In 2011, OutSmart said that the bar "anchored" Houston's gay community in Montrose during its nearly forty-year history.

A statue of an angel, which had been there since the early days of the bar and which artist Steve Swoveland restored, stood inside Mary's and became a centerpiece for those paying their respects to the victims of the crisis.

[3] Mary's was opened in 1970 at the corner of Westheimer and Waugh Drive in the Montrose neighborhood of Houston, Texas.

Montrose was at that time becoming a prominent gayborhood in Houston, and was the first gay bar to open on a main road, as well as to have windows.

After finalizing the deal, Joe's son Mike reportedly said, "Well, Mary, now that you own the place, what are you gonna call it?"

[1] In Mary's early days, it became tradition for patrons' underwear to be hung from the rafters, until the state health department required the bar to take them down in the late 1980s.

For the third year, the Houston Police Department raided a bar the week prior to Pride.

According to the HPD, undercover agents had been sent to the bar after receiving civilian complaints of "lewd actions"[2] and public intoxication.

[2] Shortly after midnight, at 12:05 a.m., HPD and the Texas Alcoholic Beverage Commission entered the bar and arrested 61 people.

Among those arrested were Mary's owner, Jim Farmer, who was also one of the Gay Pride Parade's Grand Marshals[5] for 1980 and his assistant manager, Andy Mills.

Witnesses at the bar said police arrested people indiscriminately, and that the crowd considered starting a riot akin to Stonewall.

"[2] News sources speculated that the TV cameras that arrived shortly after the raid began had been arranged or tipped off, and HPD Police Chief B.K.

One news source, KPRC-TV, said the incident "damaged relations with the police and the gay community".

The property was bought by owners of a newly constructed neighboring restaurant, Anvil Bar & Refuge, in 2011.

[7] The building was reopened in 2012 as a coffee shop named Blacksmith, while its back patio and lot were turned into a parking garage for neighboring businesses.

During the ownership of Fanny Farmer, Mary's moved from being a popular hangout to being a hub for gay rights activism and organization in Houston.

Farmer frequently and financially supported the Gay Political Caucus (GPC) in Houston.

In its backyard, trees and shrubs were planted in memoriam of HIV/AIDS victims, and some deceased patrons had their ashes scattered there.

[10] One estimate by bar regular John Paul Jones said patron deaths sometimes averaged three per month.

Unfortunately, this site has now been paved over as a parking lot for a coffee shop, without a dedicated plaque or historical marker to commemorate those in the community who lost their lives in the AIDS epidemic.

Farmer, Jim – 'Fannie' (urn buried in Out Back mound, marked by Sugar Maple tree) 13.

Wenckus, Jon (purple Dendrobium Orchid sprays tied to balloon releases) 43.

Numerous Other Pets A cylinder-shaped time capsule is also buried in Mary's Outback, placed there in the 1970s by the Houston Motorcycle Club.

When Farmer died of AIDS in 1991, Gaye Yancey and Terry Smith adopted his share of the bar.

Other scenes on the outside walls portrayed Janis Joplin, a memorial to a former owner's German Shepherd, and a false window depicting the inside of the bar.

[1] In 2006, the east wall mural was painted over with a scene depicting a blue sky, but it was restored in 2011 by an effort led by local artist Cody Ledvina after Mary's closing.