City Spirits: Simonet’s Bar

Part III in a series

GREEN BAY – A Green Bay bar that has been passed down through multiple generations finds its genesis more than 150 years ago.

The business now known as Simonet’s Bar, located at 925 Main St., Green Bay, found its footing as early as 1870 as Mohr’s Saloon.

The owner of the tavern in those days was John A. Mohr, who was also a shoe dealer.

An 1883 Sanborn map shows a small cobbler shop just east of the saloon and a wagon shop just beyond that.

In May 1888, Mohr sold his portion of the shoe partnership to the other associates, John Buerschlinger and G. Bong, and later opened a shoe shop 206 N. Washington Street called Engels and Mohr.

In January 1896, Mohr’s wife passed away of Bright’s disease, and John looked to get out of the saloon business.

“After an absence of 13 years in Omaha, Neb., Joseph Mohr and family have returned to this city,” a May 1896 Green Bay Weekly Gazette article stated. “Mr. Mohr is a son of John A. Mohr, who has been in business at 925 Main Street during the past 25 years. On July 1, John A. Mohr will retire from the business, and his son, Joseph, will continue it at the same stand.”

But after five years, it was still in his hands and he soon looked to unload the property.

“The property owned by John Mohr, 925 Main Street, has been sold to Herman Smitz (sic), who is the owner of a blacksmith and farm implement shop on the corner of Main Street and Monroe Avenue and whose property adjoins that of Mr. Mohr. The property consists of a brick saloon and frame dwelling house and barn in the rear, which was partly destroyed by fire some time ago,” a June 1901 Green Bay Gazette article stated.

Herman’s son, John H. “Yon” Smits ran a harness shop before opening “Yon’s Tavern” in 1917, applying for his first liquor license in July 1917.

John ran the bar 1917-48 until he began having health issues. He passed away in October 1953.

According to city liquor license records, the tavern still operated under the name “Yon’s Tavern” until 1950.

In 1951, the business was leased out by Yon’s children to Hilda & Fred Lewis, who called the bar “F & H Tavern.”

The couple ran the establishment until 1954.

In 1955, the lease was taken over by Ken Kowaleski, who named the bar “Ken & El’s” and ran it until 1958.

Viola C. Samorske then ran it for two years as “Vi’s Villa.”

In January 1961, Samorske transfered the liquor license to Mildred Simonet — one of Yon’s four daughters — and she and her husband, Ed, bought out the other three sisters.

The couple named the new venture, Simonet’s Bar.

“Mildred and Ed had two sons, Jack and Tom, both of who would begin working for the family business almost immediately. With the help of Procter & Gamble and the post office downtown, Simonet’s Bar became a favorite hangout for a lot of those employees.

Endeavors such as buying the Foosball franchise for Northeast Wisconsin helped to establish the bar in the late 60s and early 70s,” the business’s website stated.

“Jack and Tom, along with their wives, Elaine and Ann, bought out Ed and Mildred in 1977 to become the third generation to run the bar and keep it in the family. Ed passed away in 1984, and Mildred in 1993. But during all this time, a lot of changes kept happening, with additions of a bigger bar and game room in the early 1970s. Also, after a fire destroyed a neighboring business in 1976, Ed bought it to be used as a parking lot.

“In 1996, while Jack was recovering from kidney transplant surgery, Tom’s son Mark moved home from college and began helping around the bar. Unfortunately, during recovery Jack passed away in February of 1998. Now, with Mark’s help in 1999, Tom would decide to make a bigger expansion of the bar in place of the parking lot that Ed had bought back in 1976. A brand new 3,000 square-foot barroom would bring capacity to over 100 people and would enable the old bar room to be used as a party room, which has been used to rent out for everything from funeral get-togethers to wedding receptions.”

In 2000, Tom’s other son, Brian, joined the business and in 2007, brothers Mark and Brian and their wives, Juli and Kaye, became the fourth generation to carry on the family institution.