommy Coughlin saying, “girls, girls, no dancing – I don’t have a cabaret license!” Also, I remember the last night at Doc’s before they moved up to Riverdale and the jukebox sitting out on the sidewalk playing “sooner or later.” Doc Fiddlers then became The Red Barrel. So many fond memories of Doc’s, Chambers and The Sloop and most of the places named!

  64. My uncle John Manca, owned the Inn Between for a while it was nice and quiet in the day and at night wild and crazy.They had some good soft ball players in Bars in Inwood and John Manka, could hit the ball so far,good times.It was just the great all around the mm,

  65. I like your history of Irish Inwood.The picture of the Donemay Pub 1979 New Years was the first time I played music.God Bless those days. Martin Melody

    • Hello Martin. It is John Curry and I remember you playing many weekends at my Dad’s place while myself and my brothers bartended along with Ray, Tony, Mike, Jack, Gerry, & co. Great memories. Hope all is well.

  66. My favorite was the “Hitching Post” back in the days..Up there dancing with all my friends. Linda, Kathy, Barbara C. etc. we had a blast!

    • A definite favorite. When I went there the “Black Velvet Band” played. High step Dancing was there a few times a year. Bartender John. People on the scene Peggy, hee brother John, Tim Okeefe was a friend. Don & Brigette were a thing & lots of others..

      I can not remember the Bar that lead guitar player Mike owned on Ling Island.

  67. Does anybody remember the name of the pub on the corner of Post ave and Dyckman st.I spent time in there the night before my wedding October 5th 1957.

    • Billy, I’m responding to you two years late, but the newspaper you’re referring to was called Heights-Inwood. I wrote about six articles, then the publisher, whose name we won’t mention, said he wasn’t interested in having me write for them anymore. A year later, he went out of business. The office was on Broadway near Academy Street or one of those side streets, in a storefront.

  68. gary knight mentioned Sam’s, my home from 1968 thru 1971.
    Run by the Palazzo brothers, Tony & Lou.
    Bartenders were Billy Martin and Jimmy Wyatt.
    Great great times, and the Tolentine crowd supported them.

  69. I remember the Inn Between and Inwood Lounge….walked across the bridge from the Bronx to get there. Accepted ID was a birth certificate…so one person could go in with a drivers license and another a few minutes later with a birth certificate …same name but no one cared.

  70. I was a bouncer at The Blast, The Bunch of Grapes, Doc Fiddlers and tended bar at The Sloop before really leaving Inwood. Then I worked in many clubs in different areas of NY and NJ and ended up working a bunch of clubs in the Hamptons. Inwood was very good schooling for that career.

    • Hi Marty!
      It’s Gail from the Ole Days! I remember meeting you over in Inwood bartending at Doc Fiddlers.
      Later on Skiing in Killington & hanging out in the Hamptons. I’m still in touch with Big Billy Flynn. Last time I saw you I was in your driveway out in the Hamptons with my 3 kids! It’s been a long time. I
      hope you and your family are well! Nice to see this post!

  71. I love catching up on the new posts here. Lived in Inwood 68 to 77. Can say I re cognize almost all the pubs of the area. Remember buying my Mom a fine China Irish Teacup from Jeannie Campbells Irish Shop maybe Mothers day 1969. I now have this. Worked making egg creams at Harry’s on Tenth Ave and 207th.
    Class of 1970 OLQM. Remember too all the St Jude end of summer Bazaars. Good times. Great people.

    • Hi Maureen,
      I graduated OLQM class of 1969 so I must have known you or seen you.
      We lived on Arden Street. I learned to play guitar in the “Folk Mass” at OLQM. I’ve been a guitarist ever since.
      St Jude Bazaars were such big events in the neighborhood. OLQM and Good Shepherd dances had good bands.
      Dan

  72. My Dad, Dave Russo, tended bar in many of the bars in Inwood during the 50’s and 60’s. For him, it was a part-time job that helped supplement the family income when he drove a truck during the day for Nabisco. He enjoyed it a lot. We lived on Sherman near the Wigwam, which was where he’d go – sometimes with my mother.

    • Any chance your dad knew of a John/Jack O’Connor? That was my grandfather William’s brother and he owned or tended bar during the 50’s-70’s and I’m trying to find out where.

