Ownership of The Library Bar shifted in 2020, long-time owner David “Cricket” Shaw ultimately handing over the reigns of a place he first stepped foot into in 1978, checking IDs at the door. Working his way up, Shaw eventually bought the space in 1986 and changed little over the subsequent decades, the beer selection almost purely domestic and the interior décor largely untouched. Shaw’s ownership tenure stretches so far back that it includes a change in drinking laws in Ohio that resulted in slashed business for the dive bar as 18 to 20 year olds were up until the 1980s allowed to purchase 3.2 percent beer.
Shaw sold The Library Bar to Quinn Allen, whose father Dick Allen owned a number of campus-area bars including old favorite The Travel Agency. Due to the tight knit nature of campus bar owners, Shaw and Dick Allen were old acquaintances, making Quinn a natural successor given his success running Zeno’s, a fellow dive bar in Columbus’ Harrison West neighborhood. Quinn has maintained the original charm of the wood-covered space with a few improvements that include remodeled bathrooms, new beer taps and a few more televisions.
Outside, thankfully, the signature orange sign still hangs above The Library Bar’s High Street-facing structure, though fresh paint has been applied to the building’s exterior. Because The Library Bar is so close to campus and nestled right along prime thoroughfare High Street, weekend and even weekday evenings can mean packed crowds of undergraduates, obscuring some of the beauty of the space itself. Frequent theme nights that include country night, trivia, karaoke, mug night and yes, even beat the clock, draw significant amounts of students.