An exhibit from theSheridan County Museum

Sheridan, Wyoming

Brewing Up HistoryThe Story of the Sheridan

Brewing Company

Brewing Up History

EXHIBIT SERIES VOLUME I

Copyright © 2008 by theSheridan County Museum

Published by theSheridan County Historical Society Press

Sheridan, Wyoming

Except as permitted under the United States Copyright Act of 1976, no part of this publication may be reproduced or

distributed in any form or by any means, or stored in a database or retrieval system without permission of the publisher.

For permission, write:Sheridan County Museum

850 Sibley CircleSheridan, WY 82801

Graphic design/layout bymacjiggy graphic designs

www.macjiggy.com

Printed in the United States of America byColor World Printers

www.colorworldprinters.com

ISBN-10: 0-9792871-4-6 ISBN-13: 978-0-9792871-4-5

ii

Acknowledgements .....................................................................iv

Introduction ..................................................................................v

Part One: The History of the SheridanBrewing Company ..............................................1-12

Part Two: Curator’s Notes – The Artifacts of theSheridan Brewing Company .............................13-54

Brewery Products ...................................................13 Brewery Operations ...............................................27 Brewery Souvenirs .................................................35 Brewery Memories .................................................45

Bibliography ..............................................................................53

Sheridan County Museum ..........................................................54

Contents

iii

vi

The Sheridan Brewing Company was established in 1887 by George Paul, Peter Demple, and Arnold Tschirgi. The three men had become friends in

Topeka, Kansas, in the early 1880s and, for unknown reasons, chose to come to Sheridan and establish a brewery. Instead of transporting a portion of their start-up funds by way of the holdup-prone Cheyenne-Deadwood Stage, the three men avoided outlaws by taking the Northern Pacifi c Railroad to Custer Station in Montana. They then transported their $10,000 in gold the rest of the way by wagon.

The original Brewery building, a two-story brick structure located where Whitney Commons is today, was completed in 1888 at a cost of $24,000. In addition to the Brewery, Demple, Tschirgi, and Paul each built a private residence that same year. In all, the three men spent just under $30,000 on buildings in 1888. On January 31, 1889, The Sheridan Post reported that in 1888, a total sum of $78,000 had been expended on buildings and other improvements in Sheridan. Of that

amount, 40% was the result of Demple, Tschirgi, and Paul moving to Sheridan and starting the Sheridan Brewing

Company.

Original Brewery building

Peter Demple

Arnold Tschirgi

amount, 40% was the result of Demple, Tschirgi, and Paul moving to Sheridan and starting the Sheridan Brewing

Company.

Original Brewery building

Arnold Tschirgi

the History of theSheridan Brewing Company

— PART ONE —

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Brewery Products

“Any brew master will tell you that the most important thing in brewing a perfect beer is the quality, freshness and purity of the water used, and there is the big secret of the goodness and quality of Sheridan Export.

Although this may look like a normal can of Sheridan Beer, it’s actually filled with water.

Following World War II, the Sheridan Brewing

Company canned sterile water for use in the Red Cross disaster First Aid

boxes that were placed in various locations around

the Sheridan area.

Tony Schumaker, brew master of the local concern, expresses himself as being

fortunate in having access to the pure mountain water that flows down from the Big Horns, in making his famous beer.”The Sheridan Press,February 23, 1936

22

Brewery Products

Between 1935 and the mid-1950s, four main types of cone top cans were produced. They were, from left to right, the low profile, j-spout,

crowntainer, and high profile.

Sheridan Brewing Company’s low profile cone top can made its debut on the market in a Continental Can Company ad that appeared in the September 1936 issue of the Brewer’s Journal.

23

Brewery Operations

In the early years of the Sheridan Brewing Company, beer

sold for $8 a barrel.

Barrel ramp used with the early

delivery wagons

28

Steel, and later aluminum, kegs

replaced the wooden barrels following prohibition.

151/2 gallon aluminum keg, circa 1950s

Brewery Operations

Fillin

g the

kegs

73/4 gallon steel keg, circa 1935

29

Brewery Souvenirs

This unique looking contraption is actually a portable beer draft dispenser produced by Serv-O-Draft.

Beer was poured into the dispenser and a bicycle pump was then used to fill the remaining space with air.

Once pressurized, beer could be dispensed with a twist of the handle.

Bicycle pump attachment

Dispensing spout

The red piece atop the dispenser made the unit portable while keeping the

working parts protected.

CupHolder

could be dispensed with

40

Etching plate featuring

a Sheridan Export Beer

advertisement,circa 1940s

Brewery Souvenirs

Other Sheridan BrewingCompanyadvertisementstaken from etching plates

41

Notes:

44

Brewery Memories

When the Brewery buildings were torn down in 1991, a number of items were saved from being taken to the

landfill. This section of artifacts represents some of those unique items that serve as reminders of the once

thriving Sheridan Brewing Company.

Total square footage of all the Brewery buildings combined was just over 65,000 square feet

Artist’s conception of the proposed Sheridan Brewing Company

complex. Although a majority of the buildings in the conception

are accurate, there are a number of factors that are not.

The Brewery was located on 5 1/2acres of land in a bend of the Big Goose River just off Alger Avenue.

45

Brewery Memories

This section of cork came from the walls of the cooling room. The entire room was lined with sheets of cork in order to keep the room insulated and allow the brew to cool properly.

After the wort (a blend of hops, water, and grain) was cooled, it was pumped into fermentation tanks where the yeast was added. The brew was fermented and aged to perfection in these tanks.

50

Brewery Memories

The Brewery’s delivery wagon was an important part of the company’s history. Although the wagon became an out-of-date means for transporting Sheridan Export Beer, it represented the company and its history in a number of Sheridan WYO Rodeo parades.

51

I n the early 1800s, there were approximately 2,300 breweries in the United States. Yet only a fraction of those breweries survived Prohibition. After the repeal of the Eighteenth Amendment in 1933,

more than 1,100 breweries went into operation across the United States. Many of them were small, family owned operations, much like the Sheridan Brewing Company. When the Sheridan Brewing Company closed in 1955, there were probably less than 400 of those small breweries left. Today, while micro-breweries are popular, the number of small breweries, like Sheridan Brewing Company was in its heyday, is very small. Although the buildings are gone, the Sheridan Brewing Company is remembered as being more than just a local brewery. During its 68 year history, it grew to be a valuable asset to the community.

$ 9.9

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ISBN-10: 0-9792871-4-6 ISBN-13: 978-0-9792871-4-5