  73. Garry Knight- regarding Nunzie’s- was owned by Nunzio LaMiraglia and his son, Rocco. My Dad also tended bar there also. And if my parents went there, we’d play outside. The bartenders always wore white shirts and ties and white aprons. Rocco and my Dad were good friends and the families would spend time together on occasion.

  74. The bar on the Dykman and post was Denwins Tavern . I lived at 34 Post ave. Strange no mention of the Tally Ho . Post and 207th and 10th ave. it was the whole triamgular corner. Sam’s was caddy corner to it . Mirimar just down the street. Also no mention of the Starboard Side just around the corner on 10th and 206th st and E&G’s right across the street on the W side of 10th ave . We had our pigeon coop up on the Inwood Loung’s roof. Great neighborhood !

  75. Barone’s was the best Italian place in Inwood. The Blarney Stone and Cahills (Mrs Cahill) on 207th between Post and Sherman ave. How about the E&G on 204th and 10th Ave? My father and later I tended bar there when I was home on weekends from the Air Force.

  76. Inwood was great fun back in the late 60’s thru 70’s. I can still remember hanging out @ Sam’s Tavern watching the NY Knicks playing the 7 the game for the championship. They had a great jukebox. And somebody would drop a much of quarters in to listen to: He ain’t heavy, He’s my brother!

    • I lived in 4915 B’way. It was a stationary store, cards, books, small gifts. Your dad was tall, thin, glasses, softspoken and very nice.

      • the penguin shop. i loved that place. you could get the first 2 books in a series like ‘nancy drew,’ ‘the hardy boys,’ ‘cherry ames,’ etc for $1, the price of one.

  77. Thank’s for mentioning Sam’s Tavern. That’s where you would take a girl, after up
    just picked her-up @ the Inwood Lounge. The old Lady in the back area was May , a very sweet old lady. Thank you all for great memories. I lived on Seaman Ave. between
    207th & Payson Ave.

  78. Sam’s Tavern was the best and thanks for remembering. The owners/bartenders were brothers Tony & Louie Palazzo. I called them Uncle Tony & Louie. They were my father’s first cousins.

  79. How about Patrick’s on Dyckman St. between B’way and Seaman, and Coffey’s on Dyckman next between the diner on the corner of Broadway and the Alpine Theater. Also Goode’s on Broadway between Academy and 204th. They were quiet little places, but with friendly bartenders all ready with a buy-back on every third drink. Barone’s on Dyckman at the corner of Nagle Ave was another good place.

    • tom scott, thanks for mentioning ‘coffey’s.’ i was going crazy trying to remember the name. i used to meet my mom and her friend there sometimes on a saturday night. (right next to the alpine movie.) nice quiet family bar.

  80. Had many a happy night at the Park Gate on Arden Street. I remember we had a moon keg with a 10 ft. hero the night man first walked on the moon.

  81. Now living in the Sunny Treasure Coast of Florida, the Inwood Lounge, was my
    favorite stomping ground, starting going there at the age of 17, was there from
    Thurs. – Sat. most times, Irish Moms & their Sons, they trusted us at every word
    from our mouths. The Bands that played there, Bleach Boys, ( if you were outside
    you’d swear that CHICAGO, was playing, that good ) can’t remember one other
    Band, they made it to the Big Time, couple of albums, great music, I think the lead
    singer, was female. They checked you at the Door for ID, after awhile, when you
    became a Regular, no ID , front Bartender, Jimmy Sheridan, Great Guy, miss Ole Days

  82. On the night of 2/21/1962, three of us met our future wives in the Inwood Lounge….a bunch of student nurses from St Vincent’s were there dancing the night away..of course, it was the savoy!
    I asked one of them, a gal by the name of Kathryn Simpson to dance…that was it…we celebrate our 50th wedding anniversary this coming September 11th! Time flies!

  83. I believe that during my Inwood Time there were 74 bars ( rough estimate ). The bet was starting up at Columbia and drinking a shot, just a shot, of beer in every bar to GO’s. Not easy to do.
    No one mentioned big Gene Coughlin, about the most unpredictable hard assed BT ever.
    Learned a lot in those gin mills and met my wife at the Inwood Lounge where we spent serious time along with the Pig N’ Whistle, that is when we were not a home base GO’s.

