

(via Yelp)

Smith's Bar, an old school dive bar with some fine neon signage out front, is closing down after 60 years in business. Located in Hell's Kitchen, at the corner 8th Avenue and 44th Street, the bar is one of the last haunts harkening back to the Old Days.

No one attached to the establishment is commenting, and there are no updates on their Facebook page, but according to Vanishing New York , an employee confirmed they will close their doors this Thursday, though offered no reason as to why. A tipster, however, noted "lease issues."

Smith's opened in 1954, though Vanishing notes "they were bought by a chain of anonymous pubs" in the 1990s (they also own the nearby bar Social), and things were never really the same. But in 2005, the NY Times paid tribute to its old school divey charm and Irish barmen, declaring, "the cavernous bar area of Smith's seems untouched by the wave of renewal that has brought the likes of Red Lobster and Bubba Gump to nearby Times Square. That a place like Smith's still exists in Midtown is a testament to the bipolar nature of New Yorkers, who are obsessed with the new and trendy and yet fiercely protective of old haunts and habits."