Why did saloons have these swinging doors? (Is it even accurate they had these?) It looks very impractical as the dust from outside would constantly be blown in by the wind
In: 5708
Doors like that primarily exist to provide visual separation between two spaces while minimizing their impact on people walking between those two spaces. Today you primarily see them indoors separating restaurant kitchens from dining rooms. Their presence makes it clear to diners they should just stumble in, but it’s easy for servers to pass through in both directions, even when their hands are full.
In saloons they served a similar purpose. They created a bit of a separation between the inside and the outside while allowing people to freely pass between if they wanted to. They also had the practical benefit of discouraging animals from wandering into the bar. The lack of an airtight seal was mostly irrelevant, as it warm weather the windows would be open anyways, since there was no AC. Pretty much all saloons also had normal doors they could close in bad weather or if they were closed.
Makes it easier to throw someone out. And during a bar fight, you didn’t have to worry about replacing a broken door.
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Doors like that primarily exist to provide visual separation between two spaces while minimizing their impact on people walking between those two spaces. Today you primarily see them indoors separating restaurant kitchens from dining rooms. Their presence makes it clear to diners they should just stumble in, but it’s easy for servers to pass through in both directions, even when their hands are full.
In saloons they served a similar purpose. They created a bit of a separation between the inside and the outside while allowing people to freely pass between if they wanted to. They also had the practical benefit of discouraging animals from wandering into the bar. The lack of an airtight seal was mostly irrelevant, as it warm weather the windows would be open anyways, since there was no AC. Pretty much all saloons also had normal doors they could close in bad weather or if they were closed.
Makes it easier to throw someone out. And during a bar fight, you didn’t have to worry about replacing a broken door.
Batwing doors were not the only doors on the building. There were regular doors that opened 180° and sat flush with the walls to seal and lock the building when it was closed. The bat wing doors were likely put up to provide a level of privacy while allowing easy entrance and egress.
Heh heh , you’re worried about dust? Where do you think you are?
In Japanese culture there is a similar device called a Noren curtain, which allows passage while providing the same easy passage. These sorts of things both invite people in and are used to separate parts of a shop, much like these double hung doors provide for restraints/bars
Here’s [some more info](https://www.mentalfloss.com/article/78758/how-did-saloons-old-west-lock-their-doors-night) on that topic…. “Café doors were actually practical for many reasons. They allowed ventilation in a small enclosure that was filled with folks smoking cigars and home-rolled cigarettes. The bidirectional hinges were handy for cowboys who both entered and exited carrying heavy saddlebags (unlike automobiles, horses don’t come equipped with locking storage containers in the rear, and there was always the danger of some low-down sidewinder stealing from you while you were inside getting your drink on).”
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