    • my father and I one night went to the Old Shelling pub and Gene Caughlin was the bartender and he accused me of tearing up the shit house the night before, WTF I said I don’t know what the hell you’re talking about…wasn’t he supposed to be related to the Fighting Marine Gene Tunney on his mother side, anyway that’s what remembered about him

  84. Any body remember the band Street Stuff? They played at the Melody Lounge, The Old Shilling, the Wagon Wheel. Great dance band! Great memories. Hanging out at Guys and Dolls on 207th St. & 10th Ave, playing Pool and Pinball.

    • Yes! I was underage but knew they’d let me in. My sister was 3 years older than me and my Mom let me go see them play because she’d watch out for me. The Misiano brothers played in it. Mike and JoJo. Both have passed sadly. They were excellent!

    • Hi Debra.

      Can you tell me more about Guys and Dolls?

      I think my father owned it.

      If you have photos that would be great

  85. This is great, I grew up on the border of Inwood Washington Heights Our Lady Queen of Martyrs! God Bless the Greatest generation! Our parents! Now the city is shi shi, sucks.

    • Hi George,
      I graduated OLQM class of 1969.
      We lived on Arden Street. What street were you on?
      I learned to play guitar in the “Folk Mass” at OLQM. I’ve been a guitarist ever since.
      St Jude Bazaars were such big events in the neighborhood. OLQM and Good Shepherd dances had good bands.
      Dan

  86. My Father and Uncles and Aunts loved the Inwood scene. We lived on Academy St. And my Uncle and Aunt lived on 215th right down from the Donemay. I remember dancing with my Aunt jean there and her introducing me to the lovely daughters of her friends when I would come to visit. They don’t make people like that anymore. i surely miss them.

    • I remember you, Billy and Ronnie.
      Your Uncle Willy also lived on Academy, until he moved by Henny and Agnes.
      I remember your MoM, too. Joan was a lovely lady, RIP.
      Your father and Frank (Rags) Kelly were the best of friends.
      I met you through Frankie.
      You lived above the O’Brien’s.
      Seems like a lifetime ago.
      Stay well.

  87. Vis-a-vis one of the comments in your poem about Jewish guys not drinking–as someone who grew up in the ’70s, I can testify that Jewish kids, too, drank and went to bars. The difference is that we didn’t necessarily go to neighborhood bars–many of us went to bars “Downtown,” for example. One reason is that many of the Jewish kids tended to go away to college, and the groups that formed there weren’t from one neighborhood–for example, one was from Yonkers, one from Washington Heights, one from Flushing, one from Long Beach, etc., etc., so when we get together in the summer, we went to a place that was convenient to everybody. But up at SUNY Binghamton, my crowd, which was maybe 80 percent Jewish, often got together in the “Pub” to hoist a few. One thing may be that for my own Jewish-and-Italian crowd, drinking (almost always beer) was something to accompany another activity–a rock concert, a movie, a baseball game–not an activity for its own sake.

  88. Now, we all remember that the Pig n Whistle was right next to the Lounge, but who remembers what it was called before that? It was called Donovan’s. It was a classic old man’s bar, on its way out. The legend was that The Babe used to drink there.
    My friends and I would go in there on Friday and Saturday nights before hitting the Lounge. There was no tree there then and we never got Id’d. At the time I was living on 185th & Broadway and the local bar where we (and some of our parents) hung out was Magees on 184th and Broadway which was owned by Pat and Katie Magee; Pete Magee’s uncle and aunt.
    I remember all of the bars mentioned above and the memories are all good and mostly very funny!
    Washington Heights (St. Elizabeth’s) was a great place to grow up. But Inwood is where all the great memories are. I live in SW Florida now,but for the last half hour I have been 700 miles away and 50 years younger. Thanks!

