Communities, Features, Owosso

Fire Destroys Former Jumbo’s Bar in Downtown Owosso

By Deb Price, Editor and Publisher

At approximately 9:15 on Thursday night, April 1st, a fire broke out in the former Jumbo’s Bar located at the corner of Washington and Comstock in downtown Owosso. Multiple fire departments assisted the Owosso and Corunna departments attacking the blaze.

Several people gathered across the street to watch the fire departments as they fought the fire. The area had heavy smoke coming from the two story structure. The fire remains under investigation.

Jumbo’s was the place to go to have lunch, meet up with friends or just relax after a hard days work. The original owner of the 55 year old business, Pat Mahoney, aka “Jumbo”, was known for the best burgers in town. It was also the place to be on St. Patrick’s Day. The specialties were the Jumbo burger and the heart attack burger which consisted of a 2/3 pound beef patty on two grilled cheese sandwiches topped with bacon and onions. My favorite was the regular burger topped with bar cheese. I would meet my Mother-In-Law, Bobbie Price, for lunch. She who worked for Shapiro Automotive which was located at the time across the street from Jumbos.

Owners of the location, Todd & Shelly Sydow, purchased the bar from the family of Joe Merkel in 2016. They closed the popular bar on March 22, 2020. Neighboring businesses include Cup Cakes & Kisses and Maurer Heating. As of press time on Friday, April 2nd, the cause of the fire has not been determined.

Photos by Dean Paxton