Name/Title
7th & Francis - Belly of the Whale Coffee HouseEntry/Object ID
2020.25.938Description
NORTH 7th STREET BEGINS HERE
BELLY OF THE WHALE
A UNIQUE 1960's COFFEE HOUSE
7th & Francis
10th & ROBIDOUX
The Belly of the Whale was first located in the basement of the Christ Episcopal Church at 7th and Francis Street
Larry Young was a singer in a folk trio called The Chantymen
The trio sang on The Belly of the Whale's opening night
November 22,1963, the day President Kennedy was assassinated
The group sang at the Belly Of The Whale five or six times
All three were students at St. Joseph Junior College at the time
College Art Professor, Fred Aas, was one the people that got the coffeehouse started
There were three or four other groups that sang that night as well as some poets that read some of their recent works. And one fellow performed on his bongo drums
After opening night, The Belly of the Whale was relocated to another basement room on the south side of the same Episcopal church. There was a sign and an access door off Francis Street
The song "Blow the Candle Out" is the song that they opened with at The Belly of the Whale
The Belly of the Whale was later relocated to Friendship Hall at 10th & ROBIDOUX
The Belly Of The Whale was a 3 year old idea of several St Joseph Churches and was undenominational in form
It was open on Friday nights to all college students for a donation of 50 cents
Like other coffee houses, the Belly of the Whale had an atmosphere all of it's own that was set by candlelight, burlap covered tables, grotesque abstractions painted on canvas wall hangings and pieces of modern art and sculptures
Within a couple minutes of opening at 8:30 pm,the college students began forming in small groups to sing folk songs, play cards or chess, or develop a controversial conversation with others
This unique coffee shop gave young adults the opportunity to express themselves
Photo #1 - November 1966 St Joseph Gazette newpaper photo
Photo #2 - Photo of Larry Young
Some of the above information was provided by Larry Young
