February 9, 2012 in News

Popular watering hole plays the name game

Tom Sowa The Spokesman-Review

The popular tavern in Spokane’s Gonzaga neighborhood is still there, but the name keeps changing.

For most of its 65 years, it was the Bulldog Tavern. In 2005, the partnership that owned the bar, Trefry Enterprises, changed the name to The Bulldog. Last summer, after a property dispute, lead partner David Trefry shut down the pub, saying he planned to reopen elsewhere and would take the trademarked Bulldog name with him.

Trefry said he’s still considering a new location.

Meanwhile, Mary Livingston, the owner of the building where the Bulldog had been, has gone through a series of business names.

Her first choice was to call it The Dog, in homage to the original business. But Trefry Enterprises contacted her and told her that name infringed on their trademark.

Livingston next named the pub Zagz, a salute to Gonzaga University’s students and faculty, who have been among the tavern’s most faithful patrons.

That name didn’t last long. Gonzaga contacted Livingston and told her they didn’t want people to associate the tavern with a Catholic university.

So Livingston changed the name to the 1305 Club, since its address is 1305 N. Hamilton.

“I got to be pretty good at (changing the name),” Livingston said with a laugh.

Now, in an effort to find a permanent handle, Livingston has launched a “name-this-tavern” campaign, inviting fans and patrons to submit suggestions for what to call it.

Livingston will select a half-dozen suggested names, then run one more public poll to find what she hopes is the final name.

The naming hassle has dwarfed one other business matter that Livingston has had to address – the John Stockton wall mural problem.

Last fall the person who sold the building to Livingston commissioned local artist Tom Quinn to paint a wall mural on the south side of the tavern.

Quinn created a tableau of notable GU alumni, including Gov. Chris Gregoire, former Speaker of the House Tom Foley, and hall of fame basketball star Stockton.

Stockton contacted Willard Quinn III – the one who sold the building, and no relation to the painter – to say he didn’t like the painting. Stockton, who’s developing a retail complex not far away, told Quinn he wanted his image removed.

Public figure or not, Stockton is not someone Livingston wanted to cross. “I’m not a fighter, so we’ll take it off,” she said.

For Livingston, running the bar has been a return to her roots; she was the Bulldog Tavern manager until Trefry took it over in 1996.

“This is really a community bar,” she said. “It really does belong to the people who support us. That’s why I’m letting them help decide the name. I wouldn’t be here without them.”

Eight comments on this story so far. Add yours!

??Riddler?? on February 09 at 10:54 p.m.
?? How many jerks does it take to spoil a Good Thing ??
dataxman on February 10 at 4:53 a.m.
Name it ‘just a bar’. That is all it is anymore
Itsgodswill on February 10 at 8:58 a.m.
When that place was the bulldog, I loved going there because it was pretty laid back expect maybe when there was a gonzaga game on, but when I went in there fairly recently it was packed to the point that I had to pick a spot and stay there. If you have to go to the bathroom, have fun working your way through everybody to the back of the bar. Good for them as a business and good for the people who like that kind of place, but I probably won’t go there again. First place i’ve ever seen Irish death on tap though, so they won points for that.
The_Seer on February 10 at 9:53 a.m.
What’s Stockton’s problem?
skime on February 10 at 10:04 a.m.
To bad the SR does not tell the story how she ended up with the bar. New name “Me and my boy friend” Stockton did the right thing!
??Riddler?? on February 10 at 4:38 p.m.
?? skime ??
?? And you missed your chance to own a bar ??
Bummer!
?? Which were you going to be, the guy or the “girl friend” ??
trustbutverify on February 10 at 4:58 p.m.
“The_Sewer” what is your problem? And why are you always e-thuging people. Stockton has every right to have an opinion about his image being placed in a bar!?! If you had a good reputation you might be concerned too.
The Dog is a good name and is not the same as The Bulldog. Unless it shows up as a listed properly filed and protected trade name she should not bow into bs pressure about trademarks that don’t exist for that name.
How about The Dawg?
The_Seer on February 11 at 11:31 a.m.
trustbutverify: You are right. I can see how Stockton might be concerned with his image being associated with a tavern.
Let’s meet at Jack and Dan’s to discuss this further.