23-05-2025
Ms. Newby's celebrates 50 years of service
BAY COUNTY, Fla. (WMBB) – Ms. Newby's was established in 1975 on the corner of Joan Avenue and Thomas Drive by Melva Newby.
Melva named the business after herself, as one of the first women to open a bar in the area.
'My grandmother she did many things in our early life, and she always wanted to open the bar. And back in the seventies, it was very rare for a woman to be in the bar business. So she was one of the first in Panama City Beach,' Ms. Newby's Owner Will Pickenpaugh said.
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Years later, David Newby opened another business down the road, called Newby's Package and Lounge. It is now called Newby's Too.
'That was my grandfather's. That was David Newby, killer, and it was a strip club, and we decided to turn it into a more, you know, sophisticated kind of bar,' Newby's Too Owner Wesley Pickenpaugh said.
The business has stayed in the family, it was passed down to Charlotte Newby. When she retired, the business went to her children, Will and Wesley Pickenpaugh.
'It's really like a family here. You know, so makes it that much more enjoyable to come to work every day,' Pickenpaugh said.
They went on to open two other locations, called Newby's Brew and Booze and, Newby's Brew On The Bay.
Each location offers a place where you can meet people from all walks of life.
'You'll meet a barber, then you'll meet like a plumber, and you'll meet everyone from all types of work. And they come in to drink, and it's just it's like a surreal moment,' Ms. Newbys's Bartender Sarah Rodriguez said.
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As Newby's continues to grow, you could see more locations in the future.
'I would have told you we wouldn't have four, so I can't say there's not going to be five,' Retired Ms. Newby's Owner Charlotte Newby said.
The 50th anniversary celebration will continue throughout the weekend, with live music and Newby's classic Hunch Punch.
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