Anyone who grew up in a small town…anyone who went to a small high school…anyone who liked high school sports…probably had a special place to unwind after a football or basketball game or wrestling meet.
As high school students in Slatington, the go to place was Art’s Bar. Don’t worry. We weren’t following George Thoroughgood’s advice to have one bourbon, one scotch, and one beer! The bar was in the front of the building, right at the corner of Main and Church Streets. We were in the back, the restaurant part. You had to enter a side door, on Church Street. As soon as you were in, you were overwhelmed with the smell cheesesteaks, fried onions, and pizza.
The bar itself was pretty typical. The bartenders were usually the owners, the Deiberts, husband and wife. There were the regulars, of course. Norm!! There was either a shuffleboard table or one of those bowling alley tables along one wall. There was a condom machine in the men’s’ room. 25 cents! (or so I am told).
The restaurant part of Art’s Bar was unusual in that it was not uncommon for two dogs to be running in between tables. That probably wouldn’t be allowed today. These were not therapy dogs. That didn’t exist back in the day. I remember the cook being a very old woman. Age didn’t matter if you could make a chees steak that good!
At Art’s Bar we celebrated winless football seasons (my freshman year) and undefeated seasons (my senior year). We talked about exciting basketball games that took place in Smith Hall, a few blocks away. Wrestling meets, also in Smith Hall, were talked about less. Wrestling, you either loved it or hated it. Most people hated it!
Smith Hall is long gone. A wrecking ball destroyed what could have been a great community center. Art’s Bar still exists under a different name, Kurt’s Corner. I don’t know if kids today still go there after games. The social life of teens is very different today than it was in Slatington in the ’60s.
To my readers who share memories of Arts Bar, I hope you enjoyed this visit to our shared past. If you grew up in a different town, I hoped it sparked some similar memories for you. After all, it’s good to have a place where every body knew your name!
A Semi-retired Kind of Life 