Val Blatz Brewery
VALENTINE (VALENTIN) BLATZ
(1826-1894)
compiled & edited by MikeReilly
Last Revised 08/16/2015
Much of this information wasoriginally printed in the “Industrial History of Milwaukee – 1886”.Thanks to former MABC member Ken Obermann, much of it was reprinted years ago inThe Cream City Courier. As Ken wrote, “these may tend to be a littlewordy, and some facts may be distorted, or omitted. Remember, however, thatthese biographies were written while their subjects were living.” To that Iadd, if anyone has additional information or corrections to this material, thiseditor would gladly receive it.
Valentine Blatz was born October 1, 1826, at Miltenberg-on-the-Main, Bavaria,the son of Casper and Barbara Blatz. His father, a brewer by occupation, owned abrewery and was a man of considerable influence in Miltenberg.
Valentine attended the common schools of his native place until fourteenyears of age, and at that time entered his father’s brewery with a view tolearning the business. After working three years in order that he might acquirea more perfect knowledge of the business, he visited the large brewingestablishments of Wuruzburg, Augsburg and Munich, and at these different placesspent nearly four years. He also spent time in other cities.
Upon attaining his majority, in obedience to the mandateor the national law requiring every able-bodied young man to serve a certainlength of time in the army, he returned home to report for military duty. Hisfather, however, relieved him from this duty by procuring a substitute.
Young Blatz being thus at liberty to seek his fortune, afew months later bade good-bye to his native land, and sailing for America,landed in New York in August 1848. Going thence to Buffalo, New York, he wasthere employed at his trade for one year [at which brewery?]. Having heard of the growing young cityof Milwaukee, and the inducements which it offered to enterprising young men, heremoved thither in 1849 and soon found employment at his trade.
What eventually became the Blatz brewery was founded in1846 by John Braun at Main and Division Streets (N. Broadway and E. JuneauAve.)..
During the next two years he was, at different times,foreman of several breweries [at which breweries?], but being unsatisfied, resolved that as soon as hehad accumulated sufficient capital, he would engage in business on his ownaccount. Accordingly, in 1851, having by prudence and economy saved hisearnings, five hundred dollars, he made a start. Then nearly a year later was married on the 4th of December, 1851, to Miss LouisSchmidt, a native of Gudengen, Prussia, whose father was mayor of that city. [Miss LouisSchmidt also happened to be the widow of hisex-employer, thus acquiring Johann Braun’s City Brewery [1846-1852] which wasnext door to his own. [They later had four sons and two daughters; the eldest daughter is the wife of JohnKremer, of the Milwaukee Oleograph Company. The eldest son is first engineer ofhis father’s brewery; the second son is employed in one of the largest breweriesin Cincinnati, the third son is assistant bookkeeper in the Second Ward SavingsBank, Milwaukee; while the fourth son and younger daughter are attending school.]
His brewery at that time was situated on lots one and two of blockfifty-nine. It was a small establishment employing only four hands, and duringthe first year yielded a product of five hundred barrels of beer. Mr. Blatz wasthe first to manufacture the celebrated “Milwaukee Beer”. From thefirst his business prospered, and by his peculiar business tact, steadilyincreased until it grown to enormous proportions. In 1861, the sales amounted toeight thousand barrels; in 1871 to thirty-four thousand, and in 1875 tosixty-five thousand barrels. He buys yearly about one hundred and fifty thousandpounds of hops, and pays a revenue of from sixty thousand to seventy thousanddollars, and taxes on his property of over seven thousand dollars.
In 1875 he contracted to have partof the brewery’s output bottled, and soon 2,000 bottles a day – the first beerbottles in Milwaukee – were being turned out. The next year the Blatz bottledproduct took the top award at the Philadelphia Centennial Exposition
He has added to his establishment as his business has increased, and now hisvaults and ice-cellars have a capacity of over twenty thousand barrels. Agenciesare established in New York City, Chicago, Danville, Illinois, St. Paul,Muskegon, Michigan, and Racine, Wisconsin; while the amount of capital employedis six hundred thousand dollars, furnishing employment for one hundred andtwenty-four men and fifty-two horses.
