Wally Spiers: Calendar features historic Belleville Saloons

The 2015 edition of the Belleville Historical Society calendar featuring churches was popular, but the 2016 calendar, Historic Belleville Saloons, may be even a better seller, said Larry Betz, president of the society.

“This is kind of the other end of the spectrum from churches,” Betz said, with a laugh. “We got it out a little earlier this year, and it is drawing a lot of interest.”

At one time, saloons far outnumbered churches in Belleville. Robert Brunkow, the local historian and an advisory board member of the society, who did most of the research and picture gathering for the calendar, said Belleville had 110 saloons in 1910 when the population was 22,000.

“The neighborhood saloon was a social institution where neighbors — mainly men — could gather for libations and recreation, and where a child might be sent to bring home a bucket of beer for dad after work,” Brunkow writes in the calendar introduction.

The calendar features city saloons from around the turn of the 20th Century, most of which are gone. But many of the saloon buildings are still around, and the calendar also has pictures of the buildings as they look now.

Betz said it was a tough choice to narrow down all the saloons, and there were a lot of interesting pictures to choose from. There were 12 finalists plus a cover picture of two men and a boy at the Billy Gaul Saloon, 1022 W. Main St.

The pictures in the calendar were from the society’s collection and from the Belleville Labor and Industry Museum. The pictures reflect the idea that the saloons were social establishments as many have both owners and patrons in them, obviously pleased to be photographed.

The January page features the Daubach West End Saloon and West End Station at 109 N. 12th St. The picture has more than 30 people posed in front of the establishment with children in front, a man with a baby buggy and small child and what appears to be a little girl at right with some sort of a bundle, perhaps a baby. The saloon operated until Prohibition in 1920 when it was converted to a soft-drink establishment.

Brunkow said many of the saloons tried converting to soda parlors when Prohibition started but most failed. Many were suspected of continuing to supply liquor under cover.

“They were saloons when it was legal and maybe even when it wasn’t legal,” he said, as Belleville did not embrace the legal ban on liquor.

Saloon keeping was a second career for many. The calendar features the Val Kain Bar at 1721 W. Main St. Kain was a coal miner who opened the bar in 1915 but returned to mining in 1918 although the saloon remained a tavern until the early 1950s.

There also was the George Becker Saloon at 1119 W. Main St. Becker was a teamster and a Belleville police officer before entering the beverage business.

Brunkow said one of the more intriguing locations was the Jacob Sieben Saloon and Boarding House at 624 S. Illinois St. Sieben took over in 1900 and the establishment had already been in business since 1855 across the street from the Southern Illinois House and Belleville’s first train depot.

Brunkow said the tavern operated legally until Prohibition and then illegally as Hobart W. Miller’s soft drink emporium until Miller spent two years in federal prison for selling liquor.

After Prohibition, the building again sold liquor and now is Friday’s South.

Betz said the society usually sells between 200 and 250 calendars, but early indications are they may have to print more this year.

“You also can get back issues,” he said. “They have become collectibles.”

For more information you can visit the society’s website at bellevillehistoricalsociety.org. You can order the calendar on the website for $10 plus $2 postage and handling.

This story was originally published December 5, 2015 at 7:40 AM with the headline "Wally Spiers: Calendar features historic Belleville Saloons."