Today is the 62nd birthday of Fred Karm, who is the owner and brewmaster of Hoppin’ Frog in Akron, Ohio. While he’s been brewing since 1994, Fred opened his own place in 2006 (and later a separate tasting room) and has been making some great beer there ever since. I first met Fred at the RateBeer Best Awards, when I emceed the first awards show in 2016. He’s one of the most energetic and passionate people I’ve met in the beer industry. Join me in wishing Fred a very happy birthday.
Fred and me at the RateBeer Best Festival in 2017.
Today is the birthday of Emil (sometimes spelled Emile) Schmitt (October 21, 1851-November 13, 1898). He was born in Lorraine, France, and emigrated to America in 1853 with his family, settling in Cincinnati, Ohio. Having married Maria Elizabeth “Mary” Kauffman, he was the son-in-law of John Kauffman, who was part of the group that bought the Franklin Brewery in Cincinnati, Ohio in 1856. By 1859, it was called the John Kaufman & Co. Brewery, and it became the fourth largest brewery in Cincinnati. Eventually, he remained as the sole owner, and in 1882 renamed it the John Kauffman Brewing Co. Emil Schmitt was the manager of the brewery. When he died in 1886, Emil assumed control of it. It was closed by prohibition, and never reopened, although it was used as the Husman Potato Chip factory, so at least it was put to good use.
The name confusion is particularly odd, since some accounts, notably his page on Ancestry.com, claims that he was a twin, and that he, Emile, had a twin sister named Emil. But even the illustration accompanying his obituary, shown above, is titled Emil, and you’d be hard-pressed to conclude that’s a woman. There’s also some suggestion that she also died at the same time as her brother Emile. There’s definitely some conflicting reports on this.
Here’s his obituary, from the Cincinnati Enquirer:
There’s an entry for the John Kauffman Brewery in the “History of Cincinnati and Hamilton County, Ohio,” published in 1894:
“In 1856 John Kauffman, George F. Eichenlaub, and Rudolf Rheinbold purchased the Franklin Brewery on Lebanon Road near the Deer Creek from Kauffman’s aunt. Her husband, John Kauffman, estabished the brewery in 1844. He died in 1845. In 1859 under the name Kauffman and Company, they began to build a new brewery on Vine Street and soon left the Deer Creek location. The first structure on Vine was completed in 1860.
In 1871 the Kauffman Brewery was the city’s fourth largest with sales amounting to $30,930. It was located on both the west and east sides of Vine north of Liberty and south of Green Street.
In 1860 Kauffman also bought the Schneider grist mill on Walnut Street near Hamilton Road (McMicken Avenue), but leased it out before long to another company.
In its first year on Vine Street, the brewery produced only about 1000 barrels. By 1877 the number grew to 50,000 barrels of beer. Kauffman’s beer was sold in Nashville, Montgomery, Atlanta, Charleston, Savannah, and New Orleans.
In 1865 Eichenlaub retired from the business and he was followed by Rheinbold in 1877. John Kauffman then took over the leadership by himself. After his oldest son Johnn studied brewing in Augsburg, Germany, he went to work at the family brewery. Emil Schmidt, Kauffman’s son-in-law, was superintendent by 1877.
In 1882 the brewery was incorporated as the John Kauffman Brewing Company with a paid-in capital stock of $700,000. In 1888 the brewery building at 1622 Vine was enlarged. Note it is occupied by the Schuerman Company today. The office and family residence was at 1625-27 Vine, which was razed and replaced about 75 years ago.
John Kauffman died in 1892 and his wife Marianne Eichenlaub Kauffman took over. She was president of the corporation; Emil Schmidt, vice-president; and treasurer; Charles Rheinbold, secretary; Charles J. Kauffman, superintendent; and John R. Kauffman, brewmaster. By 1894 the brewery produced 70,000 barrels of beer. The malt house had a capacity of 150,000 bushels of barley and the brewery plant covered five acres of ground.
By 1913 John R. Kauffman was president of the company. The brewery produced ‘Gilt Edge’, ‘Columbia’ and ‘Old Lager’ beers. It closed in 1919 when Prohibition became law and never reopened.”
