Luckey's Club Cigar Store

Luckey’s Club Cigar Store is a cigar shop and bar in Eugene, Oregon, United States. It is the oldest retail business in Eugene, and among the oldest bars in Oregon.

History

Club Cigar, as it was called in the late 1800s, did not allow female patrons. A man could go to Luckey’s to shop for a cigar, shoot some pool, get a shoeshine, haircut, and shave, and order a sandwich at the cafe in the back. Over the years, it evolved into a place for older men. The store was purchased in 1911 by Tad Luckey, Sr., the son of Irish immigrants and an early Eugene pioneer.[1]

Eugene was a dry town until the end of Prohibition, but Luckey’s survived, while drinking-only establishments struggled. After Prohibition ended in 1933, Luckey’s became the first establishment in Lane County licensed by the newly formed Oregon Liquor Control Commission.[1]

In 1934, in the height of the Great Depression, Tad Luckey, Sr. paid the relatively enormous sum of $300 (equivalent to $5,300 in 2016.[2]) for a horseshoe-shaped custom neon outdoor sign. At the time, most businesses rented their neon signs; this is one of the few that survived. It is the oldest neon sign known to exist in Eugene.[1]

When Tad Luckey Sr. and co-owner Louis De Berg died in the 1940s, they left the business in the hands of their widows, Maude Luckey and Lucinda (Luckey) DeBerg. Even though women were not served at Luckey’s, and there was no women’s restroom, these two women owned a “man’s resort” until the late 1950s.[1]

In 1973, urban renewal was sweeping the nation, and Eugene proceeded to demolish much of the downtown core, including Luckey's and several surrounding buildings. The owner of Luckey’s at the time, Ben Raykovich, purchased an unpaved parking lot at 933 Olive Street and built an exact replica of the old Luckey’s. All the furniture, fixtures, bar, ceiling fans, antique stained glass cigar sign, and antique pool tables were moved back into place in the new building.

The Oregon Liquor Control Commission required that a women's restroom be added for the first time in Luckey's history. City code changes of the 1970s prohibited the large neon sign, so it now hangs over the stage inside the bar.

Today

Today, Luckey's has added a live music stage to appeal to the college students from nearby University of Oregon. Its famous customers include Oregon resident author Ken Kesey, distance runner Steve Prefontaine and Eugene mayor Kitty Piercy.

References

  1. 1 2 3 4 "Luckey's History". Retrieved 2012-03-02.
  2. ↑ Federal Reserve Bank of Minneapolis Community Development Project. "Consumer Price Index (estimate) 1800–". Federal Reserve Bank of Minneapolis. Retrieved October 21, 2016.

Coordinates: 44°02′58″N 123°05′39″W / 44.0495°N 123.0941°W / 44.0495; -123.0941


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