First Old Style Label |
In 1933, prohibition ended and another group of investors led by William Wreford bought the company and renamed it the “Sebewaing Brewing Company”. They initially produced one label, “Old Style Beer” with the first batch sold in April 1934 (see article here). A second label, Old Stock Ale followed in October 1935 (article). At this time, exact timelines for Sebewaing, Bock, Sport, and Golden Pheasant are not known. Further research may reveal these label start dates.
A unique marketing campaign began after an opportunity presented itself. A carnival/circus came to town and the owner of it wanted to dispose of three young lion cubs. The brewery president, Dr. J.E. Wurm, bought them. An old trailer was fixed up as a traveling cage/home for them, and traveled around the area. The New York times printed on July 28, 1940:
With a steel-barred cage containing four African lions in its rear compartment, a trailer of the Sebewaing Brewing Company of Michigan advertises its trade mark. “Kings of Beer and Ale.”
Since lions are not common to Michigan, they were an attraction that many people wanted to see. The original Old Style label had a flying goose. After the acquisition of the lions, a lion’s head was used in the middle of the Old Style label. By 1948 however, the challenges of keeping lions in town and the expense of feeding them became more than brewery leadership wanted. There are conflicting stories about the number of lions and what happened to them in the end.
One story according to Ellen Taschner’s research is 3-4 were sold to zoos while a female named Queenie was shot and stuffed. Another story and likely the reality is that 7-8 lions were shot by Otto Thede. Paternal grandson Scott Thede remembers a story from his grandfather that he vaguely recalls something about using a 22 rifle as a tool for the job.
Modified Old Style Label After the Famous Lion Troupe |
It is known that one lion was dealt with differently than the others and it is assumed that the remainder were buried. An employee of the brewery, Frank Taschner, a practicing taxidermist requested permission to process the female lion named Queenie. His request was granted and he stuffed the lion and retained possession of it.
In 1948, Sebewaing began selling most of their beer through three A & P warehouses and later, Hamady Brothers, and the Dunn Beverage Company. This allowed the business to reduce advertising spending and lower the sale price to consumers. The strategy was effective with the brewery doing very well from the late 1940s and 1950s and the most profitable year being 1960.
The Sebewaing Brewing Company were one of many brewers that produced “Brewers’ Best”, a brand that was designed to compete with the national breweries. It was advertised and sold nationally but made by local small brewers. The brands lasted well into the 1950s but Sebewaing only produced the beer between July 1947 to about 1949. See this link for more information about the “Brewers’ Best” campaign.
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The brewery remained small. In the late 1950s they were producing about 38,000 barrels a year, only 7/10s of 1 percent of all the beer brewed in Michigan. They finally added a canning line and filled a yellow can with the pheasant on it. The can was switched to a blue label about 1959. Added to production were a zip top can and pulltab in the early 1960s before closing.
Between 1960 and 1964, there was a executive board change and the brewery name was changed to “The Michigan Brewing Company.” A new strategy was developed in an attempt to make some of the existing and a new label, “Pride of Michigan” even more known throughout the State of Michigan and the nearby neighboring states. With the change of name, lowering the quality of the ingredients and the reduced skills of key personnel , the inferior beer and name change hurt the pride of Sebewaing’s loyal consumers and the thumb area. Sales declined and the reputation of the brewery was in jeopardy.
On March 17, 1965, there was an attempted sale to to the Buckeye Brewing of Toledo, Ohio. Local supporters sued to stop Buckeye’s purchase, since the new would-be owners were planning on closing the Sebewaing plant while making the related labels of Sebewaing in Toledo. The lawsuit stopped the sale but the brewery had not been in production since March 2, 1965. The brewery reopened in June 1965 as “The Sebewaing Brewing Company”, but the damage was done. After almost one full year of trying to save the company, it closed for the last time in May 1966. Thousands of gallons of beer were ready to be bottled but instead, were dumped into the Sebewaing River. The remainder of 1966 saw equipment sold to other breweries and for scrap to satisfy the $104,000 of outstanding debt. The main building was demolished between 1981-1984 (yes, it took several years due to property formalities) leaving only the Sales Office, the Brew Masters Office, Deep Well #2, and the Carpentry Shed. All that remains today are the two offices that were the closest structures to East Main Street that are the Sales & Brew Master’s Offices and can be seen engulfed in trees and plant growth. The pictures below were taken on October 5, 2013.
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Sales and Brew Master’s Offices Back |
Sebewaing River Frontage of Sebewaing Brewering Company and Old Drain Location |
If you want to learn more about the closing of the brewery, please visit this link for the next section of this website.