Bars of the ’80s: Where the Real Majors Were in Mischief

Paige working hard behind the bar at Penny Annies

Bars from the 1980s — most are gone, a few are still hanging on, but all of them are etched into the lore of Clemson like initials carved into a bathroom stall.

At last count, we’ve compiled a list of nearly 30 bars that lit up the streets, rooftops, and back alleys of Tigertown during that glorious, chaotic, and unrepeatable decade. These weren’t just bars — they were ritual sites. They were classrooms of cool, arenas of flirtation, and laboratories of legendary behavior.

One key ingredient? The drinking age for beer was 18. That’s right — in 1980, a freshman could legally stroll down College Avenue, show a paper-thin ID, and order a cold pitcher of Busch for a buck. And we did — often in the middle of the afternoon. Happy hour wasn’t just happy — it was packed.

Every bar had its own vibe, and every student had their spot. From cheap beer dives like Study Hall and Sloan Street Tap Room, to rowdy dance floors at Fahrenheit 109 and The Corporation, each bar had a rhythm and a cult following. Some were live music hotspots where cover bands tore up the stage. Others were quiet booths and low lights, made for first dates, last calls, and questionable decisions.

You didn’t need much: a couple of dollars, a fake mustache if you were feeling bold, and a crew of Fun Bunch friends who were down for anything. And Clemson gave you the soundtrack — jukeboxes, cassette tapes, and DJs with perms and polyester.

Though most of these places have long since vanished — taken by development, gentrification, or the slow creep of adulthood — their memory remains sharp. These are the bars we still talk about at tailgates, reunions, and 2 a.m. firepit summits. They’re tattooed in stories, in faded T-shirts, in phantom hangovers that wake you up when you drive past Bowman Field.

Today’s Clemson is bigger, sleeker, and somehow more hydrated — but those bars from the ’80s? They were the soul of the town. This section of the site is here to preserve, distort, and mythologize that soul — before it disappears or gets rewritten by someone who wasn’t even there.

So if you remember dollar pitchers, jukebox bangers, bartenders who barely carded you, or dancing on a sticky floor in cutoff jeans — congratulations. You’re one of us.

Cheers to the bars. Cheers to the memories. Cheers to the Fun Bunch — and the nights we’ll never stop talking about.

Backstreets Bash Riprock’s Betty’s Lounge The Bookstore The Corporation Crazy Zack’s Doug’s Place Edgar’s Esso Club Fins Four Paws The Game Room The Genoa Club Lamar’s Legends Nick’s Pat Belew’s Gold Nugget Penny Annie’s Quarters The Round Table Rumors Under the Table Sloan Street Tap Room Study Hall Strawberries The Tiger Den (Lester’s) Tiger Town Tavern