{"id":2151,"date":"2022-08-23T07:30:00","date_gmt":"2022-08-23T07:30:00","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/libblogs.luc.edu\/wla\/?p=2151"},"modified":"2026-01-12T21:33:59","modified_gmt":"2026-01-12T21:33:59","slug":"ladies-night-the-bars-that-shaped-mundelein-college","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/libblogs.luc.edu\/wla\/2022\/08\/23\/ladies-night-the-bars-that-shaped-mundelein-college\/","title":{"rendered":"Ladies\u2019 Night: The Bars that Shaped Mundelein College"},"content":{"rendered":"\n
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Figure 1. A group of students celebrate their coming graduation at the annual \u201c100 Days Party\u201d at Hamilton\u2019s Bar and Grill. <\/em><\/figcaption><\/figure>\n\n\n\n

College campuses are complex organisms. They are made up of students, staff, faculty, halls, arenas, and libraries. The college experience is comprised of classes, organizations, student jobs, and groups of friends. For many students, the bars, clubs, and restaurants play a large part in not only their college experiences, but also of the college environment at large. Socialization is an integral part of college and one of the major factors that perspective students consider when choosing an institution. This was just as true for the students attending Mundelein College<\/a> as it was for any student at any other university. While conducting interviews for the Share Your Story: Student Life at Mundelein Oral History Project<\/a>, Mundelein alumnae often reflected on their experiences in these public social spaces as some of the most memorable. Local bars and restaurants like Hamilton\u2019s and The Red Garter, while gone, live on in the memories that were made there. Mundelein yearbooks are filled with joyful pictures of these locales and the events and parties that went on there. From \u201cLadies\u201d Night\u201d to the \u201c100 Days Party,\u201d Mundelein students understood the importance of balancing academics with social activities. In remembering Mundelein College, we must accept a truth that where college students attend classes, they also attend parties, bars, and clubs.<\/p>\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n

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Figure 2. Friends share drinks at \u201cHammy\u2019s,\u201d during the \u201c100 Days Party.\u201d <\/em><\/figcaption><\/figure>\n\n\n\n

When researching the\nsocial activities of Mundelein students, one name comes up almost immediately:\nHamilton\u2019s Bar & Grill. In an interview with Women and Leadership Archives graduate\nassistant Scarlett Andes, Marguerite Phillips Britton, a graduate of the class\nof 1959, reflected on her experience with the bar: \u201cHamilton\u2019s was a bar on\nBroadway. It was the<\/em> college hangout at that time, for Loyola and for\nMundelein, although we weren\u2019t supposed to be there\u201d [1]. Hamilton\u2019s Bar &\nGrill opened in 1933, only three years after Mundelein College, and operated\nuntil its closure in 2012 [2]. By the 1970s, Hamilton\u2019s, or simply \u201cHammy\u2019s,\u201d\nwas so engrained into the culture of Mundelein College that they helped sponsor\nthe Mundelein Yearbook and hosted an event called the \u201c100 Days Party.\u201d During\nthis event, seniors gathered to one hundred days prior to graduation to\ncelebrate their time at Mundelein. The 1970 Yearbook remembered the event: \u201cFebruary\n26, 1970 found the seniors at Hamilton’s, drinking beer and singing\n\u2018Celebrate.\u2019 It was only 100 days till Graduation. The end was suddenly in\nsight, and the countdown began with jubilation and, perhaps, a tinge of regret\u201d\n[3]. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

While Hamilton\u2019s\nhosted this celebration, it also served as a regular social space for both\nMundelein and Loyola students on a more regular basis. In an interview with WLA\ngraduate assistant Melissa Newman, Karen Szymanski of the class of 1971\nreflected on her experiences at Hamilton\u2019s as an underage undergraduate. \u201cI\nremember we would head down to Hamilton’s every now and again for burgers. And\nyeah, that was fun. And they let us into a back room because most of us were\nunderage. But as long as we were drinking like Coke along with the burgers,\nthen it was okay\u201d [4].<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Sadly, Hamilton\u2019s\nclosed on October 27, 2012, following almost eighty years of serving Mundelein\nand Loyola students alike. The space remained a restaurant, eventually becoming\nBar Sixty-Three Pub & Pizza before it closed in 2018 [5].<\/p>\n\n\n

\n
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Figure 3. Sir Whoopee\u2019s advertisement in the 1970 yearbook. \u201cWe have something for everyone!\u201d <\/em><\/figcaption><\/figure><\/div>\n\n\n

