Peabody Bookshop and Beer Stube

The Peabody Bookshop and Beer Stube was a fixture in the Mount Vernon section of Baltimore, Maryland for over 50 years.

There was a crowded, dusty bookshop in front, and a crowded room in the back where customers could get beer and a sandwich. There was a piano on one wall, mounted animal heads, wooden tables carved with the names of patrons. At 10:00 PM, Dantini the Magnificent would do his 15-minute magic show.[1]

The bookshop also served as an art gallery for local artists.[2]

Location

Located at 913 N. Charles Street, the Peabody was within walking distance of the Walters Art Gallery, the George Peabody Library, the Joseph Meyerhoff Symphony Hall, Baltimore's Washington Monument, and the Brexton Hotel.

Weisberger years

Brothers Hugo and Siegfried Weisberger, Austrian immigrants, started the bookshop in 1922, during Prohibition. Siegfried became sole owner in 1931, when Hugo died.[3]

This was an early example of a bookshop with its own beer bar, and possibly the very first such in the US.[4]

Weisberger abandoned the Peabody in 1954, convinced by long time patron H. L. Mencken, that the "Age of the Boob" had arrived, and people were no longer interested in "books and ideals and culture. They only want dollars."[5]

When Siegfried walked away from "100,000 volumes nobody wants to read", the news was covered across the nation, from Detroit to Phoenix, Arizona; Wilmington, Delaware to Santa Cruz, California. [6] [7] [8] [9] [10] [11]

Interregnum

The Peabody didn't stay closed. It reopened under the ownership of Paul P. Adler and Irving Mindess, later in 1954, and remained popular with students from the University of Maryland[12]

Rose Hayes years

The oft-married Rose Boyajian Smith Pettus Hayes took ownership of the shop in 1957 and ran it until she died in 1986.[1]

Rose added a second bar upstairs,[13] and was active in preserving other Baltimore properties,[14][15] including revitalizing the Brexton Hotel[16] In the 70's the Peabody hosted Saturday film festivals.[17]

In 1979, the Peabody suffered the loss of two long-time performers: singer–violinist Max Rathje who knew every regular's favorite song, and Vincent Cierkes, popularly known as “Dantini the Magnificent."[18]

The shop closed not long after Rose's death.

End

The building at 913 North Charles Street was demolished in 1997, to make way for a parking lot.[19]

Patrons of note

In fiction

Natalie Standiford based Carmichael's Bookshop, in "How to Say Goodbye in Robot"[20] on the Peabody Bookshop.[21]

References
  1. "The Peabody Book Shop: One for the books… Or Not". Baltimore Or Less. 2019-01-23. Retrieved 2019-09-29.
  2. "The Baltimore Sun from Baltimore, Maryland on February 2, 1958 · 93". Newspapers.com. Retrieved 2019-09-29.
  3. McGill, Douglas C. (1984-03-26). "Siegfried Weisberger Is Dead; Baltimore Bookseller Was 88". The New York Times. ISSN 0362-4331. Retrieved 2019-09-29.
  4. Rosen, Judith (2013-09-27). "Baltimore Bookstores Adding Brews and Food". PublishersWeekly.com. Retrieved 2019-09-29.
  5. "Peabody Book Shop and Beer Stube, 913 N. Charles St". izi.TRAVEL. 1954-03-05. Retrieved 2019-09-29.
  6. "Detroit Free Press from Detroit, Michigan on March 5, 1954 · Page 7". Newspapers.com. Retrieved 2019-09-29.
  7. "The Morning News from Wilmington, Delaware on March 5, 1954 · Page 30". Newspapers.com. Retrieved 2019-09-29.
  8. "Anderson Herald from Anderson, Indiana on March 5, 1954 · Page 17". Newspapers.com. Retrieved 2019-09-29.
  9. "Sure 'Age Of Boob' Is On Us Mencken's Friend Closes Shop". Santa Cruz Sentinel. 99 (55). 1954-03-07. p. 19. Retrieved 2019-09-29.
  10. "The Indianapolis Star from Indianapolis, Indiana on March 5, 1954 · Page 46". Newspapers.com. Retrieved 2019-09-29.
  11. "Arizona Republic from Phoenix, Arizona on March 5, 1954 · Page 1". Newspapers.com. Retrieved 2019-09-29.
  12. Haymann, Ed (September 1954). "Baltimore's Famous Beer Stuber". The Old Line. Vol. XXI no. 1. University of Maryland. pp. 14–15 – via Internet Archive.
  13. Schoettler, Carl (1997-10-06). "CLOSING THE BOOK The Peabody Book Shop and Beer Stube ends a long and colorful era in Baltimore's social and literary history". baltimoresun.com. Retrieved 2019-09-29.
  14. "National Park Service Nomination Form – 913 North Charles Street (Rose B. Pettus)" (PDF). National Register of Historic Places. 1975-11-04.
  15. "Historic Preservation Certification Application – 7 – 16 West Biddle Street (Rose B. Smith)" (PDF). National Register of Historic Places. 1980-10-22.
  16. "Hotel Brexton – Romantic Things to Do in Baltimore Maryland". romance.historichotels.org. 2018-02-26. Archived from the original on 2018-02-26. Retrieved 2019-09-29.
  17. "The Baltimore Sun from Baltimore, Maryland on October 18, 1970 · 91". Newspapers.com. Retrieved 2019-09-29.
  18. "Hanover Evening Sun Archives, Mar 19, 1979, p. 23". newspaperarchive.com. Retrieved 2019-09-29.
  19. "Localities". The Mencken Society. 2004-02-13. Retrieved 2019-09-29.
  20. Standiford, Natalie (2010). How To Say Goodbye In Robot. Scholastic Incorporated. ISBN 978-0-545-23169-5.
  21. "Robot Mystery Page". Natalie Standiford. 2018-08-02. Archived from the original on 2018-08-30. Retrieved 2019-09-29. Peabody Book Shop and Beer Stube, the real-life inspiration for Carmichael's Book Shop (the Peabody is now, sadly, closed)

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