Crystal Palace -Tombstone, Arizona
Posted by: 
BruceS
N 31° 42.749 W 110° 03.969
12R E 588483 N 3508946
Historic saloon and gambling hall now restaurant in the Tombstone Historic District in Tombstone, Arizona.
Waymark Code: WMHM7V
Location: Arizona, United States
Date Posted: 07/22/2013
Views: 4
"The CRYSTAL PALACE SALOON, NW. corner 5th and Allen Sts., is a gray frame building with overhanging eaves that protect lolling inhabitants from the summer sun. The Crystal Palace with its many well-designed French windows, doors, and trim was one of the most luxurious and famous of Tombstone s early-day saloons and gambling houses. For many years its doors were closed, but in 1902 it was reopened, bringing memories of past glories to many old-timers still living in Tombstone. Walter Noble Burns in Tombstone recalls it as 'resplendent with oil paintings, mirrors, brass and mahogany, three bartenders sometimes five always on duty. . . . Night and day, the gambling tables girdling the saloon walls were surrounded by tense throngs. Gamblers dealt or sat lookout with their sombreros on and their six-shooters buckled around them. Monte tables were stacked with gold and silver money. Faro was played in feverish silence. . . .The little ivory ball in the roulette wheels and the dice in the chuck-aluck boxes rattled noisily. ... In the small hours, the sirens of the resorts drove in cabs and barouches to the Crystal Palace . . .swarmed in with gusts of tipsy laughter pompous old mesdames, reckless young beauties in paint and finery, low-cut gowns, and satin slippers and drank with the men at the bars or bucked the games until morning.'" - Arizona: A State Guide, Tombstone section, pg. 247.
The facade of the building has now been restored to the pre-1882 fire appearance with two stories. The building served many purposes over the years including a movie theater, Greyhound bus stop and cafe among others. The building is now a popular restaurant and bar.