The Germania Brewing Company was one of many interests of John F Betz who, according to an 1896 publication called “America’s Most Successful Men of Affairs,” was said to be the richest brewer in America at the time.
In Philadelphia, around the turn of the century he was serving as chairman and largest stockholder of John F. Betz & Son, a $2,000,000 brewery that manufactured over 300,000 barrels of beer a year. That said, it was his interest in another Philadelphia brewery, the Germania Brewery, that serves as the subject of this post.
The story begins, not with Betz, but with German born Phillip J. Lauber who, arrived in Philadelphia in 1849. A restauranteur, according to his April 10, 1887 “Philadelphia Times” obituary:
In 1852 he went to Fifth Street, above Chestnut, where he started a restaurant in a small way, and for twenty-five years his place continued to grow and got to be the most popular restaurant downtown.
Lauber’s Fifth Street restaurant was still listed in the Philadelphia directories as late as the mid-1880’s, and by 1876 he had also opened a restaurant on the grounds of Philadelphia’s 1876 Centennial Exhibition. Quite substantial, it was listed and described in the Centennial’s “Official Catalog” under the heading “Special Buildings.”
In 1881 Lauder entered the brewing business when he established a brewery on Broad Street in Philadelphia. At around the time the brewery opened it was described like this in an April 29, 1881 story published in the “Philadelphia Inquirer.”
LAUBER’S LABOR
Completion of the Large Brewery for Producing Bohemian Beer
Mr. Phil. J. Lauber’s new brewery, on Broad Street above Columbia Avenue, is one of the most complete establishments of the kind in the country. Every portion of the structure, down to the minutest detail, has been arranged for the purpose of brewing what is known as Bohemian beer. It is very light in color, and produced exclusively from the finest imported Bohemian hops and from malt prepared on the premises by native Bohemians. The buildings are set back seventy feet from the street, and are of the old German style of architecture, the design of H. J. Schwarzmann, the well known architect…
A spacious two-story building, of seventy-five feet front on Broad Street, by forty feet deep, has been erected in front of the brewery, and will be fitted up by Mr. Lauber as a restaurant.
Right from the start the brewery, first listed in Philadelphia’s 1882 directory, was putting a financial burden on Lauber’s entire operation. Lauber himself explained some of the issues he was facing in this September 27, 1882 item published in the “Philadelphia North American” and reprinted in the “Harrisburg Telegraph.”
There were rumors current yesterday afternoon that Phillip J. Lauber, the pioneer manufacturer of Bohemian beer in this country, and proprietor of numerous restaurants in different sections of this city, has failed for an amount that was estimated all the way from $60,000 to $1,000,000. After considerable searching a representative of the “North American” found Mr. Lauder last evening, and from him received a statement of his affairs. “You know,” said Mr. Lauber, “that some time ago I began the construction of a brewery on North Broad Street for the manufacture of a perfectly pure beer, something that the masses could drink without fear of being poisoned. The plant of the brewery cost me far more than I anticipated; in fact when I had received the bills I found the amount I had expected to spend nearly doubled. Business this year has not been up to my expectations, and several notes which I had out, for comparatively small sums, however, went to protest yesterday… The trouble is but temporary, and I shall pay dollar for dollar. I may ask an extension, but that is all. No man will lose a cent that I owe him. The North Broad Street property is not by any means all that I own, and every note or other outstanding obligation will be met in full. The business at the different branches will continue as usual; and all I ask is time. My property is amply sufficient for all claims and everything will be settled in full.”
Despite Lauber’s optimism, the brewery ultimately failed, resulting in the failure of his restaurant business as well. The public auction of the brewery property was summarized in the September 24, 1884 edition of the Allentown (Pa) “Morning Call.”
The effects of Lauber’s Brewery, restaurant and garden, at Broad Street and Columbia Avenue, Philadelphia, were offered at public sale, but as the bidding did not exceed $96,500 the property was withdrawn. Several hundred barrels of beer were disposed of at prices ranging from eight cents to $1.50 per barrel. One lot of ten barrels was sacrificed at ten cents.
A year and a half later an item in the February 17,1886 edition of the “Philadelphia Inquirer” announced the brewery property had been acquired by Betz and a man named Emil Schoenberg.
The Lauber Brewery, Broad Street above Columbia Avenue has been purchased by John F. Betz & Son and Emil Schoenberg.
Less than four months later the June 1st edition of the “German & American Brewers Journal” announced that construction of a new brewery on the site was underway.
Messrs Betz & Schoenberg in Philadelphia began last month the erection of their new brewery. It will be on the site of the former Lauber Brewery on Broad Street, above Columbia Avenue. The buildings will cost $125,000. Otto C. Wolf is the architect.