  89. i grew up in Inwood, 229 Seaman Ave, and i went to Good Shepherd the class of 57 before i forget theres a great video on You Tube “Good by Glocammora (1968)” a documentary that was made for Irish public TV focusing on the changing demographic of Inwood the quintessential Irish neighborhood in NYC …this a real trip down memory lane for me… the the old shilling pub i took my father in there to hear Wolf Tones it was their first gig in USA…Someone had mentioned Ryan’s and Mc Faddens i know Steve and went to school with Joey…How about Kelly’s Bar 215st Bway or the Emerald Isle on 207st and Vermiyea ave i was 15 and got my first of many beer in there… i used hang on the corner of 207st and Vermiyea Romans Deli, with Johnny Muldoon, Paddy & John Carr, Mickey Connelly, Brian Heary.etc oh the Girls Linda Tate,Cushy Kelly, Mary Mc Kenna, Mary Connelly, Renee Nesbit, O’Brien Girls, Whinny Quinn…the Inwood Boat ride we were escorted of the boat in Yonkers by the State and local police ….Thanks it’s been great…Vermilyea i don’t think i spelled right sorry!

  90. I use to go the Starboard Side in the early 70’s. There was another bar across the street that had some nice bands from time to time but I don’t remember the name. Does anyone there remember? I also use to regularly go the Inbetween :^D It was great neighborhood!

  91. Does anyone know of or remember a bartender/bar owner by the name of John O’Connor? He was the brother of my grandfather William and I am trying to find out where he worked. Thanks!

  92. Moved to Inwood in 1955 and wouldn’t change a thing. The friends we made were forever. I lived in the Dyckman Houses and never worried about walking home from the bars at 2-3 in the a.m.
    The bars were great fun, but so was the Capital Diner on Bway n 207th and Bickfords
    After the bars. Remember Pete McGee trying to drive his VW into the front door of Bickfords and Artie Burns loosing all the salt and pepper shakers. Lol.

  93. Hi there, I’m trying to find some history about my grandfather, who was a bartender in Inwood, somewhere between in the 1950s-1960s. His name was Joe Gallagher. If you have any information or memories you would like to share, I would love to hear them! Thank you.

  94. Tom Desmond(Desi) here: Many great memories re Bars of Inwood – my place was Barones best owners Louie and best bartender: Angelo! I remember one Saturday with my best friend Herb Krupp deciding we would try to hi every bar in Inwood and have one beer in same; we never bothered to count how many bars there were and

    testing

  95. How great to see this post and all of the wonderful comments!

    My Dad, Artie Donovan was born and raised in Inwood and tended bar at Dolan’s Tavern for decades (and also at the Riverdale Inn) from the 40’s through the late 60’s, if memory serves me correctly. The photo of the “Hedgehog Inn’ certainly looks like where Dolan’s once existed.

    My Dad’s family- his sisters, Mom and his brother-in-law’s family, The Scalley’s lived right upstairs in the apartment building above.

    Inwood was a terrific neighborhood! As a young lad, I remember “goin’ bouncing” with my Dad to visit his freinds at the local bars on Sunday afternoons and these bars were family/friend meeting places back then. Grandmother’s and little grandkids were a common fixture as much as the Irish wire lathers and their hard drinking cronies. Also, everybody had nick names back then- “Eddy the Bus”, etc. (The gloss of childhood memories certainly colors my details here, but that’s what I remember).

    But tavers were different than they are now. They were like little cultural institutions that served the entire neighborhood.

    Oh, yeah… I almost drowned at Miramar pool in the early 60’s- which is embarrassing to admit, as my Dad used to lifeguard there and would regularly swim across the Hudson to Jersey!

    Best Wishes to All Those from the old neighborhood!

    Art Jr.

  96. I moved to here Inwood in 1989 when I was 27. Never thought about the bars that much until I ran across your website. In rough order I remember Keenan’s at 204th Street, Last Stop on 207th Street-had their burger and a beer once, Piper’s Kilt on Bway & 207–had their burger and a brew several times, went to the Liffy once very late after coming home from a Florida trip, came up on the A train from Penn Station and ALL the bodegas were closed. Got a 6 pack of Budweisers to go, very cool. Also, there was a place where Brown Sugar is now at 215th & Bway-can’t remember the name and another bar that was sort of closed on 215th & 10th Avenue right under the 1 train El. It said Vinegar and something on the sign-would pass it everyday getting the train to work. Now we have Tubby’s Hook where Pipers was, I hope they reopen soon as this Convid virus thing is over. Love your website Cole, please keep it up.

