HAYWARD, WIS. – At 3 o’clock on a rainy afternoon last week, the Moccasin Bar here was crowded with patrons hoisting cold ones.
The Moccasin has been a Hayward beer joint since 1900, when Hamm’s Brewing ponied up cold cash to buy the prime downtown storefront location at the intersection of Hwys. 63 and 27.
Not until 1935 did the famous, and infamous, Louie Spray become owner, rebranding the saloon as Spray’s Bar & Grill.
For reasons that will become evident as this tale unwinds, Harry P. “Bud” Grant, the retired Vikings coach who was born and bred in Superior, Wis.