Historic Columbus Taverns: The Capital City's Most Storied Saloons (American Palate) - Softcover

One of the first buildings in Central Ohio in the 1790s was a tavern and 200 years later--Columbus as a foodie" town shows renewed interest in discovering its historic "liquid assets." Once historic taverns in frontier Columbus featured live bears chained to giant wheels, pumping water for travelers in need of a shower and giving new meaning to the term "watering hole." Existing historic taverns in Columbus span from 1830s through the 1930s and still have little-known histories, stories, scandals, as well as, architectural fabric to explore. One is built on a still active graveyard; another is in the building of a former Pentecostal church. Several remain from the Irish and German migrations and survived Prohibition; one was the quintessential gentlemen's bar still with pool room that connected by underground tunnel to the Ohio Statehouse in a time of temperance. Another was both a tavern and a bordello for Union and Confederate officers (though on different nights). Set in the social and political historic context of a changing city, the taverns offer a chance to explore the city's history through its watering holes."

Tom Betti serves on the board of Columbus Landmarks Foundation and is also chair of the Education Committee charged with leading the organization's educational tours and extensive programming. He is dedicated to bringing history to life through entertaining storytelling. He co-leads the Historic Tavern Tours with Doreen, bringing dry humor and wit. Tom also founded and leads the Historic Preservation Committee of the Athletic Club of Columbus, celebrating, organizing and documenting the club's one-hundred-year history. A native of the Cleveland, Ohio, area, it is fitting that his condo resides in the historic 1898 Hartman Hotel Building in Columbus, Ohio, where he lives with his Boston terrier, Hugo. Doreen Uhas Sauer serves as Board President for Columbus Landmarks Foundation and on a number of boards in the University District, where she is active in historic preservation, urban issues and local history. A longtime Columbus educator with Columbus City Schools, she currently directs a Teaching American History grant and has worked extensively in international civic education. She has received statewide recognition for her work in preservation education, developed more than thirty local history/architecture programs and was named Ohio Teacher of the Year in 2003. She has coauthored books on local Columbus history and on the University District, where she resides with her husband, John, whose roots are extensive in the German South Side.