The brewery is also mentioned briefly in a History of the Brewery District for Cincinnati:
Industry continued to be an important factor in Over-the-Rhine’s development. The canal area was still the location of many diversified industries, including lumberyards, foundries, pork packers, tanneries, and glycerin works. The brewing industry tended to concentrate along McMicken Avenue and the Miami and Erie canal (what is now the Brewery District). By 1866 the Jackson Brewery, J. G. John & Sons Brewery, Christian Moerlein Brewing Company, and John Kauffman Brewing Company dominated the industrial use of the area. In close association on the west side of the canal were the John Hauck and Windisch-Mulhauser Brewing Companies. Between 1875 and 1900 seventeen breweries were located in Over-the-Rhine and West End.
Today is the birthday of Johann Georg Sohn (October 20, 1817-October 24, 1876). He was born in Bavaria, but settled in Cincinnati, Ohio. In 1845, he co-founded the Hamilton Brewery, which was later known as the J.G. Sohn & Company Brewery. It was also known as the Clyffside Brewing Co., and used the trade name Feldsbrau. Johann’s sons took over after his death, and it was sold in 1907 and became known as the William G. Sohn Brewing Co. and later the Mohawk Brewing Co. After prohibition, it reopened as the Clyffside Brewing. After World War 2, it was renamed the Red Top Brewing before closing for good in 1958. Unfortunately, I couldn’t find very much biographical information about Sohn, and only a little about his brewery.
Clyffside Brewing Company is a defunct brewery in Cincinnati, located on the site of Hamilton Brewery, founded in 1845 by Johann Sohn and George Klotter as the Hamilton Brewery. By 1853, the company becane known as the Klotter, Sohn and Company. In 1866, Sohn bought out Klotter, and Klotter went on to establish his own brewery on Klotter Street. Sohn renamed the brewery the J.G. Sohn & Company Brewery, and it became the tenth largest of its type in Cincinnati. In November 1900, the company was reorganized as the William S. Sohn Brewing Company when Sohn sold out his interest. In 1907, Sohn was purchased by Mohawk Brewery, and was known for its Zinzinnati Beer.
George Klotter left the Klotter, Sohn, & Co. Brewery partnership to pursue his own proprietorship, at which point Johann George Sohn brought in Louis Sohngen and Heinrich Schlosser as partners. The new partnership would operate under the name of J.G. Sohn & Co. Brewery. Sohn ran the business until his death in 1876.
After Sohn’s death, leadership of the company was assumed by his sons, J.G. Sohn Jr., William, and J. Edward. J.G. Sohn Jr. died in 1880 and the other two brothers continued to operate the brewery together until 1900, at which time J. Edward left to join the Schaller Brothers Brewery. Shortly thereafter William would rename the brewery as the William S. Sohn Brewery, however he died in 1902. After William’s death his wife, Lena Jung Sohn ran the brewery until 1907, as she was intimately familiar with the industry by way of her father, another Cincinnati brewer.
Abandoned, the story of a forgotten America, also has a page about the Clyffside Brewing Company
Today is the birthday of Fred Horix (October 3, 1843-1929+?). Horix was born in Hesse-Darmstadt, Germany, but came to America in 1868, eventually settling in Akron, Ohio. In 870, he and John Kirn formed the Fred Horix & John Kirn Brewery, and three years later he bought out Kirn, renaming it the Fred Horix Brewery. Unfortunately, the brewery closed in 1879. Horix then bought another brewery which he named the Frederick Horix Brewery, but a decade later he sold it to George J. Renner. He later became part-owner of the Akron Brewing Co., along with over 50 local saloonkeepers, and spent the remainder of his career as its Vice-President. Unfortunately, there’s not much biographical information I could find on Horix, not even his date of death or a photo.