Hamilton\u2019s was not\nthe only place underage Mundelein students could go to socialize and grab a\nmeal. Sir Whoopee\u2019s Burgers was located on Sheridan Road in what is now a\nPotbelly\u2019s next to the Lake Shore Campus. Karen Szymanski remembers Sir\nWhoopee\u2019s \u201cwas a sandwich place, and it had this big, like a knight, very fat\nlooking knight on a horse that would go back and forth, and the sign would say,\n\u2018Sir who? Sir Whoopees!\u2019”[6]. Sir Whoopee\u2019s opened in 1968 and quickly\nbecame a frequent spot for Mundelein students to grab a burger and a soda. In\nan interview with graduate assistant Chris Mattix, Katy Hogan, class of 1972,\nrecalled working at Sir Whoopee\u2019s, \u201cit was a really greasy place. When I\u2019d come\nback from work\u2014and we worked there until two in the morning. It was rough.\nYou\u2019d just have to strip down and leave those clothes over there somewhere so\nthey wouldn\u2019t infect anything [7].\u201d Eventually, Sir Whoopee\u2019s was sold, and the\nspace was converted into a Denny\u2019s before its current iteration as a sandwich shop\n[8]. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

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Figure 4. Mundelein students enjoy the stylings of the Red Garter Banjo Club band. <\/em><\/figcaption><\/figure>\n\n\n\n

Another regular\nhaunt for Mundelein and Loyola students was the Red Garter Banjo Club located next\nto the Loyola School of Law on the Water Tower Campus. The Red Garter was opened\nin 1964 in Chicago by Chuck Hillstrom, who opened other Red Garter chain\nrestaurants inspired by the San Francisco original [9]. The club featured a\nregular band and drew students in with several weekly specials. In an interview\nwith WLA Sesquicentennial Scholar Regina Hong, Mary Frances Consola, a 1968\nMundelein graduate, remembered going to the Red Garter \u201cto listen to the banjo.\nThe Red Garter had Ladies\u2019 Night on Tuesday nights so every Tuesday night,\nthere would be a contingent of Mundelein students, mostly seniors, at the Red\nGarter to listen to the banjo music\u201d [10].<\/p>\n\n\n\n

In addition to \u201cLadies\u2019\nNight,\u201d the Red Garter also featured a Monday 10 cent beer special. The 1970\nyearbook dubbed this special \u201cThe Legend of the 10\u20b5 Beer\u201d recalling that \u201cthe\nfirst Monday of the month- any month- found the seniors at the Red Garter\n(other nights they were at Hamilton’s or the Joker). Beer was cheap. Songs were\nloud. Laughs were free. The faculty came too, and no one had a voice for\nTuesday classes\u201d [11].<\/p>\n\n\n\n

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Figure 5. A Trio of Mundelein students [Pat Folliard, Social Science (left), Sue Conser, Social Science (center), and Sue Broderick, English (right)] entertain the Red Garter crowd with banjos and a piano.<\/em><\/figcaption><\/figure>\n\n\n\n

Bars, clubs, and\nrestaurants like Hamilton\u2019s, Sir Whoopee\u2019s, and the Red Garter become\ncornerstones of the memories that alumnae hold when recalling their\nexperiences. These spaces allowed them to socialize with friends, bond with\nfaculty, work part-time jobs, and meet future partners. While these three\nsocial spots are closed now, they live on in the memories of those who spent Tuesdays\nat the Red Garter for Ladies\u2019 Night, who celebrated a forthcoming graduation at\nHamilton\u2019s, or who worked late, greasy nights at Sir Whoopee\u2019s. While most\ncurrent Loyola students have never heard of the banjo club frequented by those\nwho came before them, the times spent in these spaces are encapsulated in\nyearbook photos and articles in The<\/em> Skyscraper<\/em> student newspaper.\nFor those who attended Mundelein College, particularly during the late 1960s\nand early 1970s, these spaces shaped their memories of their college experience\nand remembering these places is an important part of their stories. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

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Chris is a graduate assistant at the WLA and is in their second year in the Public History MA program at Loyola. Chris\u2019 focus is on Queer history in America and Germany in the pre-Stonewall era. Chris is currently a graduate assistant at the Leather Archives and Museum in Chicago, IL. In their free time, Chris is a baker, drag queen, and dog parent. <\/em><\/p>\n<\/div><\/div>\n\n\n\n

\n\n\n\n

[1] Britton, Marguerite\nPhillips, Interview with Scarlett Andes, July 15, 2020, via Zoom, transcript,\nWomen and Leadership Archives, Chicago, IL, available online at  http:\/\/libapps.luc.edu\/digitalexhibits\/s\/voices-from-mundelein\/item\/3207<\/a>. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

[2] Bendersky,\nAri. \u201cLoyola Fave Hamilton’s Bar Closing after Nearly 80 Years.\u201d Eater Chicago,\nOctober 12, 2012. https:\/\/chicago.eater.com\/2012\/10\/12\/6535717\/loyola-fave-hamiltons-bar-closing-after-nearly-80-years<\/a>.\n <\/p>\n\n\n\n

[3] Mundelein\nCollege, Yearbook 1970 <\/em>(Chicago, IL: 1970), 46, Women and Leadership\nArchives, https:\/\/luc.access.preservica.com\/uncategorized\/IO_5bc50806-adbe-4198-a627-b4515b45b620\/<\/a>.\n<\/p>\n\n\n\n

[4] Szymanski,\nKaren, Interview with Melissa Newman, November 29, 2021, via Zoom, transcript,\nWomen and Leadership Archives, Chicago, IL, unpublished. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

