On February 16, 1982, the Columbia Missourian reported that “another city retailer has begun selling canned beer.” Barnett’s Market at 3101 South Providence Road began selling the canned Busch beer two weeks after its nearby competition McCowan’s Southside Market offered the product. The beer cans were hand stamped at Barnett’s using a rubber stamp attached to the bottom of another beer can with a wooden dowel as a handle. Kim Hunt, the store manager of Barnett’s traveled to Jefferson City to pick up the beer from the distributor herself. According to the Missourian Hunt said she doubted “whether her store and McCowan’s are the beginning of any trend on the part of retailers. ‘I don’t think anybody else is going to do it.’”

The dueling liquor stores were both located along Providence Road. McCowan’s Southside Market, 2601 South Providence Road, was at the site of the future Stony Creek Inn. Barnett’s Market, 3101 South Providence Road, was located where Arena Liquor is today. In 2023, a strip mall and Shell gas station stand at the corner of Green Meadows and Providence. Jimmy’s Family Steakhouse has occupied the north side of the strip mall since 1991. The south side of the building holds the original Arena Liquor, established in 2003, ostensibly named after its location a mile south of the University of Missouri athletic arenas. In 2023, twenty years after its establishment, there are eight locations in Columbia: Downtown, Rain Forest Parkway, Ballenger Lane, Old 63 South, Old 63 North, Corporate Lake, Providence Road, and the new Scott Boulevard Wine and Spirits. On February 16, 2023 there were around one hundred varieties of canned beer on sale at 3101 South Providence Road.

Inspired by the forty year continuity of canned beer at a strip mall, our group, CoMo Preservation, hopes to help homeowners, landlords, and institutions prevent the destruction of historic architecture. Original period styles might be replicated, but will forever lack the social history of authentic structures. The preservation of historic bridges is necessary for Columbia’s residents, students, and visitors to achieve a sense of place and, it follows, for our city’s continued economic success. If you want to join us in our mission sign up for our mailing list to receive news and updates.

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Sources:

• French, Kyle (December 30, 1981). Nickel down: distributors work out can plan. Columbia, Missouri: Columbia Missourian. Archived at Missouri Digital Heritage. Accessed February 16, 2023.

• Bloom, David (February 16, 1982). Canned beer competition popping up. Columbia, Missouri: Columbia Missourian. Archived at Missouri Digital Heritage. Accessed February 16, 2023.

• Arena Liquor (2015). About: Established in 2003. arenaliquormidmo.com. Accessed February 16, 2023.

• Jimmy’s Steakhouse (2023). About Us. jimmysfamilysteakhouse.com. Accessed February 16, 2023.