The Salty Dawg Saloon is a famous landmark of the town of Homer, Alaska.

A patrons pins a dollar bill to the ceiling of the Salty Dawg Saloon on the Homer Spit in Homer,
Alaska, August, 6 2008. Tourists often write their names or hometowns on dollar bills to leave
as souvenirs after visiting the bar. The tradition started when a man walked in and tacked a
dollar on the wall of the log cabin. He explained that his friend would be by later and the money
was to buy him a drink.  

HISTORY

The Salty Dawg originally was one of the first cabins built in 1897, soon after Homer
became a town site. It served as the first post office, a railroad station, a grocery store,
and a coal mining office for twenty years. In 1909 a second building was constructed,
and it served as a school house, post office, grocery store. And at one time, it housed
three adults and eleven children.
It was acquired in the late 1940s by Chuck Abbatt to be used as an office for Standard
Oil Company. In April of 1957, he officially opened it as the Salty Dawg Saloon. By 1960
the Salty Dawg Saloon had a building adjacent to it, coinciding with The Alaska Territory
becoming the 49th state of the union in January 1959.
Earl Hillstrand, the late State Representative, purchased it in 1960. After the March 1964
"Good Friday" earthquake, he moved the structure to its present location. The distinctive
lighthouse tower was added to cover a water storage tank, thus completing one of
Homer's more historical and recognizable landmarks.
The Salty Dawg Saloon is currently owned and operated by John Warren.
The saloon has been featured on Deadliest Catch on the Discovery Channel. The bar is
known for the thousands of dollar bills signed by visitors and tacked to the walls. Many
years ago, a visitor tacked a dollar on the wall explaining that his friend would be by later
this was to buy him a drink.