When you think of Vernon, you likely think of Farmer John, or the industrial town's many other factories. But at one time, Vernon was "fun city."

Leonis Boulevard in Vernon is named for real-estate mogul Jean Baptiste Leonis, an émigré from the Basque region of France. In 1905, he co-founded Vernon as an industrial hub, conveniently located at the crossroads of three major railroads. But Leonis didn't wait around for the industry boom. Local historian Wally Shidler says Leonis marketed the city as a "sporting" town. "You know, Vernon had a boxing arena and a baseball stadium with the Vernon Tigers."

Next door to the stadium was what was billed as the "longest bar in the world" – a hundred feet long, with 37 bartenders. Shidler says, "They had boxing and gambling and everything else. Everybody came to Vernon."

The bar was a local hot spot for years ... until it closed on June 30, 1919. Over a thousand people swigged down their last drink before the start of Prohibition. Today, the Vernon Chamber of Commerce occupies the spot where the "longest bar" once stood.

(Airdate for this story: 9/2/07)