Personally, I love bars like the New Hudson Inn in New Hudson. I search out places that aren’t cookie-cutter and have a rich history. This place has that and lots more.
Built in 1831, it’s Michigan’s oldest bar, and a frequent stop for motorcyclists throughout the warmer months, as well as people just looking for a great neighborhood bar with good food and drink.
Recently, I stopped by on the way to work. Owner, Chris “Stony” Stone, gave me the full tour, including upstairs, which I’d never seen. That area features various rooms that were used as hotel rooms and for other things in the 1800s. The walls are adorned with wallpaper that’s brittle and peeling, some gone showing the boards underneath. Man, if those walls could talk.
One thing I made sure he showed me was the clawfoot tub that he wanted to make into a beer tub for the bar. After a psychic told him it might not be a good idea to move that from its original location, he thought better of it and it remains upstairs to this day. I mean, why mess with things now, right?! You can see the picture of that below.
The bar was remolded in 2016 and they discovered some really cool things. One was a stairway that led upstairs, which up until that point no one had known about. It’s believed the old Inn was used during the Underground Railroad days and was used to house slaves. Like I said, this place has a TON of history. Some of the items they found during the remodel can be found on display in the barroom downstairs.
You might be asking yourself, since it’s so old, is it haunted? I guess that depends on who you ask. Stony said there’s been some crazy happenings and sightings around the old place, so it’s possible.
Head out and check out the New Hudson Inn, grab a burger and a beer, and let me know what you think.
-Meltdown-