At this point, [brewery owner Frederick] Oberholtz found himself $30,000 in debt to several parties, and he subsequently lost ownership of the plant. The brewery changed hands twice more while sitting idle, until September 1876, when it was purchased by John A. Kolp. He operated it briefly before defaulting on several loans himself. It was then sold at a sheriff’s auction in January 1879 to Fred Horix, for $8,334, or two-thirds of its appraised value. Oberholtz later moved to Kansas City for a time before returning to Akron, where he died of consumption in 1888.
Horix had successfully operated a small brewery on East Exchange St. for several years. When he took ownership of this plant, it consisted only of an icehouse, a small storage building, and the main brewhouse with a potential annual capacity of 20,000 barrels. Horix was immediately able to invest a significant amount of money into the plant, and brewing operations began again by mid-1879.
Just one year later, in August 1880, a second fire struck the plant. Beginning late at night in the boiler room, it quickly spread through the plant. Horix, who lived in a house next door to the plant, saw the fire and ran up the Forge Street hill in his nightclothes to the nearest firebox a half mile away. Despite a rapid response by the fire department, the top two floors of the plant were gutted, with a loss of nearly $12,000. This time, however, the plant was fully insured, and was quickly rebuilt.
Within several years, the plant had increased in size to seven buildings, and annual production had increased to nearly 7,000 barrels; the brewery was finally operating at a profit. In 1888, however, Horix chose to sell the plant for $45,000 to George J. Renner. The deed of transfer mentioned that while Renner would take ownership of the entire plant and house, Horix would retain his personal records, family furniture, and “a spotted horse called Dick”. Horix then spent a year in Germany before returning to Akron, where he was involved in several different business ventures before opening a delicatessen on South High St. After the turn of the century, he would return to the brewing business, becoming involved with the newly formed Akron Brewing Company.
At the outset of the twentieth century, the predominant trend in the brewing industry was toward the formation of stock companies, many of which were operated by local saloon owners. The Akron Brewing Company began as one of these, when in October 1902, approximately fifty saloonkeepers from the Akron area banded together to create a new brewery in the city. Many of them had argued for years that the prices they had to pay for beer from the existing breweries were too high, which made it more difficult to realize a profit. Therefore, with the creation of their own company, they would have a guaranteed supply of beer at a reasonable cost. It was also assumed that many of the 250 saloons in Summit County would also patronize this new establishment.
The new company was incorporated in April 1903, with a capital stock of $200,000. The initial president was John Koerber, the owner of the Bank CafÈ in downtown Akron, and who had previously been involved with the formation of other brewery stock companies elsewhere before coming to Akron. Vice-president was Fred Horix, who had previously operated a small brewery on East Exchange Street, as well as what was now known as the Renner brewery on North Forge Street. A native Prussian, he had more experience with the brewing of beer than anyone else in the group, and was currently the operator of a small delicatessen and saloon on South High Street.
The company’s treasurer was John Lamparter, a local real estate dealer and owner of the Palace Drug Store. Secretary and general manager was F. Wm. Fuchs, the proprietor of the Buckeye Supply House, who had previously been an Akron agent for the L. Schlather Brewery of Cleveland. Other initial directors included John Backe, Ed Kearn, Christian Koch, Jacob Gayer, Adolph Kull, George Good, William Evans, Frank Selzer, William Carter, Sam Woodring, Ed Curran, and brothers Jacob, John, and Louis Dettling, all of whom were local businessmen or saloon owners.
Construction of a new modern brewery building, costing $150,000, began in September. The site was at 841-869 South High St., at the corner of Voris St., although High St. was renamed South Broadway in later years. This new plant, made primarily of steel, was considered to be fireproof and it contained storage cellars that were made of enameled steel. Eliminating wood from the storage vats meant no need for frequent varnishing, and the beer would never taste like wood. The plant’s five-story brewhouse initially had an annual capacity of 30,000 barrels, but it could be enlarged to 100,000 barrels if necessary.
The plant’s brewmaster was John Hau, and his first brew took place on February 24, 1904. Three months later, White Rock Export Beer made its debut in the Akron market. In addition to sales in many local saloons, the beer was also bottled and marketed heavily for home consumption, the latter being an emerging trend in the industry at the time. A decade later, Wurzburger Beer would make its appearance as an alternative to White Rock.
