WWW.QNS.COM RIDGEWOOD TIMES FEBRUARY 4, 2021 23
OUR NEIGHBORHOOD: THE WAY IT WAS
Revisiting the remarkable history of Woodhaven’s Neir’s Tavern
PRESENTED BY THE WOODHAVEN
CULTURAL AND HISTORICAL SOCIETY
EDITORIAL@RIDGEWOODTIMES.COM
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On a recent Zoom call with Neir’s
Tavern owner Loycent Gordon,
Councilman Robert Holden announced
that the corner of 78th Street
and 88th Avenue in Woodhaven, where
the tavern has sat for nearly 200 years,
would be co-named Neir’s Tavern Way.
Neir’s Tavern opened in 1829 as The
Blue Pump Room, owned by Cadwallader
R. Colden whose grandfather was
the lieutenant governor of the British
Province of New York and whose cousin
was the mayor of New York City. Colden,
the black sheep of this well-known and
distinguished family, was also the
manager of the historic Union Course
Race Track, which sat directly across
the street from The Blue Pump Room.
The Union Course was a large race
track, sitting between 78th and 85th
streets, from Jamaica Avenue to Atlantic.
Races between horses representing
the North and the South were popular
events with one race, between American
Eclipse and Henry attracting over
60,000 spectators.
The Long Island Rail Road opened a
special station on Atlantic Avenue for
the race track (called the Union Course
stop) and several hotels sprang up to
handle the many visitors to the track.
The track was so well-known that this
entire section of Woodhaven became
known as Union Course.
In 1835 the tavern was sold and
renamed “The Old Abbey” which, as
the track began its long, slow decline,
earned a reputation as a “notorious
rumseller” that catered to the rougher
crowds that now came to the races.
In the 1850s, banker and politician
Nathan Graves purchased The Old
Abbey, and he turned its reputation
around as the race track went through
its fi nal stages before fi nally closing
just aft er the Civil War. The track sat
dormant for nearly two decades before
the land was sold and divided up into
lots where many of today’s Woodhaven
homes would be built.
Just before the turn of the century,
the tavern was purchased by Louis
Neir, who added a bowling alley and a
ballroom and renamed it “Neir’s Social
Hall.” The Neir family also owned a
hotel, just one block south of the tavern
(at the corner of 78th Street and 87th
Road), in a building that still stands to
this day.
Over the years, many of the oldtimers
who frequented Neir’s told tales
of stage and screen legend Mae West
performing in the ballroom. While
Photo courtesy of Woodhaven Cultural and Historical Society
some people cast doubt on these tales,
those who were there back in the day
swore it was true, and she did live just
a few blocks away (on 88th Street off of
89th Avenue).
The establishment was kept by the
Neir family into the late 1960s when it
was sold again and became known as
“The Union Course Tavern.” Its reputation
as an old-time, classic bar with a
rich history attracted the attention of
fi lm scouts and resulted in some of the
more memorable scenes from Martin
Scorsese’s Goodfellas starring Robert
DeNiro and Joe Pesci being filmed
inside in 1989.
It remained under that name until
it was sold again in 2009. The interior
underwent a detailed and beautiful
restoration and it was renamed, once
again, as Neir’s Tavern.
Aft er its restoration, Neir’s Tavern
became a vibrant showcase for musical
and spoken word talent as well as a site
of community gatherings, fundraisers
and coat/toy drives at the holidays. But
there was trouble on the horizon.
Early last year, the building that
the historic tavern occupies was sold.
Friends and family gathered around
owner Loycent Gordon as he made the
announcement that Neir’s Tavern would
be closing in a few days. The 191-year old
business would be no more; it would fall
short of celebrating 200 years.
What followed seemed like a miracle.
A call-in to the mayor on a radio show,
a gathering of politicians and business
leaders, and before you knew it a deal
had been struck and a lease had been
signed, all but guaranteeing a 200th
anniversary.
We wish we could say it’s been smooth
sailing since then, for Neir’s Tavern or
any other restaurant. In the midst of
this pandemic, Neir’s loyal fan base has
continued to support it, coming out in
numbers for weekly Zoom calls, sitting
outside in all weathers and getting lots
of takeout food.
They keep coming out to make sure
that in the future, when people see the
Neir’s Tavern Way sign on the corner of
78th Street and 88th Avenue, they aren’t
scratching their heads, looking around
for yet another historic place that is no
more.
* * *
If you have any remembrances or old
photographs of “Our Neighborhood: The
Way It Was” that you would like to share
with our readers, please write to the Old
Timer, c/o Ridgewood Times, 38-15 Bell
Blvd., Bayside, NY 11361, or send an email
to editorial@ridgewoodtimes.com. Any
print photographs mailed to us will be
carefully returned to you upon request.
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