by Jay Kerner, Source Publications
Yes, you read it right. Believe it or not, our home town could at one time make such a claim. Say what you want about Milwaukee, little old St. Joe once surpassed them in both brewery numbers and total gallons produced. A little time and some great help from the nice folks in the library reference room turned up a ton of great information on this period. But first some things to keep in mind that helped create this situation. Water, the most important ingredient in beer making. A source of clean pure water was the primary factor in choosing a brewery location. St. Joseph had a variety of creeks and springs that could be harnessed for the purpose.A thirsty populace. In the last half of the 1800’s St. Joe was home to a huge number of European immigrants who came to work in the packing plants, and for whom beer was the beverage of choice.Next, skilled entrepreneurs were needed to meet the demand. Again, a number of individuals trained in the brewmaster’s arts saw that population base and relocated here to ply their trade.The last piece of the puzzle is the freshness factor. With the fairly recent ascent of micro-breweries and brewpubs marketing freshness as a reason to choose their product, the big boy brewers have responded with “born on dating” etc. Back in the days before commercial refrigeration, it was fresh or else. Neighborhood taverns picked up their beer as often as daily, in horse drawn carriages from their neighborhood breweries. Smaller breweries were scattered all over town, servicing only the handful of taverns within a small radius.
By most records, the first commercial brewery here was the St. Joseph Brewing Company, started in 1849 on the corner of 8th and Charles. Joseph Kuechle chose the location where Smith’s Branch Spring bubbled to the surface, on the way downhill to the Missouri River. He built surrounding his water source, and before long was producing over 15,000 barrels per year.A famous name in St. Joe history, Henry Nunning immigrated from Province of Westphalia, Prussia in 1849, and started H. Nunning & Son Brewers in 1854 at 11th and Faraon. By 1881 they had built a new facility on the site that produced 65 barrels per brew, and employed 13 people with a payroll over $1,000 per month. August Nunning, son of the founder, came on board in 1879, and built his grand home at 14th and Jules in 1887, that is currently one of the midwest’s finest bed & breakfasts.1858 was a big year for new breweries, including Joseph and X. Aniser, and William Ost, who operated out of a building at 13th and Frederick that later was a carriage factory. Frederick Islaub, also in ’58 opened his facility at Main & Michel streets. Peter Walter began business at 4th and Edmond but soon lost his head brewer, when Louis Keorner opened at Main and Faraon later the same year.In 1865 Andreas Ohnsorg and Francis Eger started the New Ulm Brewery at 8th and Felix. Quite the philanthropists for the day, they donated land for the New Ulm Park, which later became the site for Thomas’s Market on St. Joe Avenue. The New Ulm Apartments at the south edge of the property still retain the name. The brewery building burned in 1890.In 1881 John Jester started Pateetown Brewery which raised the number to 15 at the time.Chronologically I skipped over what would become the most prominent player in St. Joseph brewing history. In 1859 John J. Max and M. Karl Goetz opened the City Brewery at 6th & Albermarle, adjacent to Blacksnake Creek, the same water source that attracted city founder Joseph Robidoux originally. Somewhere along the way Mr. Max’s name disappears, and the name was officially changed to Goetz Brewery.
In the 1890’s other national companies including Blatz and even Anheuser Busch opened facilities here, but ultimately went under when they found they couldn’t compete with the Goetz operation.
When prohibition came along, Goetz was one of the few big breweries to stay in operation, as they switched to a new concoction they called “Near Beer” with less than 1% alcohol. After prohibition ended, they were in a perfect position to gear up production, and their Country Club brand was a popular national brand through the first half of the century.
By 1954 Goetz was one of St. Joseph’s largest employers with 550 workers and a $3 million payroll. They merged with Pearl Brewing Company in 1960, and continued operations here until the plant closed in 1976.
Employees were extremely loyal to the owning family which maintained residence here, unlike a lot of other manufacturers. Many generations of family members followed each other to work there, my own father and great-grandfather among them. The former, supposedly due to the long standing company policy of providing all workers with two free cold beers twice daily. (While it may not have been great for productivity, it was fantastic for morale!)
The final act in St. Joseph’s brewing history took place with the razing of the old factory in 1987.
You can still find a few souvenirs of St. Joseph’s brewing history on ebay and other sites. Grab them when you can, as they are rapidly disappearing. And maybe raise a frosty mug over the New Year’s holiday, and drink a toast to old St. Joe, once America’s Brewing Capital.
April 4th, 2008 at 9:13 pm
Jay,
You remember looking thru the windows at the Pearl Brewery seeing those cases and cases of beer, then wondering if you could drink all that beer?
What a great article!
DMG