Public House, n. (Irish) a bar; a tavern; where family and friends go for
great food, a "Dam Good" pint and a memorable time!
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Pub History
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The Arena District was the first home of Irish immigrants who fled the great famine in the 1850s. They came penniless and found work building America's railroads.
You can still hear the locomotives rumbling through this area, once an Irish settlement surrounded by railroads. Nationwide Boulevard, originally named Public Street and later Naghten Street, was referred to as "Irish Broadway."
When digging commenced for the Nationwide Arena, construction workers unearthed everyday items such as plates and saucers from the Irish inhabitants.
O'Shaughnessy's Public House is a celebration of the Irish experience in greater Columbus.
To honor the Emerald Isle, the entire interior and entrance of O'Shaughnessy's, including all furniture, woodwork, light fixtures, flooring, glasswork and bar were built in different parts of Ireland and shipped to the Arena District. Irish artisans followed and created the Public House on this location.
To honor the immigrants, like Jerry O'Shaughnessy, who bravely sought a new life in America, the Public House has also collected artifacts and documents from local Irish families.
The direct descendants of Jerry O'Shaughnessy welcome you to the Public House. Please come and enjoy our tribute to our Irish ancestry.
Why is it "Dam" good?
 And who is Jerry O'Shaughnessy? He was seventeen when he started with the City Water Works, digging the foundation for what was then the new water facility. He worked his way up, from ditchdigger to wiper of machinery, to engineer, and finally was appointed Superintendent of the Columbus City Water Works. In total he spent more than 50 years working to build our modern City water system.
Jerry was in office as Superintendent during much of the design and construction of what is now called Griggs Dam, the first water storage dam for the city. Jerry realized that Columbus would need more than one dam for the future. He fought hard for the passage of a controversial levy to build a second storage dam further up on the Scioto River. He was successful in the effort, and secured the land for the project. Jerry died in 1921 while still working on the engineering for this dam.
Within the week, by unanimous vote of Columbus City Council, the new dam was named O'Shaughnessy Dam in his honor. The dam was built in 1924 and dedicated in 1926.
The O'Shaughnessy Dam still stands in Delaware county, right across from the Columbus Zoo, and the O'Shaughnessy Reservoir is still a valuable souce of water for the city of Columbus, as well as a great recreational resource.
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