History walk recalls the area’s early breweries

GREEN BAY – “Three of the five brewing families are here at the cemetery. We talk about all five families and have stations set up throughout the walk,” explained Brown County Historical Society Board Member, Brown County Library Employee and Event Host Dennis Jacobs. “And then we end with a prohibition talk.”

The Beer Baron Cemetery Walk was held Oct.19 at the Woodlawn Cemetery.

The two-hour walking tour of the cemetery included the history of five Green Bay breweries – Bay Brewery, O. Van Dycke Brewery, Hochgreve Brewing Company, Hagemeister Brewing Company and Rahrs Brewing Company.

All but Bay Brewery operated under several different names during their time in operation.

“This cemetery that was formed in 1867 by the founding fathers of Green Bay,” Jacobs began.“They took bodies out of the Baird Place and reinterred them here. So, if you see headstones in this cemetery before 1867, they would have been buried at Baird Place.”

The day included the trials and tribulations, successes and failures of each of brewing families and their businesses, including Bay Brewery’s disregard of the city ordinance for not selling beer on Sunday.

The brewery was later charged with, “…irregularities dealing with revenue stamps,” according to Jacobs.

“So, he is using old revenue stamps and not paying proper tax on it. So, the government seizes the building. To pay the back revenue tax, the perishable goods were sold on May 16, 1876. This included 138 barrels of new beer, 70 barrels of old beer, 300 pounds of hops, 250 pounds of bushels of barley.”

Before opening what would ultimately be named O. Van Dycke Brewery, Louis Van Dyke, was the postmaster of the aptly named Dykesville. “He could speak five different languages fluently. And he, for some reason, immigrated to the United States in 1855, arriving in Green Bay in 1856,” Jacobs shared.

Jacobs also shared how breweries would give beer to newspaper reporters for a favorable review.

“A lot of breweries would hand out a half-barrel of beer,” he added.
After Van Dycke’s death, his wife, Octavia Van Dycke, would run the company.

“August Hochgreve was born on Nov. 29, 1828 in Hertzberg, Conover, Germany. He immigrated to the United States in 1853, staying about a year in New York State.” Jacobs said.

August Hochgreve would go on to establish Hochgreve Brewing Company in what is now Allouez.

Hochgreve passed away in 1877.

His obituary read, “He was a good businessman, a true believer in his friendship, generous to a fault, and honorable in all his dealings.”

Jacobs continued, “He left behind his wife, Caroline, who was five months pregnant at the time and seven children.During his probate, it was discovered the brewery was heavily in debt and the court appointed a receiver to help settle the accounts. Caroline and her oldest son, August, worked hard to save the brewery. In 1877-1878, Caroline becomes head of the Hochgreve Brewery Company.So now we have a second woman running the brewery company.”
After a fire, the company struggled with prohibition.

“On May 12th of 1924, federal agents went into the brewery, opened the taps, and released 2,500 barrels of good beer into the Fox River. It was valued at $25,000 then,” Jacobs stated.

Due to competition with larger breweries in Milwaukee, Hochgreve Brewing Company closed its doors in 1949.

The Hagemeister Brewery went through several name changes from its beginnings in1865.

At the time it was reported that the beer, “…is universally acknowledged to be one of the best breweries outside of Milwaukee.”

Hagemeister struggled with prohibition, the economics of the time, damage due to fire and would close.

On Dec. 24,1834, Henry Rahr was born in Germany.

At the age of 19 he immigrated to the United States in 1853. Unfortunately, his brewery is known for, “…one of the most tragic incidents that happened in Green Bay as far as industrial accidents,” according to Jacobs.

Several men lost their lives with others severely burned when a newly installed kettle ruptured.

An aging obelisk, with names and dates fading, stands in the cemetery.

Jacob concluded the tour by providing information on how prohibition affected all the breweries and other area businesses, adding “Green Bay was never really dry.”