Martin Family Washington D.C. Galwa y Ireland
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Michael Potter
In the late 19th century, William S. Martin crossed the Atlantic from Galway, Ireland to pursue the American Dream. In 1933, he and son William G. Martin opened Martin’s Tavern on the corner of Wisconsin and N Street. The tavern was an immediate success thanks to great food, good drinks and excellent service. So successful in fact, that in the 1940’s four star generals preferred to sit on milk crates at Martin’s than take a table at another restaurant.
A Hall of Fame athlete at Georgetown University, William G. Martin graduated and went on to play three professional sports – basketball, football and baseball. He played with Jim Thorpe on the 1914 Boston “Miracle Braves” and for the NY Giants and Cleveland Indians.
In 1949, his son, William A. Martin, started behind the bar, having served in the Navy during World War II, attended Georgetown University Medical School, attained Golden Gloves status as a boxer and played Pro-Am golf. During the 1950s, Billy remembers the Dugout room as the scene of many meetings between Speaker Sam Rayburn, LBJ and other Congressmen and Senators as they swapped stories and molded American legislation (also cited in Robert Caro’s LBJ biography, Master of the Senate). Over the years, many regulars have staked out their favorite booths in the tavern – including JFK & Jackie, Richard Nixon, Harry Truman, political cartoonist Herb Block, CBS commentator Eric Sevareid, political hostess and fundraiser Pamela Harriman and Mickey Mantle