Mint Bar
Sheridan, WY
Photos courtesy Larry Glass

The neon cowboy above Mint Bar looks right at home on Main Street in Sheridan. Riding a bucking bronco over the sidewalk, he gives this old watering hole a welcome that’s difficult to overlook. You don’t have to be thirsty to appreciate the sign, although it certainly makes a convincing argument for stopping.

Opened as the Mint Saloon in 1907, the business became part of a town shaped by ranching, railroads, and nearby coal mines. During Prohibition, it adopted a cigar shop and soda counter identity, with a speakeasy reportedly operating in back. Apparently, customers could still find something stronger than a soda if they knew where to look.

Mint Bar
Sheridan, WY
Photos courtesy Larry Glass

The interior eventually took on a thoroughly western appearance, with rustic woodwork, taxidermy, and cedar shingles carrying local cattle brands. There’s even an enormous rattlesnake skin among the decorations. Between the walls and the neon rider outside, this is one place that doesn’t leave you wondering which part of the country you’re visiting.

UPDATE: The Mint remains open under Ryan and Stephanie Wagner, who purchased it in 2022. The familiar cowboy still marks the entrance, keeping one of Sheridan’s best roadside characters on the job. More than a century after opening, this Main Street gathering place continues adding stories to a room already full of them. 06-26