North End Tavern and Brewery
Parkersburg, West Virginia · Gilded Age · Est. 1899 · Open today
Since 1899
The North End Tavern, known locally as 'the NET,' opened in 1899 as a small neighborhood pub in Parkersburg's North End, founded by Bradford 'Zip' Thorn, a former professional wrestler. It stayed in business through Prohibition by serving soft drinks and sandwiches instead of alcohol. Longtime owner Joe Roedersheimer bought the tavern in the late 1970s, and in 1997 the family added an in-house brewery, making it the oldest brewery in West Virginia as well as its oldest bar. It remains a working neighborhood tavern and brewpub, marking 125 years of continuous operation in 2024.
The Brookston Beer Bulletin ranks the NET as the 126th-oldest bar in America, and its founder was a former professional wrestler.
What to order: The NET burger, alongside house-brewed beers such as the 5 Way IPA and amber ale, plus a house-made root beer.
How solid is the claim?
West Virginia’s oldest bar — the evidence
North End Tavern and Brewery in Parkersburg is our featured pick for the oldest bar in West Virginia, with a claimed founding year of 1899. Consistently named West Virginia's oldest bar/restaurant by multiple independent outlets (Thrillist, Food & Wine, 24/7 Wall St, local TV, and Parkersburg's CVB) with no credible in-state rival found; the only continuity caveat is that it survived Prohibition by serving soft drinks and sandwiches rather than alcohol.
Sources
- 1. North End Tavern & Brewery - official site
- 2. Making the Rounds: Parkersburg's North End Tavern still raising the bar after 125 years - News and Sentinel (Oct 2024)
- 3. The oldest restaurant in West Virginia is more than a century old - WOWK 13 News
- 4. West Virginia's Oldest Continuously Operating Bar Has Been Pouring Drinks Since 1899 - Unearth the Voyage
- 5. North End Tavern - Greater Parkersburg CVB