Riley’s Tavern, 8894 FM 1102 in Hunter, was the first tavern to receive a beer license after prohibition. It was September, 1933 when James Curtis Riley, age 17, drove to Austin from Hunter with his uncle in a Model T and camped on the Capital steps building to get the license.
The building before prohibition, was called Galloway Saloon and has been dated around the mid 1880’s. James’ mother was a Galloway but there wasn’t any information I could find that said she or her immediate family were the owners then.
Hunter is halfway between Austin and San Antonio and the Missouri-Pacific railroad built a stop here. Farmers and ranchers convinced the railroad to build a dock to load their cotton and cattle here.
Requisite pool table and shuffleboard are found in the front. There was also a box of board games for those so inclined.
The “new” area of the building has notes and signatures on almost every square inch from past patrons.
There was an outdoor stage, complete with cat house…the four legged version.
It would take half a day or more to read everything on the wall. But we found Asleep at the Wheel’s bumper sticker.
They do have air conditioning! And more signatures everywhere.
They do allow smoking…an ash tray on every table.
It was an interesting, historical stop. The Sirius music gave us a chance to dance in the back room, so we can mark this as an old dance floor where we danced.
Dancing Across Texas 