Bobby Mackey’s 44 Licking Pike, Wilder Bobby Mackey’s ghosts are legendary around here, and the building itself is enough to earn it its creepy reputation. The squat, warehouse-like honky tonk sits on the outskirts of the more residential areas of Newport, with not much else around it. But the most hair-raising part of Bobby Mackey’s are the supposed stories that happened within the walls of both buildings past and present, from Satanic activity at the former slaughterhouse on the site, to mobster intimidation, to a murder-suicide that involved a young pregnant woman named Johanna killing her father, who supposedly killed her lover, before taking her own life. Some also say the gateway to hell lies in the basement, where you'll find the remaining slaughterhouse well. Bobby Mackey himself says he’s skeptical of the ghost stories, but many others have reported paranormal activity happening at the bar, and the Travel Channel’s show Ghost Adventures even came out to investigate. The bar's building is scheduled to be demolished and rebuilt, so we'll have to see if the ghosts decide to hang around. Photo: Facebook.com/BobbyMackeyFB

Calling all honky tonk and paranormal fans: A Northern Kentucky bar known for its ghosts, mid-20th century organized crime connections and country music is auctioning off all its items as it prepares to enter a new chapter.

Bobby Mackey’s in Wilder temporarily closed earlier this year so the building could be torn down and rebuilt. To help clear everything out, the honky tonk is giving fans the chance to own a piece of its history by hosting an online auction of all its furniture, fixtures and equipment.

The auction also features items from the early 1900s when the building was home to the Primrose Club and the infamous Latin Quarter — best known for hosting mobsters and the tragic story of Johanna (whose supposed love poem/suicide note is one of the items up for auction). For the ghosthunting enthusiasts, items from the basement, which houses an old well from the site’s slaughterhouse days that may or may not be a portal to hell, and from the apartment of Carl, a caretaker who claimed demonic possession, are listed. For fans of the country music and honky tonk side of the bar, there are memorabilia, Mackey’s on-stage costumes and even El Torro, the original mechanical bull.

The auction is happening online now, and will begin to close at 6 p.m. on Thursday, Aug. 15. You can see the catalog here. Bidding is online only, but Bobby Mackey’s is hosting a preview (18+, no kids) at its Wilder location (44 Licking Pike) on Saturday, Aug. 10 from 9 a.m. to 1 p.m.

While the original location of Bobby Mackey’s is closed for now, the honky tonk is open in a temporary location at 8405 US 42 in Florence. More info: bobbymackeys.com.

This article appears in Jul 24 – Aug 6, 2024.

Katherine Barrier is a graduate of the University of Cincinnati’s journalism program and has nearly 10 years of experience reporting local and national news as a digital journalist. At CityBeat, she...