In 1906, Koerber sold his share in the company and was subsequently replaced by John Backe, another saloon owner. Koerber then moved to Ionia, Michigan, where he purchased and rebuilt a small local brewery that had recently burned. The rebuilding was successful, but when the county voted itself “dry” by local option in 1909, the business collapsed, and Koerber was ruined. He died of kidney disease just two years later. His family remained in the business, however, later operating the Koerber Brewing Co. in Toledo and two breweries in Michigan after Prohibition ended.
By 1911, Louis Dettling had become president of the brewery. With his brothers Jacob and John, Dettling was the proprietor of The Rathskeller, a prominent restaurant and tavern in downtown Akron. When Louis died in 1917, he was replaced as president by his brother Jacob. Also joining the company during this period was new master brewer Ernst Hafenbrack. He was replaced shortly thereafter by Walter Gruner, who would eventually become the company’s president in 1921 upon the death of Jacob Dettling.
In 1913 came the appearance of the Diamond Land and Improvement Co., a real estate development company owned by the brewery’s stockholders. It began as a management office for the 82 saloons in Akron that were owned by the brewery, although other non-saloon properties were later acquired by the company.
Despite indications that Prohibition was inevitable, the company undertook a major ex-pansion in late 1916, building a large new four-story brewhouse and expanding the cellars into the original brewhouse. This radically changed the appearance of the plant, as it lost a great deal of the original ornate architecture. Soon after this, the company’s capital stock was increased to $400,000.
When statewide Prohibition took effect in May 1919, the company reincorporated as the Akron Beverage and Cold Storage Co., with capital stock of $500,000. This would continue to produce White Rock Cereal Beverage, with less than 0.5% alcohol, as well as a new cereal beverage known as Tiro, which apparently met with disappointing sales, as it did not last for long. In addition, the original bottling house was converted into the new White Rock Dairy, producing a wide range of dairy products. Walter Gruner remained president of the company until 1923, when he was replaced by Fred W. Fuchs, son of F. Wm. Fuchs, one of the company’s original officers. Fred had begun working for the brewery in 1914 upon graduating from nearby Buchtel College, later known as the University of Akron.
Last year I decided to concentrate on Bock ads. Bock, of course, may have originated in Germany, in the town of Einbeck. Because many 19th century American breweries were founded by German immigrants, they offered a bock at certain times of the year, be it Spring, Easter, Lent, Christmas, or what have you. In a sense they were some of the first seasonal beers. “The style was later adopted in Bavaria by Munich brewers in the 17th century. Due to their Bavarian accent, citizens of Munich pronounced ‘Einbeck’ as ‘ein Bock’ (a billy goat), and thus the beer became known as ‘Bock.’ A goat often appears on bottle labels.” And presumably because they were special releases, many breweries went all out promoting them with beautiful artwork on posters and other advertising.
Wednesday’s ad is for an unknown Bock Beer, which was published on September 24, 1965. This one was not for a specific brand of bock beer, it was instead for a liquor store called Ehrhart’s Party Store. I cut out the middle of the ad, which consisted of some other ads for root beer along with information about the store and its hours. Surprisingly, sixty years after this ad ran, the store is still a going concern in Bucyrus, Ohio. This ad ran in The Bucyrus Telegraph-Forum, which serves Bucyrus, Crawford County and Ohio.
Today is also the birthday of Larry Horwitz, who is an award-winning regional brewer who used to be with Iron Hill Brewery, headquartered at their West Chester location. Larry was at Manayunk Brewery before joining the Iron Hill team in 2003, having gotten in his professional brewing start while in Ohio. He later moved back closer to home, to brew at the Four String Brewing in Columbus, but more recently is back a little closer to Philly, in Delaware, brewing at Crooked Hammock Brewing. Join me in wishing Larry a very happy birthday.
Me and Larry at CBC in Nashville a few year back.
Tonya Cornett, for 10 Barrel Brewing, with Larry at the 2009 GABF.
