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Glascotts is located on the southwest corner
of Webster and Halsted streets in Lincoln Park and has been a fixture
in this Chicago neighborhood since 1937. Beginning with Patrick
Glascott, who immigrated to Chicago from Ireland and opened a saloon
in the late 1800s on Ashland Avenue between Lake and Madison streets,
Chicago's Glascott family has owned a Chicago tavern for more than
100 years.
The Glascott's celebrated their 65th anniversary at the Halsted
Street location, which originated when Patrick Glascotts son
Larry opened Larrys Saloon, a tavern that catered to working
men. "Back then, women didn't go to taverns. It was a shot
and beer place frequented primarily by Irish tradesmen. Larrys
opened at 7 a.m. and workers lined up to buy a shot before catching
the bus to go to work."
Larrys Saloon continued to prosper in the 1940s and 50s with
the invention of the television. Most families didnt have
TVs in their homes until the late 50s, but Larry bought a TV and
his tavern quickly became the neighborhood hot spot for watching
the Friday night boxing matches and other popular evening programs.
In 1965 the seeds for modern Lincoln Park were planted when Mayor
Richard J. Daley named the area Park West and implemented a neighborhood
improvement plan. Larry died in 1975, leaving the family business
to his sons. Renovation of the Halsted property was completed in
1979, revealing an original tin ceiling that had been well preserved.
Today, the fourth-generation of Glascotts continue the family
tradition of hard work and success as they enter into a second century
of their family business. Glascott's Saloon is one of the few establishments
of its kind in Chicago that can claim this type of family legacy.
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