LEGENDARY WATERING HOLES: The Saloons That Made Texas Famous

Authors: Byron Johnson and Sharon Peregrine Johnson; David Bowser; Nancy Hamilton; Chuck Parsons; Richard Selcer
Editor: Richard Selcer
Publisher: Texas A&M University Press, 2004
Features: 308 pp, introduction, notes, epilogue, photos, illustrations, index

Review by: The Man Behind the Mask

What would the Old West have been like without the ever-present saloon, where outlaws and lawmen, sporting men and dudes, cowboys and dance-hall girls drank, mingled, gambled, rested, performed, and sometimes raised hell? Probably a lot less interesting for most of us.

The local joint—or joints, to be more accurate—was an unwritten requirement for any self-respecting town on the frontier. They often served multiple functions within their particular municipalities. Some were gone almost as soon as they opened, while others were community mainstays for decades. And nowhere was that more evident than in Texas.

That’s where Richard Selcer has cast his literary eye. The well-known author of Hell’s Half-Acre, a book about Fort Worth’s red light district, has coordinated (and contributed to) this look at four of the best-known watering holes in the Lone Star State: Jack Harris’ Vaudeville Saloon and Theatre in San Antonio; Ben Dowell’s Saloon in El Paso; The Iron Front of Austin; and Fort Worth’s White Elephant.

Each establishment had its own character and environment, and each gained a level of notoriety during and after its run. The Vaudeville is infamous for being the site where Ben Thompson and King Fisher were riddled with bullets on a March night in 1884. All saw some violent actions over the years.

What Legendary Watering Holes does best is paint colorful but accurate descriptions of these places, and of the people who frequented them. That’s to be expected, when the authors include such luminaries as Chuck Parsons (his chapter on the Iron Front is a highlight). Illustrative diagrams of saloon interiors give a better sense of the layouts. Photos enhance the narratives.

A couple of the chapters are a bit clumsy, in particular that dealing with the Vaudeville Saloon. The chapter opens with an overview of the place, and then it goes on to deal with Ben Thompson’s killing of owner Jack Harris, followed by a large section on the Thompson/Fisher murder in the building. That would seem to be the climactic point, leading to the saloon’s demise. Instead, we’re given a hypothetical scenario in which we, the readers, experience a night at the Vaudeville. It seems out of place, frankly, and might well have been inserted earlier in the piece.

Still, this is a worthy effort in providing a view of this slice of Old West life. For that, we should raise a glass to Selcer and company.