The Pickwick Tavern (Pickwood Lounge), a gay-friendly bar and restaurant, opened at 11633 Clifton Boulevard in 1942. The Pickwick Tavern was owned and operated by local restaurateurs Charlie and Gloria Lenihan. Following a lengthy 1947 court battle over the business’ name, the Lenihans were forced to rename the establishment the Pickwood Lounge in 1947. The Pickwood Tavern’s interior was divided between a “wood-paneled, European-style pub” on one half and an “Art Deco-influenced piano lounge” on the other. The Pickwood’s louge contained “black leather-padded booths, a black baby-grand piano, and a priceless, vintage 1923 etching by Cleveland-born modernist painter August Biehle.” Prior to the closure of Gloria Lenihan’s gay-friendly Cadillac Lounge, the Pickwood’s clientele was primarily comprised of an “olde, blue-collar” crowd. After the Cadillac closed in 1970, however, Lenihan’s crowd of gay male regulars followed her to the Pickwood. The Pickwood Tavern remained a popular gay-friendly restaurant and bar throughout much of the 1970s and 1980s. The Pickwood closed in 1987.
Additional information coming soon.
Resources
- “After Redecorating.” Plain Dealer. August 28, 1949.
- Glaser, Chris. “Chapter 5: Gloria Lenihan.” Purple Armadillos: The Intellects, Entrepreneurs and Oddballs of Northeast Ohio’s LGBT Community in the 19th and 20th Centuries. June 25, 2010.
- Mio, Lon. “Blend of Cultural Extremes Mark New Ward 18.” Plain Dealer. September 16, 1981.
- Negron, Sidney. “Gay Bars in Cleveland.” Encyclopedia of Cleveland History.
- Nosek, John, and Leon Stevens. “Gay Community 1970s.” Encyclopedia of Cleveland History.
- “Penalized By Liquor Board.” Plain Dealer. June 19, 1942.
- Rita. “Rita Reads.” Action Magazine. April 1983. Page 3.
- “The Pickwood Lounge.” High Gear. April 1975. Page 10.