The Owl Bar – Baltimore’s Speakeasy Secret

Here's a Retro Roadmap worthy bar that I wrote about for the National Trust for Historic Preservation! Had to include it on the map of course :-)

A wise old owl sat in an oak / the more he saw the less he spoke
The less he spoke the more he heard…. (why can't we all be like that wise old bird?)

First time visitors to the Owl Bar may be amused by the appearance of a nursery rhyme embedded in stained glass above the antique backbar at Baltimore’s landmark Belvedere Hotel. More than a quaint decoration, the rhyming couplet is actually a nod to the Prohibition-era legacy that the bar’s feathered mascots played a major part in.

Built in 1903 The Belvedere was the city’s first luxury hotel, putting Baltimore on the map as a place where well-heeled travelers - from presidents to royalty - could rest and relax in a manner befitting their status. Crafted in the popular Beaux-Arts style, the hotel was quite the gathering spot with no place more cozy than the dark paneled Owl Bar tucked away off of the main lobby.

Originally known simply as the Bar Room (later the Falstaff Room) the space today retains many of its 100+ year old features. From the finely carved wood entryway and antique chandeliers to the murals depicting maidens passing frothing steins of beer to swashbucklers below.

The tavern room with its decorative brickwork, leaded glass windows and terracotta tiled floor still retains the feel of the historic era when the wise old owls roosting above the bar kept their beaks closed but their eyes opened, much to the delight of patrons wanting to wet their own beaks.

The Owls were placed atop the cash registers ostensibly as decor, however during Prohibition, those “in the know” would gaze at their glowing glass eyes for coded messages indicating when illicit liquor was available for imbibing. Nary a word was spoken openly, but when a secret stash of sauce was delivered and it was safe to share, the owls eyes blinked. If the shipment had not arrived or the coast was not clear, the owls eyes remained steadily glowing.

Once Prohibition was lifted in 1933 the Owls (named Sherry Belle and John Eager Howard) flew the coop too. One theory is they were taken as a souvenir by a reveler carried away by the spirit of the ban on booze being lifted. The birds would return again but when the hotel fell on hard times in the early 1970s - used as student housing and then later closed altogether, they vanished - presumably for good.

When the property was purchased and reopened in 1976 a great search for the beloved Owls commenced. It was thought that they were lost to history until one fateful night, when they returned once again. True to their nature, they never spoke a word, but this mysterious poem found alongside them lends an eerie edge to the possibilities:

Where we’ve been, what we’ve seen
No matter the din, no one will glean

But if your eyes are clear today you can tell
The Owls of Belvedere - have returned from Hell!

Today the Owls have been returned as permanent fixtures, overseeing their Owl Bar kingdom from a perch high above the grabbing hands of exuberant patrons. If you look closely you’ll see their eyes flash, just as they did in days of yore - but this time it’s a wink, knowing there are classic cocktails being poured - legally - under their watch.