  97. Great memories. My Irish family would always gather at Knudson’s Park View tavern after first Holy Communions/birthdays and holidays. We went to Our Lady Queen of Martyrs school up the street. All my aunts and uncle would gather there, with cousins and friends. My grandfather owned Carr’s Moving and storage company just a block south, and he had an Irish heart of gold, always helping out people in dire straights. A heavy drinking Irish clan. Occasionally Father O’Conner would come by and give well wishes, diminishing the number of drinks served for a time, and some customers would leave, probably feeling guilty. My brother Garry and I would sit in the dining area and be bought countless cokes and free pretzels, being 9 and 10 years old. I remember my cousin Billy Carr, who had a fabulous voice, singing there, at a large family gathering in the dining room. Great memories.

  98. Remembering My classmate, Michael McGoldrick, Graduating class 1959 Good Sherpherd. This Thursday,
    April 16, Will mark the Day Michael Was Killed IN Vietnam, April 16th 1966. He was 20 Years old. I still miss Him. I am Tom Fahy.

    • Hi Tom. I ran into Mike when we were stationed at Ft. Lee, Va. What time we had. Ran into him back in Inwood at Garry Owens before he was deployed and had a lot of laughs. Tragic news to hear of his death in Nam. Visited him at the Wall. Who can knock the Rams down? NOBODY!

    • Hi Tom. Hope all is well. Like me I assume you’re retired as well. Are you still on Long Island. I’m in NJ now.
      Hope to see you at a Good Shepherd event.
      A Happy and healthy New year to you and yours
      Ray Sullivan

  99. From way over on Archer Street/St. Anthony’s in the Bronx, we would drive over to the Long Valley Pub for the Ranger/Islander playoff games in the late 70s and early 80s. Why? The Bronx did not yet have cable T.V., and to watch the games you had to go into Manhattan to see them. I remember the 207 St. Bridge being packed with cars filled with hockey fans heading back to the Bronx after the game ended.

      • Many a night and day at “Thee Pinewood”,Bill Crotty owned it then.I attended Manhattan College on the GI bill till Manhattan cranked up the credit hour fees.Never did get a degree but had a grand time as a student with the Pinewood as our last class !

  100. no one ever mentions The Wigwam on the corner of Thayer & Sherman.
    It was owned by Joe Diana. Hung out there in the late 50’s

  101. Hey all,

    Was trying to think of the name of a bar that was on 231st in Kingsbridge. Closed up probably mid 90s. Next to Chase bank. Was where Popeye’s is now.
    On the north side of the street, heading towards Kingsbridge ave. Anyone know? Same street as Ehrings if people remember that one.
    Thanks!

  102. Does anybody remember the TERMINAL bar? My dad Eddie Maguire worked here late 60’s early 70’s??????? He said it was the last stop of the subway… he lived on bailey avenue with my mother and brother. He was a football and is 78 now alive and well back in Ireland

    • Terminal was a great pub at 242nd and Broadway. Sandwiched in between The Pinewood and Greenleaf Pub. Cullen & Breslin’s was also on that block.

      Terminal was a popular late stop for Manhattan Jaspers. In 1973, my buddy had broken his leg in a Manhattan football game. A few weeks later, on crutches, he was popping holes in the ceiling at the back room of the Terminal bar with his crutch. The bartender was not amused. Maybe that was your dad? Hahaha

    • I worked at the Pinewood. I remember Mike Cooney and the bartender. I think he played soccer and was thinking about trying to play American football as a kicker.

    • I knew Mike Cooney who managed the Terminal, and the night bartender who I think played soccer. If I remember correctly I think he may have wanted to play American football as a kicker. I worked in Crotty’s Bar, the Pinewood, 2 doors down from the Terminal.

  103. Richard Thestrup I used to hangout in Chambers, mostly at the rear bar. Met a lot of great girls there. (Irish catholic) I used to be the bouncer at the Inn Between. Great training for my future in the NYC Dept of Correction. Great memories of the old Neighborhood. Now live on Smithtown, Long Island.

  104. Does anyone have a picture of the INN Between (bar on corner of 207 St & Sherman Ave) or of the far wall of the Miramar swimming pool? Im creating a diaroma of 1960s Inwood in memory of my parents, Al Porterfield and Ruth Jane Taylor.

  105. I was raised in Inwood and I have a question about the Flagpole on Sherman Ave. and Isham St.
    it is still there, is it being used. In the 1970’s Chambers collected money from many people in
    the neighborhood to erect the Flagpole to Honor our Fallen Hero’s who died in Vietnam.