Today is the birthday of Herman Lackman (September 15, 1826-June 30, 1890). He was born in Germany, but came to the U.S. as a young man, settling in Cincinnati, Ohio. He founded what would become the Herman Lackman Brewing Co. with a business partner, J.H. Sandmann, and the brewery continued until 1919, when prohibition closed it for good.
HERMAN LACKMAN, brewer, a native of Thedinghausen, near Bremen, in Germany, was born Sept. 15, 1826. After he received the usual elementary education, he helped his father (a farmer by trade) work in the fields, until the age of twenty. Without the hope of advancement at home, he moved to America in 1847, and, while learning the language of the country, he stopped in Baltimore, Md. Where he got a job as a farm laborer. In 1849 he came to the West, and settled in Cincinnati. Just two days after his arrival, he found employment in a sawmill where he earned seventy-five cents to a dollar the day. He remained there for eighteen months, until September 1850, and then got a different job paying a monthly salary of thirty-five dollars working for Brauer Schaller & ship, where he spent five years driving a lumber wagon and later a beer wagon.
This certainly was a modest start, but Mr. Lackman managed horses well, possessing a powerful frame and being capable of great labor, and there was something in the man above his calling, and what it was became apparent in 1855, when, by investment of his earnings he became in a small way a brewer himself. Knowing no gateway to success except the one inscribed “hard work,” he applied himself diligently to business, rapidly increased his sales, and through sound methods, straightforward conduct and the ability to organize and carry on a large enterprise, he gained a fortune.
In 1855, Herman Lackman and J.H. Sandmann leased the brewery of Louis Schneider on Agusta Street. Lackman had worked for Foss-Schneider. In 1860 the operation was moved to the property located at Sixth and Stone Streets because they needed more room. Their new property had a beer celler that could hold about 500 barrels. With their expansion they were able to increase the brewery’s output from 2000 barrels in 1855 to approximately 6000 barrels in 1865.
In 1868 Lackman bought out Sandmann’s shares in the company and renamed it, The Herman Lackman, and in 1890, The Herman Lackman Brewing Company. J. H. Sandmann, having retired from the business in 1868, died in 1872, with the respect of all who knew him. Herman Lackman conducted the business alone, and, as said, became the real founder of the present company. Herman Lackman believed in “beer as an agent of good”. He held, however, that to accomplish this good it must be pure-made of the pure malt of barley and hops alone. His principles became known and became part of his beer making.
In the new building all modern methods of brewing are perfected. The company does its own milling. Its malt is made from the cream of the barley market. No steam arises from the brew kettle. The great engines move without noise or smoke. The vast ice machines are silently at work. Everything is as neat as the parlor of a painstaking house-wife, from floor to ceiling. Stone floors are clean and ceilings shine. Brasses are burnished and steel glitters.
With a model mill-house, brew-house, engine and boiler-house, whose cap-stone was laid three years after the founder’s death [see biographical sketch], and just that long after he had superintended the building of the foundations. In this building, except one small house, there is not an inch of wood. Stone, iron, steel and brass are its components. It is fireproof, and enduring, like the memory of the good man who planned it, whose four sons would carry out his designs.
One of them, Edward H. Lackman, has since followed his father to his long rest. He was the youngest son, an athlete and an enthusiast, like his brothers, in physical sports, but died early—not, however, before he had contributed his portion of loving labor to the enterprise with which the family name is identified.
Herman Lackman was prominent in city affairs, and served with honor in the school board, as president of the German Orphan’s Asylum, as president of the Third German Reformed Church, as trustee of the Bodmann’s Widows’ Home, director of the Sun Mutual Insurance Company, major in the militia, and president of the Cincinnati Brewers’ Association—which position his son Albert now so worthily fills. Open-hearted and charitable, thoroughly believing that his life work was one of real practical temperance reform. Mr. Lackman died in Cincinnati, June 30, 1890. His death, just as he was beginning extensive improvements to his business, was a public bereavement. He left four sons to take up his work where he left it off.
