The New Buffalo Business Association held their twelfth annual Bev's Ball this weekend. Journeyman Distillery was turned into a 1920's era speakeasy. Michiganders mingled in their finest threads and sipped hooch brewed on the premise. The more things change, the more they stay the same.
For this week's edition of Throwback Thursday, we'll take you to a street in our fair city that played host to many of the same activities.
Clay Street and Bell Ave, the heart of the roaring twenties in New Buffalo...
Beginning in June, 1924, from 9 to 1 am, .75 cents could get a lady into the door of The Lighthouse for an evening of dancing and dinner. With chicken and steak dinners served by hostess and manager Sis O'Donnell, and entertainment provided by showbiz bigshots like Guy Lombardo and Wayne King, or local acts like Michigan City's "Dick Cook and his Footwarmers, The Lighthouse was the place to see and be seen in New Buffalo during the roaring twenties. According to The New Buffalo Story, (which is available at New Buffalo Township Library) the dinner and dance hall drew an opening night crowd of 1,500 people, and was documented to have operated from at least 1924 until 1929.
Will a concert and dance hall rise again in New Buffalo? Only time will tell. One thing is for sure, it'll probably cost a little more than seventy five cents. This has been our first edition of Throwback Thursday. We'll see you again next week.
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