    • Mike,

      The flagpole is still there. I was curious about its history. I don’t believe it’s still in use, but I’ll pass by sometime soon and see if a flag is flying.

      My father served in the Navy in Vietnam. He carried the weight of what happened over there until his death several years ago.

      Best wishes. Cole

      • I was raised in Inwood and I have a question about the Flagpole on Sherman Ave. and Isham St. It is still there, is it being used. In the 1970’s Chambers
        and Doc Fiddlers collected money from many people in the neighborhood to erect the Flagpole to Honor our Fallen Hero’s who died in Vietnam. Read the story in the new book The Greatest Beer Run Ever Chapter 1 which I just got today. They are mak-
        ing a new Movie also due out next year. All about the men from Inwood who went
        to Vietnam and their friend just wanted to bring them a beer.

  106. Terminal bar under the el at 242nd and Bway? There are others. Mike Cooney was the manager In the 60’s and 70’s. I worked in the Pinewood, just south of the terminal. I knew an Eddie that worked there. Maybe a soccer player. He talked about trying out as a kicker for football. Maybe the Giants. My name is Larry. I used to go in there after the Pinewood closed. Cullen and Breslin’s bar was north of the Terminal.

    • Kids ruined the unofficial arrangement between the local bars of The Terminal , Pinewood and The Greenleaf . Some kid assaulted a cop , then the cops then cracked down on the whole area , enforcing the drinking age rule . When drinking age was then raised to 21 , that killed the business in that area . It was a great social area for meeting women back around 1975 -1985

  107. Terminal Bar was a tough place. Irish hurlers, soccer players, etc Mike Cooney would throw you out in a minute. I knew his bartender wanted to play American football. A kicker, I think. Don’t remember his name for sure.

  108. The bar on the corner at 10th Avenue & 207th street was Cove I think it had a first name but I can’t think of it.

  109. I grew up on 211th street and remember almost all of these fine establishments. The bar next to the Inwood Lounge was called Wilds in the 50’s. My father used to bring me there. All the regulars would order machirsino cherries and give them to me I was 4 at the time. There was a tree in the middle of the place. After I got out of the Air Force I worked for Mike McSherry covering shifts in all his places but mostly Uee’s on 207th.

  110. I grew up in ginwood on Beak st n Payson ave ! Across from payson park was the Bucket of blood where the Teenagers hung out ! I would go to Fays or Mc sherrys w my dad n gpa after my dad would pick me up from my gps house on 212th I went to ps 98 ! I played in the phone booth n drank Shirley temple’s and when they finished their second martini we would go home n leave my grandfather to walk( stumble home) ! As I grew up my girl friends and I would go to track down their dads at their favorite bars and mooch money from them ! My gf Leslie Fentons dad ran the Bowling ally on Dyckman ! We spent many a winter afternoon there! The playground and payson park was our spot to play basketball and other games ! Gary Owens and the sloop was where at 15 we would go and Drink like we were grown ! The memories are faint but the friendships aren’t! The Fentons the Ryan’s And many others I still keep in touch with god bless Inwood keep her in our Hearts for life ! Ps my mom 99.8 years old still living there Payson ave ! 👍🎉🌀

  111. I was going into the Navy in 1964,enlisting while at Hayes.So I needed some partying to do before I went on active duty.The inwood lounge was good for me with the fun time and “Vinny Foley and The Gents” were good for my ears.What happened to the with the tree in the bar,next to the lounge. Is the new Inwood Bar & Grill at the same location as the Original Inwood Lounge ? Thanks All the tales that people submitted were OUTSTANDING ! thanks,again

  112. True, hey BILLY IN THE AIR FORCE ITS J.T. DOWNEY PARK TERRACE GREAT TO SEE UR WITH US GOD BLESS SAY HELLO TO EDDIE CORLISS AND MAUREEN 🙏🙏🙏

  113. While doing some reading about the upcoming movie I came across this great site. I am the son in law of Gene McCormack of Gary Owens fame. To those who do not know – Gene passed about 6 years ago. Gene loved his Inwood roots and he shared many great bar, stickball and other stories about growing up in Inwood. Best to all from his Riverdale son in law.

