Jackson's landmark Western honky-tonk since 1937, featuring genuine saddle barstools, live country music, and a historic bar top inlaid with silver dollars.
The Million Dollar Cowboy Bar, located right on the Town Square in Jackson, Wyoming, is a historic watering hole and music venue that has served as the community's social anchor since 1937. Originally constructed in the late 1890s as a doctor's office and later the town's first bank, the building became Ruby's Cafe and Beer Garden before Ben Goe purchased it and renamed it the Cowboy Bar. Upon its renaming in 1937, the establishment was granted Wyoming's very first official liquor license following the repeal of Prohibition. Renamed the Million Dollar Cowboy Bar in the 1940s under the ownership of Preston Parkinson, who acquired it in 1945, the venue underwent a massive transformation. Parkinson added the iconic neon sign and the rotating neon bucking bronco on the roof, which remains one of the most photographed landmarks in the state. In 1953, a basement gas explosion gutted the interior, forcing a complete rebuild that resulted in the elaborate, hand-carved knobbled pine architecture and woodwork that defines the space today.
The interior of the bar is a living museum of Western Americana, featuring a 75-foot-long bar counter inlaid with 624 genuine silver dollars and surrounded by rare taxidermy mounts, cowboy murals, and historic memorabilia. Instead of traditional barstools, patrons belly up to the counter on 38 genuine Western leather saddles, complete with stirrups, which were permanently installed in the mid-1980s. The walls are lined with knotty pine and decorated with historic photographs of rodeo legends, vintage firearms, and a flag from Theodore Roosevelt's presidential envoy train. Below the main saloon floor lies the Million Dollar Cowboy Steakhouse, a subterranean dining room that serves regional game like bison and elk in a space that mirrors the historic aesthetic of the bar upstairs. Since 2017, the property has been owned by the Baxter family, who also own the historic Wort Hotel just down the street, ensuring that the bar's independent, historic character remains preserved.
Live entertainment has always been central to the venue's identity, with country music legends like Waylon Jennings, Willie Nelson, Hank Williams Jr., Tanya Tucker, and Glen Campbell performing on its historic stage over the decades. The bar also made its mark on Hollywood when Clint Eastwood filmed scenes for the 1980 film "Any Which Way You Can" inside the saloon. Today, the venue continues to host live music and dancing nearly every night of the week, drawing a diverse crowd of local ranchers, visiting skiers, and travelers to its spacious hardwood dance floor. On any given evening, the air is filled with the sounds of two-stepping and Western swing, maintaining the same rowdy, authentic spirit that has animated this corner of the Jackson Town Square for nearly a century.
Arrive before 8:00 PM if you want to secure one of the 38 saddle barstools, as they fill up quickly once the live music begins. If you are looking for a quieter experience to admire the taxidermy and historic silver dollar bar top, visit during the afternoon when the saloon first opens.
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