It’s a Sunday night in Center City, Philadelphia. McGillin’s Olde Ale House, one of the oldest operating taverns in the country is lined wall to wall with people. Two-top tables have now become eight-top tables, and standing room no longer exists. It’s approaching nine o’clock and its game four of the 2009 World Series; McGillin’s is bound to become increasingly crowded as the night progresses. The dimly lit bar casts shadows that bounce off of the walls that are adorned with a mix of signs both old and new; from Gimbels, the iconic American department store, to 2008 World Champion Philadelphia Phillies memorabilia.Bar manager, Chris Mullins, Jr. looks around, eyes adjusting to the lack of light, and gazes at the patrons surrounding him. Not missing a beat, he weaves through the crowd, stopping only when greeting the regulars or to briefly chat with one of his servers. Mullins, Jr. knows that he has a special establishment on his hands, one rich in history that has grown with Philadelphia and through his family. He lives for the nights like these and takes nothing for granted.
“It’s so rare to be able to come to a place that people have been going to for a 150 years and still have a quality experience. We definitely do not ever take anything we do for granted,” he explains. “In fact it probably puts more pressure on us because we want to make sure that though people will still want to come visit because we are 150 years old, they are still going to see interesting and unique cocktails and we are still going to make upgrades to this room, we’re never going to sit back and let our age, or reputation carry us.”
The year is 1860; Abraham Lincoln has just been elected 16th President of the United States, the Philadelphia Phillies are about twenty-three years away from becoming a franchise and City Hall, the epicenter of our city has not even come to fruition. However, in a little alley not far from where City Hall would eventually stand, a Philadelphia institution was opened. “The Bell in Hand” as it was originally called, officially opened its doors for business in 1860. Established by William “Pa” McGillin and Catherine “Ma” McGillin, McGillin’s Olde Ale House on Drury Lane in the heart of Philadelphia would prove to be a timely addition to the city of Brotherly Love. Initially a small row home, McGillin’s grew to encompass three buildings, including an oyster house, and would eventually find itself to not only be a stomping ground for laborers and millionaires alike who we’re looking for a place unwind and enjoy a pint, but also to Ma and Pa’s thirteen children, who we’re all raised in the upstairs area of the building which functioned as the McGillin’s home.
Pa McGillin’s life was dedicated to his ale house which provided a peaceful, laid-back atmosphere for the most dignitary of politicians to Civil War soldiers who were perhaps enjoying their last beer before battle. A stickler for traditional and simplistic things, he turned down many offers to spruce up the existing interior and façade of his beloved building. One thing he took pride in almost as much as his quality beers which he aged in the cellar were his floors. He would never replace them; instead continue to layer new floor after new floor on top of each other.
On August 31, 1901, while cleaning these beloved floors, William McGillin passed away. This was not an insignificant moment in Philadelphia history as Pa McGillin had created an establishment that served beers beyond it’s time to a large range of characters. He had created a space that brought all walks of life together in the city. However, his death ushered in a new era of McGillin’s where it proved its sustainability through innovation as it would time and time again.
After Pa McGillin’s death, Ma McGillin took over the ale house which at this time was famous throughout the city. Ma McGillin herself was no stranger to fame. “On her birthday, every November, she would hand out Carnations to every customer and would be serenaded down the street,happy birthday, by crowds of people each year,” explains Mullins, Jr.
This left the ale house in the hands of the youngest McGillin, Mercedes. Mercedes eventually sold McGillin’s to bartenders and brothers, Henry Spaniak and Joe Szczepaniak in 1958. In keeping with the family tradition that has become so deeply rooted and such an integral part of McGillin’s history, Spaniak’s daughter Mary-Ellen Mullins and his son-inlaw Chris Mullins, Sr. became owners of this landmark in 1993, with Mullins, Jr. and his aunt, Mary Ellen’s sister, Kate Newcomer, serving as bar managers.
McGillin’s deep rooted connection to Philadelphia runs deeper than the history, right through its tap lines. There you will find one of the most extensive arrays of local craft beers. Always following the theme of innovation and changing before the times, long before it became so widely popular,Chris Mullins was one of the first to begin serving microbeers. “It was a way for me to differentiate my product. I thought it added a unique aspect to the business,” he says. “My dad really was one of the first pioneers of offering local craft beers. He really tried to support the local breweries and help them by putting it on tap, and we do that today. When we hear a new guy is coming into the market, we always try to support them as best we can and help keeping them going,” Mullins, Jr. explains.
“We are very committed to local craft brews,” Mullins elaborates. “We have our feet in both sides of the beer debate. We’re not beer snobs though,” he is quick to point out. To kick off their 150th Anniversary celebration, they took their love of craft brews one step further and commissioned Stoudt’s Brewing Company to make them an unfiltered IPA, just as it would have been when McGillin’s first opened. McGillin’s 1860 IPA is now available exclusively on tap at McGillin’s and in limited bottle quantity around the city.
On January 1st, 2010, the famous New Year’s ball will drop and “Auld Lang Syne” will be heard throughout the county, but on the biggest little street between Chestnut and Sansom Street in Philadelphia, a new milestone will be reached, McGillin’s will be celebrating its 150th anniversary, no small feat in this day and age. In McGillin’s time there have been twenty-six Presidents, Prohibition started and ended, and the city skyline has grown to greater heights, but McGillin’s Olde Ale House has withstood the test of time. The Mullin’s family will be able to be satisfied in knowing that they have had a hand in establishing what is and will undoubtedly remain one of the most important landmarks in the history of this city. So, cheers to 150 more years of The Bell in Hand and McGillin’s Olde Ale House; long may it ring!