Colonel Joe Rickey In 1883, Colonel Joe Rickey was purported to have invented the "Joe Rickey," after a bartender at Shoomaker's in Washington, D.C., added lime to his "mornin's morning," a daily dose of Bourbon with lump ice and
Apollinaris sparkling mineral water. Some stories place the exact day as a Monday after Col. Joe Rickey celebrated his wager with a Philadelphian on the successful ascension of
John G. Carlisle to Speaker of the House. Col. Joe Rickey was known as a "gentleman gambler" and placed many bets on the outcome of various political contests. The American almanac, year-book, encyclopedia, and atlas: Volume 2 – Page 748 in 1903 "Rickey, Colonel Joseph Karr. at New York City, aged 61 years. Confederate veteran of the civil war; originator of the drink which bears his name April. 24." Two days later, this was published: The name is also attributed to Rep. William Henry Hatch and Fred Mussey, who were said to be present when the drink was created and later came in asking for a "Joe Rickey drink" or "I'll have a Joe Rickey." However, assigning credit for the name's provenance is complicated, as an edition of the
Saint Paul Globe from June 17, 1900, claimed to have overheard Joe Rickey at the Waldorf-Astoria argue he never actually drank rickeys but enjoyed bourbon, carbonated water, and lemon. In the same account, Col. Joe Rickey ascribes the addition of lime to the bartenders at Shoomaker's. There are numerous other articles that describe Col. Joe Rickey's unhappiness with being ascribed authorship:
Shoomaker's resort Shoomaker's was a well-known "resort" or bar, opened in 1858 by Captain Robert Otto "Charley" Hertzog and Major William Shoomaker and located at 1331 E Street near the National Theatre. Both men were German immigrants who served as officers in the Union Army in the Civil War and anglicized their names. After the two men died, Colonel Joseph "Joe" K. Rickey, a Democratic lobbyist from Missouri, bought Shoomaker's in 1883. The bar later moved in 1914 to 1311 E Street (the Library of Congress has a 1916 or 1917 photo of this location in its online archive). The stretch of E Street between the Willard Hotel and 13th street was known as "Rum Row." Around the corner on 14th Street was "
Newspaper Row," where many of the national newspapers had their Washington bureaus between E and F Streets. The original Washington Post building from 1893 was on E Street, right in the center of Rum Row, as was the Munsey Building, home to
The Washington Times. Newspaper Row and Rum Row formed a symbiotic relationship: lobbyists and politicians would drink and entertain at their favorite bars, interacting with reporters who could walk around the corner to their bureau and file a story. This system ended when the
Sheppard Act closed all saloons in the District on November 1, 1917—more than two years before national
Prohibition began. The newspaper bureaux have long since been razed; the only reminder from Newspaper Row's glory days is the
National Press Building. Famous writers, politicians, and political types were frequent guests at Shoomaker's, including some of the "greatest men in the country." Elbert Hubbard wrote about the clientele of Shoomaker's and the convivial nature of the place: Shoomaker's was well known for its whiskey and wine quality, prompting Judge Cowan of Texas during an investigation by the Congressional Agricultural Committee to declare Shoomaker's "as the place where the best whiskey in Washington is to be had." Shoomaker's also distributed spirits and wine and had their own rye whiskey, commonly used in the whiskey versions of the Rickey. Shoomaker's lack of decor was infamous. It had two nicknames: "Shoo's" and "Cobweb Hall"—the latter because it was never dusted of cobwebs at its first location. The dingy look was much revered by its customers. October 31, 1917, was the last wet day in the District—the Sheppard Act went into effect the next day. It is reported that Shoomaker's closed at 10 p.m. on October 31 when they ran out of liquor. The guests are purported to have sung a popular song at the time, "
Over There." Shoomaker's reopened not as a saloon but as a place serving soft drinks, but the public was not interested. It, too, closed in March 1918.
George A. Williamson Col. Joe Rickey was a shareholder in Shoomaker's and later purchased it outright when Major Shoomaker died in 1883. He installed Augustus "Gus" Noack and George A. Williamson as its president and secretary, respectively. Williamson was also a bartender and revered for his convivial nature and political astuteness. A 1915 obituary in the Washington Evening Star claimed, "Many a great question of national politics has been thrashed out, if not settled, in [Williamson's] presence and himself participating in the discussion." Williamson was also known as the "King of Juleps" according to
The Washington Post and called "...the most celebrated of [Shoomaker's bartenders]", according to a reminiscence of Joe Crowley, former president of Washington, D.C.'s Bartender's Union prior to Prohibition. George Rothwell Brown placed Williamson as the rickey's inventor in his 1930 book,
Washington: A Not Too Serious History. Brown suggested that an unknown stranger discussed with Williamson how drinks were prepared in the Caribbean with half of a lime, gave Williamson some limes, and asked him to substitute rye whiskey for rum. The following morning Williamson was said to have made one for Col. Rickey, who approved. ==In popular culture==