Terry’s Bar was first brought to life in the spring of 1965 by Winnebago County Sheriff Deputy Terry Rumlow, who bought the bar from his mother for $5.00! He ran it as a local pub, with the exception of allowing “Strippers” to dance on his stage whenever they were off from the local strip clubs. However, that presented a problem one winter night when there were 14 small fender benders in front of the bar... as the make shift stage was in the front window!! The City Council met the very next week to create a law that is still on the books - to prevent any “strip clubs” from having their stages in the front of their bars!! The stage was torn down by Terry to prevent any problems with city officials!
Terry sold the bar in 1970 to Jon Weber and Charlie Raynor (who’s ashes are encased in a “Shorty Bud” bottle on the back bar today). They ran the bar as a “Veterans” bar during the 70’s.... many of the local Vietnam Vets still stop in occasionally to check on the bar during the holidays! Jon Weber bought out his ex-partner in 1975. He hired me and my brother Bill to run it. After putting in all the hours for a few years, Bill and I bought the bar two days before “St Pat’s Day” in 1978! With myself and my brothers growing up on the Southside of Oshkosh and opening a bar on the Northside, created a few problems.... as the two sides fought continuously back in those times...but after a year of struggles we proved to both sides of town that we could mix them and have fun!!
It didn’t take us long to have the UWO students find us, and soon we were off and running! I ran it with my brother for about 10 years. Then unfortunately in 1987 we had a major fire, that forced us to shut down for seven months, while our two Insurance companies fought each other, and the City wanted us to tear down this 100 plus year old building! Instead my brother and I fought everyone to rebuild and renovate the building back to the way it looked in the late 1800’s. My brother had a broken foot at the time of the fire… but each day after, we both came in and worked from dawn to dusk making sure the building was done our way. We decided to tear down a block building in back by hand and hauled them away 19 at a time in my Jeep. We then put in the cities first Volleyball Court, and started running Leagues. My brother sold out to me to raise a family shortly after we re-opened the new larger bar!
Terry’s has always been the first around to bring in the latest in TV-audio Video equipment, and was voted by the college as the most comfortable bar in town! Don’t forget to watch a Packer Game on one of our seven 42” or two 50” HDTV Plasmas. No one else can compete with the viewing of our games. We have the NFL package, Big Ten network, and ESPN-U so you can watch any game, any week. We also have the only two-sided TV in the state and a 20ft projection screen for the near-sighted!
I have own Terry’s for 34 years, and have been the President of the Oshkosh Tavern League for 14 years looking out for peoples right to party legally.... so why not stop into Terry’s Bar for a great Sandwich or Drink, or ask me to Sponsor your team?
~ Pat Purtell