[5] Bendersky,\nAri. \u201cLoyola Fave Hamilton’s Bar Closing after Nearly 80 Years.\u201d Eater Chicago,\nOctober 12, 2012. https:\/\/chicago.eater.com\/2012\/10\/12\/6535717\/loyola-fave-hamiltons-bar-closing-after-nearly-80-years<\/a>.\n <\/p>\n\n\n\n

[6] Szymanski,\nKaren, Interview with Melissa Newman, November 29, 2021, via Zoom, transcript,\nWomen and Leadership Archives, Chicago, IL, unpublished. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

[7] Hogan, Katy,\nInterview with Chris Mattix, July 26, 2022, via Zoom, recording, Women and\nLeadership Archives, Chicago, IL, unpublished.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

[8] Holton, John.\n\u201cEverything Old is New Again.\u201d The Sound of One Hand Typing, October 3, 2020.  https:\/\/thesoundofonehandtyping.com\/2020\/10\/03\/everything-old-is-new-old-again-socs\/<\/a>\n<\/p>\n\n\n\n

[9] Cartwright,\nPhil. \u201cRed Garter.\u201d Phil\u2019s Jazz Bands,  https:\/\/www.philcartwright.info\/RedGarter.html<\/a>\n<\/p>\n\n\n\n

[10] Consola,\nMary Frances, Interview with Regina Hong, Session Two, July 15, 2020, via Zoom,\ntranscript, Women and Leadership Archives, Chicago, IL, available online\nat  http:\/\/libapps.luc.edu\/digitalexhibits\/s\/voices-from-mundelein\/item\/3208<\/a>.\n<\/p>\n\n\n\n

[11] Mundelein\nCollege, Yearbook 1970 <\/em>(Chicago, IL: 1970), 12, Women and Leadership\nArchives, https:\/\/luc.access.preservica.com\/uncategorized\/IO_c1fc398e-a61d-4fba-be56-c411bf48f4d7\/<\/a>.\n<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Images:<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Figure 1. Mundelein College, Yearbook 1970 <\/em>(Chicago, IL: 1970), 46, Women and Leadership Archives, https:\/\/luc.access.preservica.com\/uncategorized\/IO_5bc50806-adbe-4198-a627-b4515b45b620\/<\/a>.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Figure 2. Mundelein College, Yearbook 1970 <\/em>(Chicago, IL: 1970), 46, Women and Leadership Archives, https:\/\/luc.access.preservica.com\/uncategorized\/IO_5bc50806-adbe-4198-a627-b4515b45b620\/<\/a>. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

Figure 3. Mundelein College, Yearbook 1970 <\/em>(Chicago, IL: 1970), 48, Women and Leadership Archives https:\/\/luc.access.preservica.com\/uncategorized\/IO_b623432b-18dc-41e9-a113-42e2d22f8cb6\/<\/a><\/p>\n\n\n\n

Figure 4. Mundelein College, Yearbook 1968 <\/em>(Chicago, IL: 1968), Women and Leadership Archives https:\/\/luc.access.preservica.com\/uncategorized\/IO_5102fe59-f31f-4b3d-8350-8c16c0d15ee0\/<\/a> <\/p>\n\n\n\n

Figure 5. Mundelein College, Yearbook 1971 <\/em>(Chicago, IL: 1971), 22, Women and Leadership Archives http:\/\/libapps.luc.edu\/digitalexhibits\/s\/150-student-life-timeline\/media\/2732<\/a> <\/p>\n\n\n\n

\n\nLoyola University Chicago’s Women and Leadership Archives Blog is designed to provide a positive environment for the Loyola community to discuss important issues and ideas. Differences of opinion are encouraged. We invite comments in response to posts and ask that you write in a civil and respectful manner. All comments will be screened for tone and content and must include the first and last name of the author and a valid email address. The appearance of comments on the blog does not imply the University’s endorsement or acceptance of views expressed. Questions? Please contact the WLA at wlarchives@LUC.edu<\/a>. <\/em><\/span> \n\n
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College campuses are complex organisms. They are made up of students, staff, faculty, halls, arenas, and libraries. The college experience is comprised of classes, organizations, student jobs, and groups of friends. For many students, the bars, clubs, and restaurants play … Continue reading →<\/span><\/a><\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":103,"featured_media":2155,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":[],"categories":[1],"tags":[],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/libblogs.luc.edu\/wla\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/2151"}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/libblogs.luc.edu\/wla\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/libblogs.luc.edu\/wla\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/libblogs.luc.edu\/wla\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/103"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/libblogs.luc.edu\/wla\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=2151"}],"version-history":[{"count":6,"href":"https:\/\/libblogs.luc.edu\/wla\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/2151\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":2450,"href":"https:\/\/libblogs.luc.edu\/wla\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/2151\/revisions\/2450"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/libblogs.luc.edu\/wla\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/2155"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/libblogs.luc.edu\/wla\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=2151"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/libblogs.luc.edu\/wla\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=2151"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/libblogs.luc.edu\/wla\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=2151"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}