Madison’s oldest bar, the Silver Dollar Tavern, is set to live on in a new form following its imminent closure, the Wisconsin State Journal reports. A gathering and events space in the $160.5 million Wisconsin History Center opening next door on the Capitol Square in 2027 will house the tavern’s 1930s mahogany bar and other memorabilia.
The Silver Dollar Tavern’s fourth-generation owners, the Teasdale family, have donated the bar as well as vintage back bar cabinetry and lighting, neon signs, and other items to the Wisconsin Historical Society for future use. The five-story, 100,000-square-foot History Center will house the state’s vast collection and share regional stories in the context of American history. It selected the Silver Dollar Tavern for its local historical significance and its representation of post-Prohibition-era bars and family-owned taverns — prominent fixtures in Wisconsin’s social and cultural history.
The bar will be a full-service destination within the History Center and provide beverages for guests. The Silver Dollar Tavern will serve its last drink on Feb. 3; Hovde Properties is set to buy the property on Feb. 20 as the company works to redevelop that part of the block.
