In 1853, Charles Burmeister established one of the earliest saloons in Olympia. It was located on Fourth Avenue and Washington Street, where the State Theater is now. This photograph from the 1860s shows Burmeister, his wife, and others in front of the saloon. The building was later moved further west on Fourth Avenue but succumbed to the extension of downtown’s masonry buildings in the early 1900s.
1960s photograph, courtesy State Capital Museum collection, Washington State Historical Society, catalog C2019.0.145
Text © Deborah Ross and The Olympian 2020