Club 47 opened as a coffee-house and progressive jazz club in Cambridge, Massachusetts, in 1958, before transitioning to an iconic folk-music venue where big names like Joan Baez and Bob Dylan got their start.

Among the first to perform at the former furniture store were African American musicians from the South such as blues greats Mississippi John Hurt (1892-1966), Muddy Waters (1913-1983) and Reverend Gary Davis (1896-1972).

In the 50s and early 60s, however, no hotel in Harvard Square would allow a black person to stay. To get around this, black musicians would be hosted by staff members from the club, owned by former Harvard students Joyce Kalina and Paula Kelley.

American singer and songwriter Joan Baez, known for her civil rights activism, was among the first folk singers to perform there at the age of 17, listed only as “Girl with Guitar.’

Bob Dylan played between sets at Club 47 for free as a guest of Baez, his then-girlfriend, but didn’t receive official billing.

Hundreds of performers made the pilgrimage to Club 47 over the years including Tom Rush, the Charles River Valley Boys, the Kweskin Jug Band, Joni Mitchell, Pete Seeger, Bonnie Raitt, Judy Collins and Taj Mahal.

In 1963, Club 47 moved from Mount Auburn Street near Harvard Square to 47 Palmer Street, but the club closed in 1968.

The following year the club reopened under the name Passim and later became Club Passim.

Today Club Passim is a non-profit organization with a music school and a cultural exchange program for children. For its 40th anniversary in 1999 some of the artists who got their start at the club - Tom Paxton, Muddy Waters, Taj Mahal, Suzanne Vega, Tracy Chapman, Shawn Colvin, and Joan Baez - played a benefit concert.

This 1960s menu shows a generously proportioned gentleman drinking wassail, a beverage made from hot mulled cider, ale, or wine and spices, drunk traditionally as part of wassailing, an ancient ritual used to drink to people’s health.