Also, Peared Creation has a short history of the brewery:
Herman Lackman was a native of Thedinghausen, Germany. At age 21 Herman saw no hope of progress in his country so he came to United States. From working in a railroad in Maryland to driving a lumber wagon and working in saw mills, Lackman did it all. It was in 1860 that Herman met up with another German immigrant, John H. Sandmann and together they established Herman-Lackman Brewery at Sixth and Stone Streets in Cincinnati.
After 8 years of doing business together, Lackman bought out Sandmann and took over majority stake in the brewery. At this point it was renamed the Herman Lackman, United States Brewery. In 1890, Lackman incorporates his business as Herman Lackman Brewing Co. In 1919, Lackman, like many brewers, found himself without a business due to the Volstead Act that ushered in the era of prohibition.
In 1933, after the repeal of Prohibition, the facility came to life again but it was bought by Hudepohl Brewing Co. and established as their second plant.
“Herman Lackman and J. H, Sandmann leased the City Brewery of Louis Schneider in 1855. They paid $50 a month for the brewery on Augusta Street. They invested $1600 to buy horses and wagons. Sandmann was the brewer and Lackman delivered the beer. In 1858 because they needed more room, the partners bought property at Sixth and Stone Streets for $13,000. By 1860 they were able to move their new quarters there. Their new plant had a beer cellar that could hold 5000 barrels. They had increased the brewery’s output from 2,000 barrels in 1855 to about 6,000 barrels in 1865.
Having established a successful business, Lackman felt confident enough to return to Germany for an extended visit. When he came back to Cincinnati in 1868, after almost three years, he bought Sandmann’s share in the company and renamed it the Herman Lackman Brewing Company. He paid his former partner $80,000 in this transaction.
By 1870 the brewery produced 10,000 barrels of beer, a year later the plant was expanded. The beer cellars had a total capacity of 12,000 barrels. Lackman had a 98 foot well dug and the water was pumped by a windmill or by a steam engine in calm weather. The brewery advertised that the well yielded water that was free from all mineral deposits and crystal clear. In 1880 the brewery produced 30,000 barrels of beer. Eventually 5 wells were dug.
In 1890 with $600,000 capital stock the business was incorporated. The brewery produced 45,000 barrels the same year. The plant now included a mill house, brewery building, and an engine and boiler house. All were constructed of brick, iron, and stone to prevent fires. A statue of Gambrinus, the ‘god’ of beer stoop atop the brewery.
Herman Lackman died in 1893. His sons took over the corporation then. Albert Lackman became president. Interestingly, he did not drink beer because it did not agree with him. Henry F. Lackman served as vice-president. Brother Edward H. Lackman was also a company officer. They expanded the brewery and production reached 60,000 barrels a year in 1894. Only barley was used in making the beer, no rice or corn.
When the brewery closed in 1919, Albert was president and treasurer; Henry, vice-president; and Herman W. Lackman, another brother, was secretary. They brewed and bottled Golden Age, a pale beer, Old Honesty, and Old Lager beers.” Cincinnati Breweries, Robert J. Wimberg (1997)
Today is the birthday of George F. Klotter Jr. (August 25, 1835-1900?) His father, along with partner Johann G. Sohn, established the Hamilton Brewery in Cincinnati, Ohio in 1846. Klotter Sr. left that brewery, while Sohn continued alone, and Klotter started another brewery, the George Klotter Brewery in 1866 The following year George Jr., and his brother Louis, joined the brewery, and it was renamed the George Klotter and Sons Brewery, which it remained until 1888.
It 1888, it was renamed the Bellevue Brewery until finally closing in 1919.
Today is the birthday of Christian Diehl (August 21, 1842-1928). He was born in Hessen-Darmstadt, Germany and moved to the U.S. when he was 28, in 1870, settling in Defiance, Ohio. There, Jacob Karst and Joseph Bauer hired Diehl to be the brewmaster for their Defiance Brewery, which Karst had founded in 1867. The next year, Diehl bought out Karst and the brewery became known as the Bauer & Christian Diehl Brewery. Shortly after Bauer died, and in 1885 it became the Christian Diehl Brewery and later the Christ. Diehl Brewing Co., with Diehl as sole owner. The brewery reopened after prohibition and remained in business for another twenty years, closing for good in 1955.
