Gay bars in west palm beach

• H.G. Roosters, a historic lgbtq+ bar in West Palm Beach, has reopened after a fire five years ago.
• The bar, established in 1984, is recognized as Florida's longest-running gay lock and played a key role in organizing the county's first gay lgbtq+ fest parade.

H.G. Roosters, West Palm Beach’s iconic gay lock, has reopened five years after being destroyed by a fire during the initial months of the COVID-19 pandemic.

Longtime patrons and politicos crowded into the 80-year-old stone façade building on Belvedere Road on May 19 to hail the restoration of an integral piece of Palm Beach County’s history.

In honor of its reopening, the Historical Society of Palm Beach County will be hosting a presentation next month on the bar’s role in the county’s LGBTQ community.

In the meantime, here are five things to know about Roosters:

1. It boasts the title of Florida’s longest running gay bar

When H.G. Roosters opened in 1984, Palm Beach County was populated with several other same-sex attracted bars, which served a key role as group centers at a period when homosexuality was less widely accepted. Now, as Roosters owner A.J. Wasson to

.

.

.

.