Later that year the brewery business was incorporated under the Germania Brewing Company name, with the incorporation notice appearing in the December 9, 1886 edition of the “Harrisburg Daily Independent.”
At the start, Emil Schoenberg was named president with John F. Betz, treasurer of the newly formed corporation. Soon after management of the corporation would change when Schoenberg, accused of fleecing Betz and other businessmen out of large sums of money, fled Philadelphia and headed west. The back story was summarized years later in the September 23, 1890 edition of the “Philadelphia Times.” Written at the time of Schoenberg’s death the summary read in part:
Schoenberg’s real character was only partially known to those who had favored him with their confidence at the time when he decamped from the city for the far West…
Schoenberg made the acquaintance of John F. Betz and others soon after he came to the city in 1881. He so ingratiated himself into their confidences as to win both their esteem and friendship. He was supposed to be wealthy, for he spent money lavishly. By his captivating manner he soon became closely related in a business way with Mr. Betz.
In fact, he was looked on as the brewer’s right-hand man in acquiring possession of the property on North Broad Street on which the plant of the Germania Brewing Company was built. He was soon after made president of the company by becoming a holder of its stock in the amount of $125,000…
In the summer of 1887 the startling announcement was made that Schoenberg had absconded, leaving an indebtedness of $300,000. To balance this indebtedness the only assets that could be found were his handsome residence and $125,000 of Germania Brewing Company stock, a portion of which was collateral placed with Mr. Betz, who subsequently made a deed of trust for the benefit of his creditors. At the time Schoenberg was supposed to be worth at least half a million, and his sudden flight was the sensation of the day.
When the Germania Brewing Company was started Schoenberg took $125,000 worth of the stock, and borrowed money from several banks in this city, giving as security a variety of paper which was then thought to be perfectly good. It was afterwards charged that some of the signatures upon some of the paper were placed there by others than the rightly persons. Soon after Schoenberg left the city an investigation showed that other interested parties claimed that he had used their names without their consent.
After Schoenberg’s departure, an August 9, 1887 story in the “Philadelphia Inquirer” announced that Edwin F. Poulterer had been elected as the new president of the Germania Brewing Company.
Around the same time this was all unfolding, a June 10, 1887 “Philadelphia Times” story announced that construction of the brewery was nearing completion. The story suggests that not much, if any, of Lauber’s original brewery was retained.
Among the most prominent structures…is that of the Germania Brewing Company, Broad and Columbia Avenue now nearing completion. The main building is 70×150 and five stories high. The walls and ceilings are laid with glazed brick, interspersed with terra cotta and copper on the outside walls. Light and ventilation are secured by an immense dome of glass and copper. In front on Broad Street a handsome office is being arranged, and at Carlisle Street and Montgomery Avenue a large building, 34 x 146-1/2, five stories high, is about finished.. This will be used as a bottling house and stable. Roadhouse & Atkinson are the contractors
The “immense dome of glass and copper” referenced in the above story is clearly visible in this early 1900’s photograph of the brewery. The photo was included in a book featuring architect Otto C. Wolf’s work, compiled and arranged by G.M.S. Armstrong and found on the the National Brewing Museum’s website.
One week later a reception described in the June 19, 1887 edition of the “Philadelphia Times” suggests the brewery was close to opening.
VISITING A BREWERY
The Proprietors of the Germania Brewing Company Entertain Friends.
The Germania Brewing Company entertained a large number of friends at their elegant new brewery, Broad Street, near Columbia Avenue, yesterday afternoon. After an elaborate lunch about one hundred guests proceeded to investigate the establishment and learn how beer is made. Everything that science has invented has been utilized by the firm and money has been a secondary consideration in fitting out the establishment. All the details were shown, also the large copper vat capable of producing 325 barrels twice a day.
One of the most interesting features of the afternoon was the visit to the fermenting room where twenty large vats, holding 350 barrels each, were in a room twenty degrees below zero, the sudden transition from extreme heat to extreme cold being very enjoyable. After a thorough sampling of the products the guests were shown over the whole establishment, from the large and elegant theatre to the stable full of fine Norman horses.
Initially, the brewery produced two types of beer, a Munich (dark) and a Vienna (light) both of which began appearing in “Philadelphia Times” advertisements in August and September of 1887.
Around the same time another advertisement for their beers was published in the Official Program of the “Centennial Celebration of the Framing of the Constitution of the United States,” held in Philadelphia on September 15th through the 17th of 1887.
The ad included this sales pitch for their bottling department.
The Bottling Company at the brewery are making a specialty of serving the family trade with their export beer in corked bottles, which they guarantee to keep a year. The beer is absolutely free from any deleterious compounds; it has not been aged by artificial means, and is brewed from the very best malt and imported hops, thus enabling them to offer the public a pure, healthful and strengthening beverage for table use. A trial will convince you of its superiority.
