A history of Freeport bars

Librarian breaks down village's tavern legacy

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About three years ago, two Freeporters began listing all the bars they knew around Freeport. The list was relatively short, but when they gave it to Village Historian Cynthia Krieg, she began asking around about all the bars and taverns that people knew about.

Krieg then handed the list over to Regina Feeney, the Freeport Memorial Library archivist, who compiled a master list on the library’s website, which lists the names and locations of more than 270 bars, from old taverns to speakeasies to modern-day fixtures of the community. 

To share that history amid a pandemic — and potentially relieve a little of the anxiety that so many are feeling — Feeney hosted her first online seminar, “Freeport Walks into a Bar,” on April 4, for which residents logged in to learn about some of the most famous bars and bar owners in the village.

A village that loves its bars

While Freeport has existed as a settlement since the 1640s, it began thriving as a community in the early 1800s as waves of European immigrants arrived to earn a living on the South Shore. Among the immigrants were German brewers, who set up various taverns, inns and beer houses in Freeport.  

By the 1830s, drinking became fairly common around the village, so much so that Freeporter A.J. Smart, who grew up in the village around that time, documented an instance in which a teacher at Freeport’s first public school ordered a local boy to pick up a mug of beer for him, which the teacher then drank at school.

Smith wrote about his fellow Freeporters, saying “their highest pleasures were found in convivial associations and rough, physical sports, in and about the taverns, which were very numerous.”  

Not only were the bars favorite places to gather, but also they were places where residents could fulfill their civic duties and file their paperwork with the local government. 

In his biography, “Simple Biography,” lifelong Freeport resident William Golder recalled going to the BT Smith House to vote during the election of 1864, where residents would go to the adjacent bar to drink and enjoy music as they celebrated. 

Local taverns like the B.T. Smith Hotel were also places where residents could pay their taxes at a discounted rate and apply for oyster licenses, as oyster farming was one of the most popular professions in Freeport. 

The growth of Freeport’s Nautical Mile is also intertwined with beer as W.C Ellison, the first to build a dock and fishing station on Woodcleft Avenue, opened his own bar and restaurant on the mile. His business, “Captain W.C. Ellison,” was famous for advertising New York Yankees owner Jacob Ruppert’s Knickerbocker Beer. 

Where anything can happen

As bars continued to grow throughout Freeport, a number became centers of criminal activity. 

One was even home to the notorious Schang Gang, which operated around the turn of the century. The Happy Times Tavern, also known as Schang’s Hotel, was on Buffalo Avenue and was operated by husband and wife, Charles and Alma Schang, along with their teenage son, Christian.

In his autobiography, “Harpo Speaks,” Mark Harpo wrote about the Schangs when he worked for them as a piano player in the tavern. He said that while the tavern operated as a brothel for the men hired to dig canals in Freeport, it was also a place of organized crime. His brother, Chico, joined the Schang Gang, he said, becoming a burglar for the group.

In 1907, police arrested the Schangs and found about $8,000 worth of stolen goods on them, which would amount to nearly $250,000 today. Among the stolen items was the racehorse Parkvill Prince, whom the Schangs stole to use as a getaway ride during their robberies.  

When prohibition arrived in the 1920s, Regina Feeney, the Freeport Memorial Library archivist said, the village became known as a center for taverns and speakeasies that operated outside the law.

The village was visited often by Izzy Einstein, an agent of the U.S. Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco and Firearms, who conducted many raids during Prohibition.

Schawb’s Tavern, which was on Church Street, was one such place that transformed its bar into a cabaret that served drinks and played loud music. Although owner Louis Schawb swore he only sold alcohol-free drinks, the U.S. Military Police accused him of permitting acts of disorder, which at the time included singing, piano playing and loud language after midnight. 

Schawb was defended by famed Long Island attorney George Morton Levy and ultimately acquitted of all charges. 

When Prohibition ended in 1933, newspaper records show that South Shore residents rejoiced, with members of the Freeport American Legion and a 50-piece band shooting an effigy representing the law and parading its corpse through the streets.

“Old Man Prohibition died in Freeport, executed by firing squad on Sunrise Highway,” the Daily Eagle’s headline read.

In the post-Prohibition and modern era, Freeport could still be defined by the many bars that call the village home.

In 1947, Edward Hong opened the Savoy Inn along West Merrick Road, where he not only served alcohol but used it as a place to champion civic involvement. He often hosted fundraisers to help the less fortunate and soon became the president of the Freeport Lions Club. He was the first Chinese merchant on Long Island to head a service organization. 

Today, whether it’s at Jeremy’s Ale House or at E.B. Elliott’s, bars in Freeport are usually the go-to places to hold fundraisers that support the local community. 

To find the list of bars that existed and continue to thrive in Freeport, visit libguides.freeportlibrary.info/LocalHistory/bars.