New Brass Rail owners find work and fun at Rosalia pub

New owners Jim and Debbie Porter stand in front of the ornate historic back bar inside the Brass Rail tavern in Rosalia.

After years of sitting around the friendly card table at Rosalia’s Brass Rail, Jim Porter of Farmington has taken a new post behind the bar.

Jim and wife Debbie Porter recently took over ownership of the town tavern after purchasing the Brass Rail from long-time owner Dave Wilson.

Shortly after leaving his long-time job at Deaconess Hospital in Spokane, Porter stopped by the Brass Rail for another round of cards.

“I came in one night to play cards, and Dave asked me how much I was going to pay for the place,” said Jim. “I told him absolutely not. I have no interest in running a bar.”

Wilson then called Debbie at the couple’s Farmington home and told her Jim had bought the bar.

Debbie realized Wilson was kidding, but after thinking about it she asked Jim “Why not?”

So they decided to take over for Wilson.

Since then they’ve become fixtures in the Rosalia community.

“We’ve been really well received by everyone in town,” Jim said over his shoulder as he prepared a round of drinks for a table by the bar.

The Porters have donated proceeds from the bar’s recycled aluminum cans to the Veterans’ Memorial Park behind the Texaco station.

Jim has taken over the honor of winding the historic Harthill clock that sits curbside across Whitman Street.

Inside the Brass Rail, the Porters are trying to mix old town tradition with a few upgrades.

Long-time employee Rita Crowl still opens the bar every morning and prepares her county-famous luncheon specials.

For dinner, the Porters have expanded the menu beyond the BR Burger (which now comes with bacon and ham instead of one or the other) to include steaks, salads and French fries.

The pool table has received a new layer of felt, and the Porters have begun organizing tournaments at the dart board.

They have put in new lights and are also working to restore the Brass Rail’s elaborate bar back. The Porters said they have heard the back bar, with its ornate carvings, chandeliers and enormous mirror, dates back to 1895.

Whether it came from a closed brothel in Montana or the Coeur d’Alene Hotel in Spokane was a point of contention among patrons at the bar last week.

The Porters also replaced the old vinyl and duct tape couch with table and chairs in front of a barn wood wall.

Ranking over all of the projects is their commitment to making the Brass Rail a merry roadhouse.

“It’s a lot of fun,” said Jim. “I never thought it would be this much fun.”