As we wrote on July 23, the neon sign at The Dublin House – located at 225 West 79th Street between Broadway and Amsterdam – is in need of costly repairs. Just two days after a GoFundMe campaign was launched to restore it, its $15,000 goal has been exceeded.
As of writing, a total of $16,069 has been raised by 204 donors. The largest single donation was $1,800, while one donor gave $1,000 and several gave $500.
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The sign has been in existence since 1933 – the same year The Dublin House officially opened (as a legal bar). The Dublin House’s owners have partnered with a neon signage company to bring it back to its glory days.
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Jeff Friedman of Let There Be Neon, a 50 year old sign shop based in Tribeca, estimates that the job will take between 4 and 6 months.
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“Dublin House has always been an authentic Irish bar for the locals in the neighborhood. It doesn’t pander to tourists or trends. That neon sign is full of character and personality — it must be preserved,” said one donor. “I want to see this shine again..and then I’m walking up the stairs, sitting at the bar and ordering a Guinness,” said another.
We reached out to The Dublin House and were sent the following statement (slightly abridged):
“We are beyond grateful to everyone that has shared our cause, donated online and come into the bar to donate and have a drink. We are overwhelmed our goal was reached in a day … we did not expect that at all! From our regulars that donated to people we have never met – the biggest thank you! We really want to keep this neon shining and have it lit up for our 100 anniversary celebration. We honestly are speechless at everybody’s generosity and to read everyone’s lovely comments of their times in the bar. Once again the biggest biggest thank you to everyone – we truly are overwhelmed by the generosity.”
For those who want to contribute, the campaign is still active and can be found here.
Cool. I’d give fifty bucks if I had it as ready cash.
Now, I know not the upper west side, and not as important as the Dublin House sign, but the neon Columbus Hardware sign at 54th and 9th needs saving now that the hardware store has moved a few doors down.