By the early 1890’s, according to a story in the June 6, 1892 edition of the “Philadelphia Times,” the brewery was turning out “over 40,000 barrels a year, principally for bottling.”
The company continued to operate under the Germania Brewing Company’s corporate charter until 1893. At this point, with John F. Betz now serving as president, and his son, John F. Betz, Jr., serving as treasurer they requested the corporate charter be dissolved.
The story read:
A petition has been filed in Common Pleas Court by the Germania Brewing Company asking that the charter of the corporation be vacated and dissolved. The petition is signed by John F. Betz, the president, and attested by John F. Betz, Jr., the treasurer of the company, and sets out that at a meeting of the stockholders it was unanimously agreed that the company apply to the court for a decree of dissolution.
In conclusion it is stated that the court may make the decree without prejudice to any one, that notice of the petition has been duly advertised and that the company has paid all the taxes due by it to the city and Commonwealth….
The decree dissolving the charter was made later that month at which time the entire operation passed into the hands of John F. Betz who both owned and operated it for the next eight years. Then in 1901, while maintaining ownership of the brewery, Betz filed an application to transfer his operating license to the Henry Hess Brewing Company. The story appeared in the March 28, 1901 edition of the “Philadelphia Times.”
Brewer Betz Wants a Transfer
John F.Betz, doing business as the Germania Brewing Company, yesterday filed an application in the Quarter Sessions Court asking for a transfer of his license at No. 1716 North Broad Street to the Henry Hess Brewing Company, E.R. Watson, treasurer. Mr. Betz desires to retire from the business.
The Henry Hess Brewing Company had been organized a month earlier for the purpose of operating the brewery, its incorporation notice appearing in the February 7, 1901 edition of the “York (Pa) Daily.”
The official transfer of the business was reported in the April 20, 1901 edition of the “American Brewers Review.”
John F Betz’s ownership of the brewery continued until 1907 when, according to a December 14th story published in West Chester Pennsylvania’s “Daily Local News,” he gifted it to his grandson, John F. Betz, 3d.
CHRISTMAS PRESENT VALUED AT $300,000
John F. Betz Gives Germania Brewery to His Grandson, John F. Betz, 3d
Probably the top-record Christmas present in Philadelphia is that made yesterday by John F. Betz to his grandson, John F. Betz 3d, to whom he turned over a completely equipped brewery, valued at $300,000 or more. The gift is in the form of the Germania Brewery, the consideration of the transfer being “$1, and natural love and affection.” The beer making establishment is located on the west side of Broad Street, just south of the Grand Opera House, another property owned by John F. Betz… It is now occupied by the Henry Hess Brewing Company.
The Henry Hess Brewing Company continued to operate the brewery for the rest of the decade and was still listed at the brewery’s North Broad Street address in Philadelphia’s 1911 directory.
Around this time the Hess company apparently moved to 844 N. Orianna Street where it was listed in the 1912 directory. The following year, the Henry Hess Brewing Company was still listed on N. Orianna Street when they changed their name to the Premier Brewing Company. The name change is reflected in the 1913 Philadelphia directory.
On January 18, 1914, two years after the Hess Brewing Company left, it was announced that John F. Betz, 3d had sold the North Broad Street property closing out its 30 plus year history as a brewery. The announcement appeared in the January 18, 1914 edition of the “Philadelphia Inquirer.”
John F. Betz, 3d, has sold to Harry A. Mankin, representing G. Stevenson, the old Germania Brewery, at 1716-1720 North Broad Street, for $200,000, all of which is retained on a purchase money mortgage. The assessed valuation is $130,000. The site will be improved by the erection of a nine-story reinforced concrete apartment house with stores on the first floor. The new structure will cost $300,000. The plant occupies a lot with a frontage of 85 feet by 190 feet, the rear part of it continuing northward in a narrow strip that fronts on Montgomery Avenue.
The brewery was erected about thirty years ago by the late Phillip J. Lauber. Subsequently it was purchased by John F. Betz, who, a year prior to his death gave it as a Christmas present to his grandson John F. Betz, 3d. Later and until two two years ago the plant was occupied by the Henry Hess Brewing Company
The champagne style bottle I found, was blown in a mold with a tooled blob finish. Its embossing incudes the Germania Brewing Company name that was established in 1886 when the business incorporated. Although the corporation was dissolved in 1893, the brewery was still using the Germania Brewing Company name on their license as late as 1901 when it was transferred to the Hess Brewing Company. This likely dates the bottle sometime between 1887 when the brewery opened under that name and 1901.