Glass Crutch $1 – Lake Tahoe, vintage casino chip
The Glass Crutch Bar, at 179 Kahle Drive in Stateline, Nevada, was open around 1960, owned by Howard Rowe (of Concord, California). In 1962, Irvin J. “Red” McQuade (of Bijou Pines) purchased 25 percent interest in the club, along with partners Francis Giustina (of Pittsburg, California) and Carl Mohoney (of Santa Monica, California).
In 1963, McQuade had slot machines at the club, but had trouble getting table games licensed due to problems with underage drinking at the establishment. In 1964, William S. O’Keefe invested 50 percent interest in a poker game at the Glass Crutch.
Irvin John McQuade worked for a time at Barney’s running a poker game, but didn’t get along with manager Dick Chartrand, and McQuade returned to the Glass Crutch around 1967, when O’Keefe left. (In 1967, O’Keefe tried to invest in Diamond Jim’s Casino in Jackpot, Nevada, with George S. Canon, former owner of George’s Gateway Club in Stateline, but they were denied licenses by the Nevada Gaming Commission.) The Glass Crutch continued to operate through 1969.
In 1970, the nightclub became Chez Paree Discotheque, and was later known as the Mother Lode in the early ’70s, the Snow Bunny around 1974, and Cooter Jones around 1975. The building was acquired by neighboring Harvey’s Inn, and for decades has been used for storage by the club. Today the property is owned by the Lakeside Inn.
