Historic Red Dog Tavern in downtown Peterborough has been sold and will close as of November 1

The Historic Red Dog Tavern in downtown Peterborough has been sold and will close as of November 1.

On Tuesday (October 10), Dave MacQuarrie, the live music venue’s longtime sound technician, posted the news of the pending closure on Facebook, sparking a flurry of reminisces.

“It’s with a mix of immense sadness and gratitude that I can now safely say what everyone in town has been hearing — the Red Dog has been sold and we will be closing the doors permanently on November 1st,” wrote MacQuarrie, adding “It’s been a great run.”

Contacted by kawarthaNOW, MacQuarrie says current Richard Halka, who bought the 189 Hunter Street West property in 2010 from Michael Skinner, has sold it to “two people … one is kind of an investor.” Based on what MacQuarrie has heard, he adds “I don’t think they’re too interested in having live music there in the future.”

Asked if the buyers are local, MacQuarrie said “I believe so, yes.”

While he has no idea what the new owners plan for the space, MacQuarrie says “The quote that I heard was ‘Total gut job'”

“We had bookings into March 2024. All those are cancelled.”

“There are tenants living upstairs now and I believe that they’re going to continue to live there, so I believe the renovations will be focused on the main room, Clancy’s and The Underdog.”

MacQuarrie says while he’s sad the Historic Red Dog will be no more, its sale hasn’t come as a surprise.

“The inevitability (of a sale) was staring me in the face. When we were putting on bigger shows, there were three venues in town. There are about 20 now.”

“These days, nightlife is in direct competition with Netflix. I can stay in and watch a show that I went to in 1980 at Massey Hall. It’s perfect sound and I can get snacks and it doesn’t cost me anything. That didn’t use to exist.”

MacQuarrie started mixing shows at what was then the Legendary Red Dog in 2004, initially in The Underdog in the pub’s basement.

“(Musician) Tom Wilson said ‘This is my kind of room because this is a southern Ontario draught (beer) room,'” noted MacQuarrie.

“These rooms don’t really exist anymore. There are few and far between. The Ganny (Ganaraska Hotel) in Port Hope is one and (so is the recently reopened) The Pig’s Ear. They used to be everywhere. This (the Red Dog) was where everyone went on the weekends. You feel the footprints of the musicians who have come before. There are ghosts in that room.”

Built in the early 1880s by local developer David Henthorne, the building originally opened as Clancy’s Hotel. It underwent several name changes over the years, including the Peterborough House, the American Hotel/House, and Brownie’s Tavern.

In the 1990s and early 2000s, the building housed three pubs, including Clancy’s, the Legendary Red Dog, and the Underdog. The Legendary Red Dog hosted a number of notable Canadian performers including Neil Young, Sarah McLachlan, The Tragically Hip, Jeff Healey, the Cowboy Junkies, and Ronnie Hawkins.

The building received a heritage designation from the City of Peterborough in 2007. In 2009, Skinner purchased the building and renamed it The Historic Red Dog Pub and Tavern. Halka purchased it the following year.

Reached for comment in Maryland where they are on tour, The Weber Brothers — Ryan and Sam — immediately reflected on 2001 when, newly arrived in the area and having soaked up all they could from the late Ronnie Hawkins, they were given the chance to play regularly at what was then the Legendary Red Dog.

“It was home for us … (the late) John Greco and everybody there really took us in and gave us a place to play,” recalls Ryan, with Sam noting how important such an outlet is to a young musician.

“There were always great musicians coming there and performing,” Sam says. “The place was packed with locals. Lucky for us, we were given the opportunity play there whenever we wanted. At that (young) age, when you’re in your formative years, the chance to have that much stage time is really helpful in honing your craft. We owe a lot to that place for giving us that opportunity.”

“An amazing testament to that place,” says Ryan, was it being home to numerous benefits over the years, many of which the brothers lent their talent to.

“Too numerous to count the amount of times that those (benefits) happened. It was like ‘Yup, let’s do it here. What day do you want to do it?’ But that’s also a testament to the town, where the community comes together for whoever is in need. The Red Dog was the spot where that was done and that was huge.”

Referencing the pub’s long history, Ryan says that gave it its “mojo.”

“It’s in the walls. It’s on the stage. It’s in the room. You can feel it. The room is full of memories.”

Sam, however, says he was less moved by the building’s history and more moved by those acts he was able to enjoy there over the years.

“Buzz Thompson, Bobby Watson, Jericho’s Wall, Paul James, Five Alarm Funk, Paul Reddick — the amazing music that we all got to experience there blew my mind apart many times over.”

Like MacQuarrie, Frank Girard spent a lot of time at the Red Dog going back to the 1980s, as a sound technician and as a guitarist with several bands.

“With the bands in the corner, they could hear the P.A. system instead of just hearing the monitors. It was like you were jamming in your basement. It gave you that big sound.”

The birth of the Underdog, says Girard, is a story in itself, involving former owner Ray McGregor.

“His daughter was getting married. He was phoning around, trying to find a hall for the reception. When he heard the prices, he renovated that room and had it in his own place. Then he turned it into a little bar.”

Note: kawarthaNOW has been unable to contact owner Richard Halka to confirm the sale of the Red Dog, the identity of the new owners, or future plans for the building.

The original version of this story has been updated with Paul Rellinger’s story.