Originally opened in 1886, the White Elephant Saloon has become one of Fort Worth's most historical places and a staple of the cowboy way of life prevalent in Texas throughout the past two centuries.
Like the revered Gruene Hall in New Braunfels, Cain's Ballroom in Tulsa and the Broken Spoke in Austin, the White Elephant has survived many decades to become a favorite Texas cultural landmark.
Nestled in the epicenter of the Fort Worth Stockyards national historical district, the Elephant has lived a rich and storied past. Most notably, it was the site of Fort Worth's most famous gunfight.
On a cold February 8th night, in 1887, town marshal Jim Courtright called the famous gambler Luke Short out of the White Elephant Saloon where he ran gaming operations. Courtright reportedly had been drinking, some words were passed, and the two men walked out into the street. There, facing one another, Courtright said something in reference to Short's gun and from there tensions boiled until Luke Short fired a shot that tore off Courtright's right thumb, rendering him incapable of firing his revolver. As Courtright tried to switch his pistol to his left hand, Short fired at least four more times, killing him.
This famous duel is re-enacted at the White Elephant Saloon every February 8th on the anniversary of this event.
The saloon is now one of Fort Worth's biggest tourist attractions as well as one of cowtown's best venues to see live country music every night of the week. Such legendary country western artists as Red Stegall, Don Edwards, Charlie Daniels, and Jimmy Dale Gilmore amongst others have all played the Elephant stage. Recently, the explosion of Texas based country music has made the White Elephant a popular hangout for the college crowd who follow their favorite regional artists around the honkytonk circuit. Such rising stars like Stoney LaRue, Jordan Mycoskie, Brad Hines and the country band Eleven Hundred Springs all have played the saloon stage a number of times.
Esquire magazine named the White Elephant Saloon, "One of America's Top 100 Bars" and the saloon has been featured in such notable publications as Playboy and Maxim magazines.
With over 2,000 square feet of honkytonk'n space and a long L shaped bar with original brass railing, the White Elephant Saloon is one of the world's last remaining relics of a time when cowboys roamed the land and they drank whiskey for a nickel.
