The 247 Bar was a gritty, no-frills gay leather-and-Levi’s haunt tucked away at 247 S. 17th Street in Philadelphia’s Rittenhouse Square Neighborhood. Opening its doors in 1971, it quickly became a discreet but magnetic cruising bar—complete with jukebox, cheap beer, and a neighborhood atmosphere that felt equal parts familiar and forbidden. A sanctuary for queer men seeking connection at a time when visibility was risky, the 247 Bar remained a fixture until it closed in 1997, its spirit lingering in the alleyways of memory.
