1519 Alberta St.

It was April 1989, nearing the end of senior year for Anne Howarth, Michelle Scamacca, Allison Hemming, Barb Evanick and Reem Al-Misky at 1519 Alberta (now called Frericks), known as “The Castle.” 

One night, the “Castle Girls” conjured up an epic finale to their senior year: The Nightmare on Brown Street.

“Senior year, you have to go out with a bang, right?” Hemming said. “So why have an ordinary bar crawl when you can have an epic one that’s also a timed foot race?”

Word spread fast, and soon around 200 soon-to-be UD grads signed up. They charged a $5 entrance fee with proceeds going to buy the winning team a thirst-quenching prize (hint, hint), ensuring one last get-together before the semester’s end. 

The route started at Alexander’s on Brown Street (now the empty lot next to Jimmie’s Ladder 11). Teams began their race in five-minute increments to avoid overwhelming the bar staff, with each individually timed. As the crawl’s organizers, the Castle Girls were the last team to take off, acting as a clean-up crew. 

“We did our best to leave no trace … [so] it was impossible to dust for fingerprints,” Hemming laughed.

From Alexander’s, the teams ran to Walnut Hills (now the entrance to Miami Valley Hospital), then to The Shed (now known as the Fieldhouse), to New Moon Saloon (now Chipotle), to Flanagan’s, and the last stop — as it should be — was Tim’s.

“Everybody did pretty well until they turned the corner from Flanagan’s, running the 1,000-yard dash to Tim’s,” Al-Misky said.

But safety was a top priority, so judges were stationed at every crosswalk and traffic light. Participants caught jaywalking were eliminated. To make sure no one cheated, every bar had several judges to ensure no venue was skipped and no beverages were tossed. 

Al-Misky refereed the entire event, kept track of all the teams’ times and declared the final winner — “The Blue House,” across from The Deli. 

“I think everybody was a winner. Everybody that participated were our friends, and we knew we were going to have a good time,” Scamacca said. “We also knew that whoever won was going to invite everybody over and have yet another party.”

The legend of The Nightmare on Brown Street grew far and wide, but for the Castle Girls, it was about unity.

“That was our pinnacle,” Howarth said. “Bringing everybody together, but just that super-fun last huge memory where tons of people came and joined in.” 

They created it together and that “was the fun part.” 

Illustration by Kevin Johnson.

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