Historic Pub Crawl Features Taverns That Tell a Story

This article was submitted by historian and certified tour guide, Gary Kulas:

It didn’t take long into Muskego's historic pub crawl on the evening of March 16 for it to become obvious the event would be a success and worthy of repeating.

Participants started arriving early at Marx Pioneer Inn, the launch site for this historic tour, assembling as early as 5:30 p.m. By the time the group left Sobek’s Resort on Woods Road it was evident the bonding had already started to take hold amongst the thirsty (historically speaking) crawlers.

Yes, the brewskies were part of the mix of St.Paddy’s day revelers and the more focused history-craving crowd, but honestly, sometimes you couldn’t tell them apart. At each stop the amplified words of the narrator gave a brief description of the house hosting the group for the current hour, but also a peek into the history of the Muskego community and how it developed as an area of retreat from city life with its offer of recreation and escape.

As the bus moved along to Sneesby’s Denoon Saloon, Schmidt’s Refuge and Mug-Z’s, the stories were told of the long ago days when Interurban Trolley Cars brought weekend travelers out to the Muskego Lakes for fun and frolic at the Muskego Beach Amusement Park, or water sports of fishing and duck hunting, or even a sampling of the world’s oldest profession at one of a number of Muskego’s “Resorts”.

The next offering is scheduled for April 27th when the Historic Muskego Society will again be the recipient of all profits designated to be used for the restoration of the Tail Spin roller coaster sign. This next offering will feature another mix of old Muskego recreation sites including: R & B’s Stage Coach Inn, Mather Lanes, El Vallarta (former William’s Supper Club) and JD’s on Hillendale. This will be the final tour of the winter-spring season with the plan to take the summer off and resume with another round in the fall.

So take advantage of Muskego Historical Society Membership, which qualifies participants for a reduced admission. Like Muskego Historical Society on Facebook or check out their website at www.muskegohistory.org.

We wish to thank all those who made this event possible, including Muskego Public Library, Muskego City Hall staff, Muskego Patch editor Denise Konkol, The Muskego Chamber of Commerce, The Muskego Historical Society Historian, Laura Mishefske, and the many individuals who consented to interviews and shared their valuable experiences with MHS.