History of the Spar       

          Designed by the Famous Architect Joseph Wholeb, the downtown restaurant has catered to the area's working class since it replaced the notorious Taylor Brother's Oxford Saloon in 1935.

          There have been many changes over the years. In the 1930’s, it was more of a tavern than a cafe, offering only beer and wine in the rear of the cafe. Four pool tables and a card room kept the playful busy in the section that is now occupied by the Highclimber Room offering liquor by the drink - established in 1949.

          In the 30’s and 40’s plywood mill workers and longshoremen kept the place jumping night and day – they came to cash their payroll checks, to play poker, pan, pool, punchboards, sports pools, and to place bets on their favorite sporting events, and to check the results on the Western Union tickertape, removed by the U.S. Treasury Department in 1962.

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