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This article was originally published in the Grand River Valley Review Vol. VIII, Number. 1

It later appeared in the Fall 1991 edition of NABA's
The Breweriana Collector magazine

All brewery photos & portraits, unless otherwise noted, compliments of Dr. Wilhelm W. Seeger, The Grand Rapids Public Museum, or the Michigan Room of the Grand Rapids Public Library. Dr. Seeger also wishes to thank Gordon Olson, The Grand Rapids City Historian for his help.

The Kusterer and Christ breweries found a ready market for their German-style lager beer among the German immigrants who settled on the west side of Grand Rapids immediately north and south of Bridge Street before the Civil War. Other brewers likewise appeared on the scene to try their hands at satisfying local thirsts, with varying degrees of success. In 1856, German immigrant Peter Weirich built the Michigan Brewery at Bridge and Indiana on the city's west side. Three years later, one J. H. Roberts launched a short-lived brewery operation at the corner of Fountain and Ransom.

In 1862, during the Civil War, George Brandt, who had been a brewmaster for Christoph Kusterer since 1856, decided to strike out on his own. Joining forces with Christopher Killinger and Fred Mayer, he established the Union Brewery at 87 South Division (ed note: the address was originally 192 and was renumbered sometime in prior to 1874). Neither Killinger nor Mayer nor A. Maris, who was listed as a proprietor in the 1865 city directory, remained for long in the business, but George Brandt stayed on, increasing the value of the brewery's total annual output to about $60,000 by 1887.

George Brandt

By the end of the Civil War, four major breweries were providing lager beer, ale and porter for Grand Rapids' thirsty citizens: the City Brewery run by Christoph Kusterer; George Brandt's Union Brewery; the Michigan Brewery operated by Peter Weirich; and the G. and C. Christ Brewery.

Between 1850 and 1875, according to Albert Baxter, the beer-brewing business in Grand Rapids grew to "very great proportions." Average annual output reached 16,000 barrels in 1875, and in 1877 the total value of production was estimated at about $600,000. Capital investments amounted to approximately $400,000, and about 160 men were employed industry wide. ( 7 )

With the number of German settlers steadily increasing in Grand Rapids in the fifteen years after the Civil War, the local demand for beer continued to rise, and it comes as no surprise that new breweries, most of them German-owned and -operated, were established in the city.

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Revised: December 30, 2006