Taverns

Taverns were an integral and favored part of British and Dutch culture. Samuel Johnson, the eighteenth-century English author and lexicographer, declared, “There is nothing which has yet been contrived by man, by which so much happiness is produced, as by a good tavern or inn.” In the seventeenth century, places that sold intoxicating liquors were called “ordinaries,” “taverns,” “inns,” or “public houses.” In 1656 the General Court of Massachusetts made towns liable to a fine for not operating an ordinary. Taverns were frequently located close to the meetinghouse so members of the congregation could warm and refresh themselves after long services. The terms tavern, inn, and ordinary did not mean the same thing throughout the colonies. In New England and New York, “tavern” was usually used; in Pennsylvania, “inn” was more common; and “ordinary” was the general term in the South. Small establishments that did not offer lodging, stable, or other services but sold only alcohol were called tippling-houses or petty ordinaries.