West Fargo, North Dakota · Founded 1935 · Building: 1935
A 1935 West Fargo bar with remarkable continuity and a complicated claim to being North Dakota's oldest operating bar.
Town Hall Bar has been a West Fargo institution since 1935, and local reporting describes it as the city's oldest continuously operated bar. Its claim to being North Dakota's oldest is more complicated: the older Peacock Alley closed its longtime location in June 2026 but reopened elsewhere less than a month later.
The Town Hall Bar building was constructed in 1935. Local reporting uses the same year for the bar's historic lineage and describes the business as continuously operated.
Source: KVRR, March 29, 2026; InForum, December 27, 2025
William J. 'Wild Bill' Parkhouse purchased Town Hall Bar. His obituary recalled that the bar then contained two booths, eight stools and two ice trays.
Source: KFGO / West Funeral Home obituary for William J. Parkhouse, April 22, 2026
Parkhouse sold Town Hall after approximately 36 years. His obituary credits him with expanding the business as neighboring properties became available.
Source: KFGO / West Funeral Home obituary for William J. Parkhouse, April 22, 2026
The Town Hall Bar trade name was registered to B & G Beverages II, Inc. at 103 Main Ave W. The indexed record shows later renewals.
Source: North Dakota trade-name record, entity 237167, as indexed by City-Data
West Fargo City Commission records identified B&G Beverages II, Inc. in connection with games of chance conducted at Town Hall Bar, 103 Main Avenue West.
Source: City of West Fargo Commission minutes, January 6, 2020
Town Hall marked 90 years. InForum described it as West Fargo's oldest continuously operated bar and as a contender for one of the oldest bars in North Dakota.
Source: InForum, December 27, 2025
Town Hall held a public 90th-birthday celebration with historic newspaper clippings, food and drink specials.
Source: KVRR, March 29, 2026
Every claim gets rated. A business's own website can never earn "documented."
The 1935 date is consistently supported by current local reporting, including Town Hall's 90th-year coverage, and KVRR states that the building itself dates to 1935. Still Open America did not locate a primary 1935 liquor license, directory entry or opening advertisement, so continuous operation from that year should not yet be rated documented.
InForum explicitly describes Town Hall as West Fargo's oldest continuously operated bar. The chronology is consistent with that description, but no exhaustive municipal survey of every historic West Fargo drinking establishment was located.
The statewide title depends on how continuity is defined. Business Insider named Town Hall North Dakota's oldest bar after Peacock Alley left its historic Bismarck location in June 2026. Peacock Alley, however, reopened in July 2026 inside 40 Steak and Seafood, preserving a business identity dating to 1933 but breaking its longtime location and briefly interrupting service. Town Hall therefore has a strong claim based on continuous operation in one place, but the broader statewide superlative is not presently documented.
Parkhouse's April 2026 obituary states that he purchased Town Hall in 1964, built the business over the next four decades and expanded into neighboring property as it became available. No underlying 1964 sale document was located in this research pass.
A West Fargo City Commission record from January 2020 names B&G Beverages II, Inc. in connection with activity conducted at Town Hall Bar, 103 Main Avenue West. A North Dakota trade-name record indexed separately identifies the same corporation as owner of the Town Hall Bar trade name.
Town Hall Bar became definitively North Dakota's oldest operating bar when Peacock Alley closed in 2026.
Peacock Alley closed its historic Patterson Hotel location on June 13, 2026, but KFYR reported that the business reopened on July 9 inside 40 Steak and Seafood. Town Hall may have the stronger claim to continuous operation in the same location, but the simple statewide 'oldest operating bar' title remains dependent on how continuity and relocation are defined.
Source: KFYR, May 10 and July 6, 2026; Business Insider, July 2026
Town Hall Bar turned 90 in 2026.
A 1935 founding date makes 2025 Town Hall's 90th year, and InForum reported the milestone that year. KVRR later covered a 90th-birthday celebration held in March 2026.
Source: InForum, December 27, 2025; KVRR, March 29, 2026
Town Hall's story is one of continuous use rather than preservation as a historic exhibit. William Parkhouse bought the modest bar in 1964 and, according to his 2026 obituary, expanded it over the next four decades as neighboring businesses disappeared. Decades later, city records, leagues, community events and its 90th-year celebration still show the same Main Avenue bar functioning as a neighborhood gathering place.
Town Hall Bar has a strong claim, but Still Open America does not consider the statewide title documented. Business Insider identified Town Hall as North Dakota's oldest bar after Peacock Alley left its longtime Bismarck location in June 2026, but KFYR reported that Peacock Alley reopened at a new location in July 2026. Because Peacock Alley's business dates to 1933 and Town Hall dates to 1935, the answer depends on whether a brief closure and relocation break the older business's continuity.
Local reporting places Town Hall Bar's history in 1935. KVRR reported in March 2026 that its building was constructed in 1935, while InForum reported that Town Hall marked its 90th year in 2025. Still Open America did not locate a primary opening-year liquor license or city-directory record during this research pass.
InForum described Town Hall in December 2025 as West Fargo's oldest continuously operated bar. The available chronology supports that description, although Still Open America has not located an exhaustive historical comparison of every former West Fargo bar.
William J. 'Wild Bill' Parkhouse bought Town Hall Bar in 1964, according to his April 2026 obituary published by KFGO and West Funeral Home. The obituary says he grew the small bar over the following decades, expanded into neighboring property, became heavily involved with pool and dart leagues, and sold Town Hall in 2000.
Town Hall Bar operates at 103 Main Ave W in West Fargo, North Dakota. KVRR reported the same address during its March 2026 coverage of the bar's 90th-birthday celebration, and current business records continue to list the bar there.
103 Main Ave W, West Fargo, ND 58078
(701) 282-3568
Current listings show the bar operating daily; confirm hours directly before making a special trip.