Podcast: Galveston Brewing Company, Brewing History with a Splash of Innovation

Around 1840, waves of German immigrants began pouring into Texas, bringing with them hope for a new life and their drink of choice, beer. Before the Civil War, beer was usually made at home or in small-scale local breweries. It was difficult to mass produce. And until the railroads reached Texas, it wasn't always worth its weight to ship beer.

But mid-19th Century Galvestonians were thirsty. For beer to reach Galveston, large-scale brewers would have relied heavily on the mighty Mississippi River or on horse-drawn wagons traveling on rough, unpaved roads. However, as railroads and industrial manufacturing made their way into Texas during the 1870s and 1880s, the practice of brewing beer at home declined.

This is mainly because of the rise of wealthy nationwide beer companies like Anheuser Busch of St. Louis. These large scale companies were able to produce more beer at a faster pace and lower cost than traditional brewing. They also had the size and money to use expensive and innovative technology to brew, bottle, package, and ship their product to growing markets like Texas.

In 1883, Adolphus Bush of Anheuser Busch fame enlisted the help of a group of San Antonio businessmen and built the first large mechanized brewery in the state. In 1895, industrial brewing was brought to Galveston in the same way.

One of the biggest problems facing brewing beer in Galveston was that there were very few freshwater wells on the island. To brew beer at a mass scale, water would need to be supplied from the mainland. In 1895, the Alta Loma freshwater line was run to the island, supplying plenty of fresh drinking water and plenty of fresh water to brew beer at a mass scale.

Adolphus Bush and William J. Limp of St. Louis again asked investors and businessmen to help build a brand new brewery on Galveston Island. With the help of Galvestonian investors, they raised $400,000, equaling nearly 15 million today, to establish the Galveston Brewing Company. The building was completed and began operating in 1896. The new facility was impressive and innovative, consisting of a large ice plant that could produce 75 tons of ice and a modern brewery that could produce 75,000 barrels of beer annually. The bottling plant had a capacity of 30,000 bottles per day, and at its peak, it employed well over a hundred men.

Not long after the brewery opened, a clever bit of marketing swirled around town, a notice in the newspaper reported that there were rumors that the beer served during the opening days was imported from one of the best northern breweries instead of being brewed on the island. As a result, the Galveston Brewing Company offered $10,000 in cash to anyone that would prove this rumor is true, and also to anyone that could prove that the beer was not brewed on the island. Today, that reward money would be worth $380,000. The plant at the Galveston Brewing Company also had cold storage rooms and railroad tracks on two sides of the building. The company dug several wells that gave a water supply of millions of gallons annually.

The Galveston Brewing Company began distributing its branded "Home Brewed" Beer in February of 1897. The local newspapers reported, "The people took a glass, smacked their lips, and said it was good. Even the rival beer men reluctantly admitted to the fact." The original brew was light and similar to a Munich-style Helles beer, which was refreshing in the southern heat. It only contained 3. 5 percent alcohol and was advertised as a medicinal tonic, "especially good for people of a nervous temperament and frequently prescribed by physicians."

The Galveston Brewery was so well constructed that it survived the 1900 storm with only minor damage. Speaking of the Great Storm of 1900, The Galveston Brewing Company pledged $30,000 in the aftermath of the storm, or just over $1,000,000 today, to be used towards the construction of the seawall. In fact, the Galveston Brewing Company played a crucial role in post-1900 storm recovery. Within a few days, it was able to provide pure drinking water for survivors, and was able to produce ice for the preservation of bodies waiting for burial.

Before the Prohibition era, from 1920 to 1933, the major product of the Galveston Brewery was a beer called "High Grade." Another famous beer produced by the Galveston Brewery was appropriately called "Seawall Bond." The majority of the Galveston-brewed beer was consumed in Galveston and Harris Counties.

The price of the beer was 10 cents per quart and 5 cents per pint. But nothing less than two dozen quarts or three dozen pints will be sold. True bulk pricing. Evidently, corkscrews and bottle openers were difficult to come by. They advertised that "Any child can open a bottle. No corkscrew is necessary. The opener is being furnished with every case and by placing the sharp edge of the opener under the crown, a simple twist of the wrist opens the bottle."

Just before the Prohibition era, in 1917, the Galveston Brewing Company was sold to Southern Beverage Company. During Prohibition, the company managed to survive by producing nonalcoholic drinks, including the popular Triple X root beer. When Prohibition ended in 1934. The company merged with Magnolia Brewery to form Galveston Houston Breweries Incorporated, which was later sold to Falstaff Brewery in 1955. Falstaff, once a major American beer producer, eventually faced financial decline, leading to the closure of its Galveston facility in 1982. Today, you can still see the remnants of the Falstaff Beer Company at 33rd Street, in between Market and Post Office Street.

The Galveston Brewing Company played a pivotal role in the state's brewing industry. Contributing to local infrastructure and community efforts. And I think it's funny that all you needed to mass produce beer on Galveston Island was to just add a little fresh water and beer lovers will do the rest.