Riley's Tavern

In September of 1933 J. C. (James Curtis) Riley, at the age of 17, drove to Austin, Texas from his home in Hunter, Texas, some 45 miles. He was in a Model "T" car with his uncle. The purpose of this trip was to obtain a beer license for his soon - to - be beer joint. He camped out on the steps of the Capital building and waited for it to open. He was the first person in line in Texas and got the first beer license after prohibition ended. When Riley opened his doors, it was an instant success! Mr. Riley kept the tavern operational until 1991 (he became too sick to run it), or about 58 years. The current owners are local residents, Joel & Angie Hofmann, who have been running the business for the last 20 years.