Construction sparks interest in Carbondale's past

New construction at Tres Hombres Mexican Restaurant and Bar unearthed the basement of a 200-year-old structure late last week, generating additional construction costs and sparking interest in Carbondale's past.

Owner Gary Robinson said a construction crew was preparing to build an outdoor patio addition onto the restaurant, located at 119 N. Washington St., when they discovered the basement, which was filled with dirt. The dirt had to be excavated and refilled with cement.

While the discovery was a minor setback, Robinson said he wasn't too concerned about it. "You have to plan for things to go wrong and kind of roll with it," Robinson said. "But it's just a basement, and we didn't find Al Capone's vault or anything."

Joe Hinton, a city planner, said the original structure was most likely built during the 1880s, when major construction began in Carbondale. But Hinton said the building has gone through multiple transformations including several demolitions and remodeling.

According to archival photographs, the most recent businesses housed in the building were L&J's Steakhouse, which operated in the '60s and '70s, and Ridgeway, a general store that operated in the '40s. Tres Hombres opened in 1981.

Robinson said the basement stretches from the restaurant to the drive-thru at ABC Liquor Mart next door, which in the early 1900s was Dillinger Saloon. One of the only original structures still standing on North Washington Street now houses The Stage Co., which Hinton said was one of the first brick buildings constructed in town square when Carbondale started to prosper and transition from woodwork to masonry.

Hinton said similar historical discoveries have prompted archeological surveys by the state, but because the spot where Tres Hombres is located is not on the city's inventory of historic sites, it may be exempt.

Robinson said he expects the patio, which will seat about 75 people and serve cocktails and appetizers, to open in April or May. Robinson would not divulge the cost of the construction.