  114. The bar across 10th Avenue from The Starboard Side was E&Gs. Great times back in the late 60s. Joe Namath had the upper East side of Manhattan but every teenager in the tristate area had Northern Manhattan. New Jersey and Connecticut kids would also show up. The streets were packed with kids, sometimes fighting, but I never heard a gunshot during the hundreds of weekend nights we enjoyed back in the days while waiting for the “Greetings” letter from our Uncle Sam. God Bless America!

  115. Mike Cullinan- I just saw the movie, October 2022 on Apple+Tv. It was great to remember the War and Inwood’s link. I just finished the book and it is even better, adding more local flavor as well as more perceptive views of how Chickie’s view of the war changed. Me and my buddy, Donald Sullivan, would go from our homes in Jackson Heights to Chambers on Fridays and Doc Fiddlers on Sunday afternoons, and go down to the Inwood Lunge to shout the right answerrs to the kids on College Bowl. From October 1966 to Octiber 77 I dated Kathleen Sissy O’Sullivan, who lived right around the corner , SW of Sherman and Isham. Anyone know what happened to her or her brothers? Our main connection was from Rockaway Beach. Maggie McGoldrick was part of our beach crowd. Her little brother, Tommy, died in Nam, RIP, and is listed in the back of the Beer Run book. PS- Donald and I went in in 1964 and got out, thank God, in June of 66, just as the war was exploding.

    • Jim – I read the book and saw the movie, both were great
      In May 1966 I was home on leave from the Army and I
      wanted to go out and get a few beers in the neighborhood
      so I headed for Garry Owens. In another three days I was
      heading to Vietnam. I got to the bar and asked the bar
      tender for a beer. He looked at me as he was pouring it and
      said are you in the military. I guess he saw my very short
      haircut and I said yes I am. I told him in three days I was
      going to Vietnam. He would not let me pay for a beer at
      all. After that, they were all on the house. The bartender
      was the Colonel – George Lynch. I was there for a number
      of hours. When I was leaving the Colonel shook my hand
      and wished me luck. In May 1967 when I returned I went
      to Doc Fiddlers and I saw George, I told him I just got
      back He cared about everyone from Inwood who were
      in the service. It was great to be home again.

  116. Jim – I thought the book & movie were great also. In May of 1966 I was on leave so I
    went to Garry Owens for a few. so the bartender sees me and my very short haircut
    and say’s are you in the military. So I say yes. The bartender was the Colonel George
    Lynch. He bought me beers for the rest of the night on the house. I told him I was
    heading to Vietnam the following Monday and when I was leaving he shook my hand
    and wished me luck. I came home in May 1967. I went to Doc Fiddlers and saw George
    again and like you Iwas just glad to be home in Inwood.

  117. Jim – I read the book and saw the movie, both were great
    In May 1966 I was home on leave from the Army and I
    wanted to go out and get a few beers in the neighborhood
    so I headed for Garry Owens. In another three days I was
    heading to Vietnam. I got to the bar and asked the bar
    tender for a beer. He looked at me as he was pouring it and
    said are you in the military. I guess he saw my very short
    haircut and I said yes I am. I told him in three days I was
    going to Vietnam. He would not let me pay for a beer at
    all. After that, they were all on the house. The bartender
    was the Colonel – George Lynch. I was there for a number
    of hours. When I was leaving the Colonel shook my hand
    and wished me luck. In May 1967 when I returned I went
    to Doc Fiddlers and I saw George, I told him I just got
    back He cared about everyone from Inwood who were
    in the service. It was great to be home again.

  118. I grew up on Vermilyea and my teenage years were in the 80s so I did my (underage) drinking in Liffey II mainly, Donemay, Garry Owens and Keenans sometimes, Hedgehog a few times… remember a few early mornings at Lakes of Killarney too. Fondly remember the Liffey bartenders: Tommy (Fridays) and Andy (Saturdays). A few fistfights here and there but all in all fun times in Inwood bars (but some memories a bit fuzzy!)

  119. Does anyone remember John Cahill who I believe grew up on Academy St?
    He was a regular at the ValRay Boat Club off the east side of Dykman St.
    I’m his son Jim.

LEAVE A REPLY

Please enter your comment!
Please enter your name here