The Old Town

History

A saloon has operated at Liberty and Ashley since 1898, when John Berger opened The Bismark. It was The Union Bar from 1935 and later Merkel’s Friendly Corner, a blue-collar room that opened at 6 a.m. for third-shift factory workers. Jerry Pawlicki bought it from George Merkel in 1972, renamed it the Old Town Tavern, and built the bar, booths, and hardwood floor himself while keeping the tin ceiling. In 1998 he passed it to his sons, Chris and Steve, who still run what they call Ann Arbor’s last townie bar.