Here’s a portion of an article about Diehl, by Carl Miller, entitled What A Diehl! from the Defiance Crescent News.
The Legacy Begins
On October 21, 1870, a twenty-eight-year-old Christian Diehl arrived in Defiance to take a position as brewmaster at the local brewery. He had learned the art of brewing beer in his hometown of Hessen-Darmstadt, Germany before emigrating to America in 1861. European-trained brewers like Christian found employment easily in mid-nineteenth century America due to the hundreds of small breweries operating throughout the east and midwest.
The young Christian Diehl took full advantage of the demand enjoyed by his profession, traveling from state to state exploring his newly adopted country. Before coming to Ohio, he worked in breweries in New York, Pennsylvania, Illinois and Missouri. Just prior to his arrival in Defiance, he had been employed by a Toledo brewer.
The brewery which lured Christian Diehl to Defiance was established in 1867 by German immigrant Jacob Karst. Known simply as the “Defiance Brewery,” the works was situated on North Clinton street just near the Maumee River. In 1869, local saloonkeeper Joseph Bauer purchased an interest in the brewery, and it was the firm of Karst and Bauer which hired Christian as brewmaster in 1870. By the following year, Christian had accumulated resources enough to buy Karst’s share in the brewery, and the partnership of Bauer and Diehl was established. Aside from a brief participation in the business by Bauer’s son, the brewery operated basically unchanged until the passing away of Joseph Bauer in 1883. Christian, who had apparently achieved a certain degree of financial success with the brewery by this time, purchased Bauer’s interest from his family in 1885.
The Next Generation
In 1896, three of Christian’s sons — Christian Jr., John C., and Albert F. Diehl — were initiated into the brewery’s management. The young men had virtually grown up inside the brewery and each was already well acquainted with the business. Christian Jr., in fact, had shown such an early “adaptability for business” that he was put in charge of the firm’s books at age thirteen. John C. Diehl, having graduated from the American Brewing Academy in Chicago, took over his father’s post as Diehl brewmaster.
Although the elder Christian Diehl officially continued to fill the office of brewery president, he gradually relinquished control of the family business to his sons. After the turn of the century, Christian spent much of his time tending to the family farm just outside Defiance, where he died in 1928.
The young Diehls lead the brewery into what was perhaps the most prosperous period in its history. By 1899, the Diehl brewery employed 21 men and produced annually about 12,000 barrels of beer (32 gallons per barrel), a nearly five-fold increase over the brewery’s early days. And production continued to climb well into the new century.
The great majority of Diehl beer was consumed within Defiance County in the years before Prohibition. However, a small portion of the brewery’s product was shipped to outside markets. Proximity to the Maumee River provided easy transportation to, among other locations, Ft. Wayne and Toledo. The latter city was quite possibly the brewery’s largest market outside of Defiance. By 1911, sales of Diehl beer in Toledo had justified the construction of a brewery-owned distribution depot in that city. The brewery was said to have sent beer as far north as Grand Rapids before the onset of Prohibition.
Nevertheless, the Diehl brewery’s lifeblood was its local market. In fact, the brewery’s long-time feature brand of beer was named in honor of the city itself: Centennial Beer was introduced in 1894 to commemorate the 100th anniversary of Fort Defiance. Early bottle labels for Centennial Beer depicted General Anthony Wayne engaged in the Battle of Fallen Timbers. Other early Diehl brands included Hofbrau and Diehlgold. All were advertised as being “Diehlicious.”
The Big Drought
By about 1910, it had become apparent that prohibitionist groups such as the Anti-Saloon League and the Women’s Christian Temperance Union were rapidly gaining ground in their quest to abolish the manufacture of alcoholic beverages. The Diehl brothers, having fostered significant growth and expansion of the brewery throughout the early years of the century, were now charged with guiding the family business through what promised to be uncertain times ahead.
The Diehls felt it prudent to begin investigating alternative fields of business in the event that the brewing industry suffered a fatal blow. The milk condensing business emerged as a promising option due to the surrounding farmland, the lack of local competition, and the compatibility of the brewing equipment. Christian Jr. traveled to Wisconsin to observe state-of-the-art condensories in operation and returned with a glowing account of the condition of the industry.
