Old Tavern Antique Co. began in early 2007 with a quest to save a fantastic piece of history to the town of Bruning, Nebraska. The historic Brunswick “Del Monte” bar was going to be auctioned to the highest bidder. Owner Jay Schoenholz envisioned the potential of a unique antique store surrounded by the bar’s wealth of history.
History of the Brunswick “Del Monte” Bar
The bar was originally purchased by Herman Bruning Jr. in 1907 at Brunswick’s headquarters in St. Louis, Missouri. It is believed to have been built in Dubuque, Iowa as most (if not all) of Brunswick’s bars were built in Iowa between 1890 and 1912 by highly skilled artisans. After it was built, the bar was transported down the Missouri River and then transferred onto a train where it stayed until it arrived at the west end of main street on the rail line.
School was let out the day the bar was unloaded off the train and moved to the building that is now Bruning’s new library in the middle of the south side of main street.
In 1908, Herman Bruning Jr. constructed a large brick building to serve as the new saloon. During the construction period the saloon was temporarily housed in the “new” Bruning Opera House. The saloon and Opera House were the first public buildings in Bruning to have electric lights. Electricity was supplied by a line from Herman Bruning Jr.’s private power plant at his residence four blacks away. The saloon at the time was as much a meeting place and men’s social club as it was a place to purchase liquor. All the news from crops and weather to politics was discussed.
The Brunswick “Del Monte” bar is 26 feet long. It features both front and back portions, the tops of both are constructed from solid pieces of wood. As evident by the deep grooves in the top of the front bar (from patrons rubbing coins into the wood), it was a fully functioning saloon from the time it was put into service in 1908 until the saloon closed in 2006. As Brunswick also offered complimentary pieces of bar furniture, a third cabinet was purchased initially in 1907. That cabinet was designated for liquor on the top and used as a humidor on the bottom.