This northwest corner of Mesa Street and San Antonio Avenue is the site of the former Acme Saloon. The original building was of adobe and wood.
On the night of August 19, 1895, gunslinger John Wesley Hardin was at the bar rolling dice for drinks. His last words were, “Brown, you have four sixes to beat.” At that instant, John Selman elbowed through the batwing doors and shot Hardin in the head, killing him instantly. This part of downtown was the beginning of the “Parlor House District,” which extended south along Utah Street (today’s Mesa Street). The city fathers eventually cleaned up the district, which had its heyday from the early 1880s until the late 1890s.
A historical marker, John Wesley Hardin, is located here.
Continue eastward on San Antonio Avenue. At the corner of San Antonio Avenue and Mesa Street, look to your right across San Antonio Avenue. On the southeast corner of San Antonio Avenue and Mesa Street, you will see the Caples Building.
On the night of August 19, 1895, gunslinger John Wesley Hardin was at the bar rolling dice for drinks. His last words were, “Brown, you have four sixes to beat.” At that instant, John Selman elbowed through the batwing doors and shot Hardin in the head, killing him instantly. This part of downtown was the beginning of the “Parlor House District,” which extended south along Utah Street (today’s Mesa Street). The city fathers eventually cleaned up the district, which had its heyday from the early 1880s until the late 1890s.
A historical marker, John Wesley Hardin, is located here.
Continue eastward on San Antonio Avenue. At the corner of San Antonio Avenue and Mesa Street, look to your right across San Antonio Avenue. On the southeast corner of San Antonio Avenue and Mesa Street, you will see the Caples Building.
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Historical and Cultural Sites