The Prohibition crusade, in the meantime, had reached its peak. A 1918 statewide referendum left Ohio completely dry beginning in May of 1919. And, shortly thereafter, ratification of the 18th Amendment marked the beginning of National Prohibition. Brewers nationwide scrambled to find new areas of business in hopes of being among the lucky few who survived.
Although the Diehls’ plans to enter the milk condensing business had not fully materialized by the time Prohibition came, the proposed venture had attracted a significant amount of local interest. By 1922, several investors with experience in milk condensing had been recruited, and the Defiance Dairy Products Company was soon in full operation in a portion of the old brewery. The Crescent News called the opening of the condensory “a milestone in the commercial life of Defiance.” Indeed, the milk condensory — still owned and operated by the Diehl family — is today one of the city’s largest enterprises.
Incidentally, the brewery was kept in operation well into Prohibition, making “near beer,” a de-alcoholized version of real beer. The bottling works remained active as well, packaging a wide variety of soft drinks.
And this history of the brewery is from “100 Years of Brewing:”
Today is the birthday of John Hauck (August 20, 1829-June 4, 1896). He was born in Bavaria, but came to the U.S. as a young man. He “worked for his uncle, Cincinnati brewer George M. Herancourt, before starting his own brewery in 1863, the John Hauck Brewery
Brewer. A native of Germany, he was born in Rhenish, Bavaria and came to America when with his family when he was a child. After leaving school, Hauck found employment in a brewery with his uncle, Mr. Herancourt. Hauck returned to Europe for a few years before returning to the United States and worked for another uncle, Mr. Billiad, in a brewery in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania. He moved to Cincinnati, Ohio and established a brewery of his own, the Dayton Street Brewery, which became known for its “Golden Eagle” brand. Hauck’s brewery was extremely successful and he rose to prominence as one of Cincinnati’s famous brewers. His business was later renamed as the John Hauck Beer Bottling Company in 1863 and produced thousands of barrels by the end of the 19th century. Hauck went into business with Conrad Windisch from 1863 to 1870. He was also president of the Western German National Bank in Cincinnati. John’s son, Louis Hauck, became president of the company in 1893. Hauck died in Newport, Kentucky in 1896 when he was 66 years old. His residence on Dayton Street later became a museum.
Hauck’s uncle, George Herancourt, owned the Cincinnati Red Stockings baseball team in 1884 and 1885, but declared bankruptcy in 1885. Hauck “took over as principal owner of the team. He delegated to his son, Louis, the day-to-day management of the club.”
Cincinnati has been the home to many breweries throughout its history, one of those being the John Hauck Brewing Company. John Hauck was born in Germany in 1829 and moved to America when he was a child. After completing school and returning to Europe for a few years, Hauck came back to America and worked for his uncle in a Philadelphia brewery. He eventually moved to Cincinnati and began his own brewery with John Windisch in 1863, called the Dayton Street Brewery. The brewery was located on Dayton Street close to the Miami-Erie Canal, which they used to fill the steam boilers, providing power to the machinery. In the first year of business, the Dayton Street Brewery produced 10,000 barrels of beer. By 1881, they were producing 160,000 barrels of beer and had become Cincinnati’s second largest brewery. John Hauck bought out Windisch’s shares of the company and renamed it the John Hauck Brewing Company. By 1884, the brewery was covering the entire city block bounded by Central Avenue, Dayton Street, York Street and Kewitt Alley. Hauck’s brewery was highly successful and he rose to prominence as one of Cincinnati prominent brewers. Hauck was a big supporter of the community and supported Cincinnati institutions, such as the Cincinnati Zoological Society. Hauck was also president of the Western German National Bank in Cincinnati. Louis Hauck, John’s son, took control of the brewing company in 1893. John Hauck died in Newport, Kentucky in 1896. The Hauck residence on Dayton Street remains and is owned by the Cincinnati Preservation Association.
