Gridskipper

Year established: 1847, under Pres. James K. Polk. This former brothel, now the oldest continually run bar in NYC, began legally serving booze in 1847. Now the Bridge serves a modern American menu to tourists, Brooklyn… Bridge trampers, and guys that actually understand the Bear Stearns situation. [link]

1854, under Pres. Franklin Pierce. McSorley's dusty decor and surly Irish bartenders haven't changed much since the pub opened, but their clientele has drastically shifted. Ancient blarney and big-name drinkers… — Abe Lincoln, Woody Guthrie, John Lennon, Teddy Roosevelt, among them — have been replaced with Sigma Chi's, tourists, and, to the bar's dismay, women (until 1970, McSorley's was men-only). Everyone should experience McSorley's stubborn loyalty to vintage New York at least once. [link]

1864, under Pres. Lincoln. This tavern once frequented by O. Henry draws a mix of neighborhood regulars and the happy-hour crowd. It reminds me of a better-dressed Cheers. [link]

1874, under Pres. Grant. The self-proclaimed "Oldest bar in Brooklyn" draws a refreshingly native crowd who were no doubt perched at the bar long before Carroll Gardens was overthro ... I mean gentrified. Rumor… has it that Al Capone met his future bride at a nearby speakeasy and may have glugged at PJ's as well. [link]

1880, under Pres. Rutherford B. Hayes. Known to literary tourists as "The place where Dylan Thomas drank himself to death," the White Horse also attracts tucked-in Polos with only a marginal understanding of who… Dylan Thomas is. [link]

1890, under Pres. Benjamin Harrison. The Ear Inn opened its doors in 1817 as a hotel for laborers and their families. But in 1890 an Irishman got a hold of it and before long the place was packed with drunken stevedores. Nowadays, the Ear is filled with a far artier SoHo set and flaunts an old neon "Bar" sign — the right half of the "B" was blacked out in 1977, leading… to the name "Ear. [link]

1884, under Pres. Chester A. Arthur. This ballsy Midtown saloon has fought off developers for years and now pours Guinness beneath a forest of skyscrapers. Despite recent renovations, a slick new website, and a… fancy "Sidecar" dining room, PJ's is still a welcome remnant of real in a suck location. [link]

1892, under Pres. Benjamin Harrison. This creaky relic attracts a mostly after-work crowd with the occasional professional drinker mixed in for good measure. Nearly everything in Old Town is original, including… New York's oldest dumbwaiter and the giant, full length urinals that their website discusses in detail. [link]

c. 1922, under Pres. Warren G. Harding. A while back Chumley's was crushed by a chimney. But this unmarked and ancient speakeasy has been around since the 1920s, and supposedly the owners intend to revive the… tradition when they reopen this spring. Shortly thereafter West Villagers will again be able to impress out of town friends by saying, "See, there's no sign! And the phrase "to 86" something was coined here — it has something to do with prohibition." [link]