The Barrel Head has been closed for more than two years, but those who are nostalgic about the longtime bar and grill now have a chance to own a piece of its history.
Aumann Auctions is conducting a liquidation sale of the bar and grill’s inventory, ranging from beer and spirit signs and assorted draft beer taps to the commercial kitchen and bar equipment, walk-in coolers, dishes and more. The online auction is scheduled to end at 6 p.m. Dec. 17. Potential buyers will have an opportunity to inspect items from 3-4:30 p.m. on Monday, Dec. 15.
Pinky McHenry opened the Irish pub in 1974, and it has only had four owners over its five decades of operation. The Barrel Head, 1577 Wabash Ave., closed once before but reopened two years later.
In 2011, the restaurant closed during a foreclosure dispute between then-owner Kevin Davlin, brother of the late Springfield mayor Tim Davlin, and Illinois National Bank. Davlin, who is an attorney, contested the foreclosure, and the resulting legal battle prevented the business from being sold, according to reporting from Illinois Times.
The Barrel Head finally reopened in October 2013 after being purchased by Springfield resident Mark Freetly, who also owns the Dairy Queen franchise for the area. It closed again in 2023.
The 5,000-square-foot building and approximately half-acre of land is listed for sale with Megan Pressnall, a broker with The Real Estate Group, at an asking price of $550,000.
“The building is listed for sale right now and is being prepared for auction this spring if it doesn’t sell soon,” Thomas Walsh of Aumann Auctions told SBJ.