Sleder‘s 125th Birthday

When you stop by the party, be sure to kiss the moose.... and raise a toast to the 125th birthday of one of Northern Michigan’s best-loved destinations this Saturday, June 23 at Sleder’s Family Tavern in Traverse City.
Owners Deb and Brian Cairns are hoping for a turnout of 1,200 for their outdoor celebration, which will be packed with games, music, food and beverages from noon until 10 p.m. at the popular restaurant/bar on Randolph Street, just off Division.
For decades, Sleder’s has been a “must-do” destination in Northern Michigan. The place oozes history and tradition with wood-paneled walls packed with the taxidermy heads of wild animals. Not to mention its famous moose, whose leathery lips have kissed many a bonny lass and laddie, accompanied by ringing a bell. It’s no wonder Sleder’s is a perennial favorite of travel writers from all over the world.

MEMORIES
But for Deb Cairns, who grew up just a few blocks away on Wayne Hill, Sleder’s has the same friendly, family appeal that she remembers as a kid, drinking orange pop there with her grandfather. Unlike similar destinations across the country, the place hasn’t been ruined by tourism. To locals, it’s still a cozy neighborhood bar with great burgers and reasonable prices where you can unwind with friends.
“I started coming here with my grandpa when I was five,” she recalls. “He’d come here with his buddies to have a brewski, and once a week he’d stop by and knock on my window and I’d have an orange pop with him, which is why we still serve it today.”
Cairns’ family goes back even further with Sleder’s. “When they built Sleder’s, it was the only thing sitting here,” she says of its construction in 1882. “It was out of town. My mom used to come here by wagon from Omena when she was a child. It was a whole day trip, and her father would tie his horse up in front of the building and come in for a sassafras, which was what they called a root beer back then.”

SURVIVING PROHIBITION
Built by Bohemian immigrant and wheelwright Vencel Sleder the same year that the light bulb was invented, Sleder’s was originally meant to be a workman’s watering hole at a time when lumbering operations were big in Traverse City. No doubt, the tavern was also popular with the hundreds of workmen who built the Northern Michigan Asylum in the mid-1880s, which is currently being renovated as The Village at Grand Traverse Commons.
Those days live on in the tavern’s decor, as noted in this background information: “Sleder’s decor still contains the original bar along the east wall; an impressive 21 feet of solid mahogany sided with cherry wood and fronted with a brass rail. Many of the signs, memorabilia, trinkets, unique conversation pieces, and photographs that document the inseparable history of Sleder’s and Traverse City have been there since the 1920s.”
There are great stories about virtually everything in the old part of the building. That moose you’re kissing, for instance: the original moose’s lips got so ragged from being smooched so much that the Cairns had to find a new one. They got it from a hunter in Minnesota who shipped it in the back of a pickup truck in 1995. A couple years later, he made a special trip her to get his photo taken with the famous kissing moose.
Cairns notes that the boar on the wall was a funny wedding present from previous owner Bob Classens; and that she obtained the wall’s pronghorn antelope out of a sentimental impulse for the year she spent teaching in Montana, where an antelope was the school’s mascot. The small buffalo head came from the closure of an Olson’s supermarket. Olson’s, by the way, provides fresh-ground buffalo every day to the restaurant.
And did you know that Sleder’s survived Prohibition by serving “tea” and stronger stuff provided by the likes of Al Capone? The place is unstoppable.

CLOSER TO HOME
Speaking of weddings, in addition to Sleder’s 125th birthday, this is also the 15th anniversary of the Cairns’ ownership of the business and their 15th wedding anniversary.
Prior to purchasing Sleder’s in 1992, the Cairns were involved in hotel and ski resort management, with positions held at Sugar Loaf, Crystal Mountain and Boyne.
Deb says she was planning on starting a gift shop when she learned that Sleder’s was up for sale. “I said to Brian, ‘Why don’t we go there and have a burger,’” she recalls. “And we came in and sat in booth nine and had dinner and I said, ‘I want this place.’ And Brian said, ‘What are you talking about?’ But that’s all she wrote -- I grew up in this place and had to have it.”
The Cairns purchased Sleder’s from Bob and Sylvia Classens on May 14, 1992 and were married there two weeks later on May 30 with a party on the porch.
Since then, they’ve presided over many wedding parties, including those of their own family members and of many employees. And as was the case 125 years ago, Sleder’s remains a real family operation: there are still six original employees on the job and multiple generations of family members have worked there through the years, including the Cairns’ own five children, Ryan, Aaron, Morgan, Tim and Chrissine, who will all be on hand this Saturday.
So if you’re looking for some family fun this weekend, along with a trip down the heart of TC’s Memory Lane, this is one birthday party you won’t want to miss.


The Party: Saturday, June 23

Sleder’s 125th birthday party will benefit the Big Brothers Big Sisters of Northwestern Michigan, which has helped over 1,500 kids in 10 area counties.
Out back, you’ll find an 80’ by 40’ big top tent with a flatbed truck for a stage and a giant grill, all warmed up to serve 1,400 brats, burgers and buffalo sandwiches. Virtually everything has been donated by Elmer’s, Olsons, Gordon Foods and other local organizations to give the Big Brothers Big Sisters a boost.
In true Northern Michigan fashion, the celebration will include golf, cards, live music, prizes, cold beer, and Sleder’s burgers, with all proceeds to benefit the “Bigs. A nine-hole shot-gun golf tournament at Bay Meadows Golf Course starts the day at 9 a.m.
From noon until 10 p.m., everyone is invited to the big-top tent. A $10 donation cover charge will allow you to enjoy specially-priced food and beverages and continuous entertainment featuring the classic rock, rhythm & blues of Lisa Christian, The Corvairs, Rawhide Johnson, the Chris Skellenger Band and Cabin Fever along with some surprise entertainers.
For those with a more adventurous attitude, there will be Texas Hold ‘em Poker, Black Jack, Roulette and a 50-50 raffle along with a 125-prize grab bag. A silent auction featuring items valued at $100 or more will be sold to the highest bidder in Sleder’s back room.
-- by Barry Godwin
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