Our Story
Nestled in the heart of Chicago's bustling West Side, Gold Star Bar stands as a testament to the city's rough and tumble past. With its dimly lit interior and worn wooden floorboards, this dive bar exudes an air of authenticity that can't be found in the polished and sanitized establishments of the city's more upscale neighborhoods.
Despite its rough exterior, Gold Star Bar is a place of warmth and camaraderie, a place where strangers become friends over a shot of whiskey and a game of pool. The bartenders are knowledgeable and friendly, always ready with a quick joke or a sympathetic ear.
For those looking to escape the glitz and glamour of the city's more fashionable districts, Gold Star Bar is a welcome respite, a place where one can relax and be oneself without fear of judgment. It may not be the fanciest establishment in town, but it more than makes up for it with its rough-around-the-edges charm and its unpretentious atmosphere.
In addition to its historical significance, Gold Star Bar is also known as one of the most haunted bars in Chicago. Many people claim to have experienced strange and supernatural occurrences within the bar's walls, adding to its allure as a unique and interesting place to visit.
“in attendance at times are a few ghosts. Before we get into that, one must understand the history of the area. As Lee DeVita points out in Barfly’s Guide to Chicago’s Drinking Establishments (2000), “For the first 50 years of the 20th Century, much of West Division Street was settled by Polish immigrants. During Prohibition, Division Street was known for speakeasies, whorehouses and gambling dens. After Prohibition, many of the speakeasies turned into Polish polka bars and the whorehouses and gambling dens continued on.” While gambling doesn’t appear to have factored much in Gold Star’s past, the bar did evolve into a cross between the speakeasy and whorehouse it was during Prohibition: it became a bar with a “hotel” above it. The hotel was actually a place to “visit” with teenage Polish girls, for a fee of course. The bar still gets a few inquiries for those in need of these things today. Hell, the antique key-rack still hangs to the left of the front door, where the room keys once hung. This was the height of “Polish Broadway” and the heyday for the Gold Star Bar. The bar was “sumptuous,” with an, “interior of an ornately-wallpapered and lavishly-furnished pub,” according to Ursula Bielski in her book More Chicago Haunts, Scenes from Myth and Memory.”
One of Chicago’s Most Haunted Bars