Although Mr. Blatz has met with success in his enterprises, he has by nomeans been free from misfortune. The brick building which he erected in 1858 hecontinued to enlarge from year to year until 1873 [On the nightof August 25, one of the largest fires which have occurred since the UnitedStates Hotel burned down [August 24, 1854], partially destroyed the large brewery of ValentineBlatz, corner of Division and Broadway. The fire originated in the rear of themalt house next to the engine room. The buildings were soon in a blaze, and madeit impossible to use the large court yard between them, which was hot as a furnace.Crowds filled the streets, and in the course of an hour, a solid half a blockwas one sheet of fire. The malt house, the engine room, and much of the mainbuilding succumbed. Loss, $143,000; Insurance, $159,000.Source: History ofMilwaukee, Wisconsin, 1881, The Western Historical Company, Chicago, A.T.Andreas, Proprietor], when all his buildings,except the brewery proper, were destroyed by fire. The large stock which he hadin his vaults, however, prevented any interruption in the supplying of hisagencies, and with characteristic energy he set about repairing his losses.Within sixty days he began rebuilding, employing from one hundred and fifty totwo hundred men, and pushed the work forward until January 1874, when thestructure was completed. The building fronts on Broadway, occupying block numberfifty-nine between Division and Johnson Streets. Besides, he has two ice-houseson lots seven and eight, block sixty, where he manufactures most of his barrels.
About this time also, he met with a heavy loss at Kenosha,by the burning of his malt houses, which he had rented of Lill & Bollen. InApril 1874, he met another loss, caused by the breaking of the iron pillars onwhich rested the floors where malt and barley were stored, all of which wasprecipitated to the ground in a mixed mass. Notwithstanding all these variouscalamities, which would have broken down many men, Mr. Blatz has borne up withcourage, making the best of his misfortunes, and today is as full of energy andenterprises as when he first began.
As a man, Mr. Blatz is public-spirited and generous, andhas attained to a wide popularity and been honored with positions of honor andtrust. He was selected president of the Second Ward Savings Bank in 1868, andsince that time has continued to hold that position. In 1872 he was
electedalderman, and performed his duties with satisfaction to his constituents. Mr. Blatz has a wide experience, having traveled both inEurope and in this country, and being a man of observation, has gathered a fundof practical knowledge, which renders him a most agreeable social companion.
The following biography isfrom Men of Progress. Wisconsin. A selected list of biographical sketches andportraits of the leaders in business, professional and official life. Togetherwith short notes on the history and character of Wisconsin.
BLATZ, Valentine, founder of what is now known as theBlatz Brewing company, was born at Miltenberg on the Main, Bavaria, on the 1stof October, 1826, and was the son of Caspar and Barbara Blatz. Caspar Blatz wasa brewer in a small way in Miltenberg, where he occupied a prominent positionamong his fellow citizens, whose confidence he had acquired by honorablebusiness methods. Having received such education as the village schools couldgive him in a limited time, he entered his father’s brewery, at the age offourteen, and served an apprenticeship of three years, at the end of which hevisited some of the large breweries of the cities of Augsburg, Munich andWurtzburg, where he spent four years in the further study of the business ofbrewing in its various departments. Returning home when twenty-one years of ageto enter the standing army for a term of years, as required by law, he wasagreeably surprised to find that his father had procured a substitute for him;and the young man, a few months thereafter, sailed for America, arriving in NewYork in August, 1848. Stopping there for a few days, he departed for Buffalo,where he obtained temporary employment at Page 397 his trade; and, in the fallof the same year, he came to Milwaukee. The next three years he devoted to theearning and saving of money; and, having accumulated five hundred dollars, heinvested it in a little brewing plant, and began the brewing of beer on his ownaccount. The annual output at first was only about one hundred and fiftybarrels; but the business steadily grew, and enlarged buildings, new methods andnew machinery followed until now the brewery covers four blocks of ground in thecity, and is one of the largest and most complete establishments of the kind inthis country, if not in the world. The business was conducted in the name of itsfounder until 1889, when a corporation was formed, with a capital of twomillions of dollars, under the name of the Valentine Blatz Brewing company. Mr.Blatz was president of the company until his death, which occurred May 26th,1894. Since that time the management and control of this extensive business hasbeen in the hands of his sons, Albert C. and Valentine Blatz, Jr., and hisson-in-law, John Kremer.
Mr. Blatz’ business, though phenomenallysuccessful in most respects, did not escape misfortune, for in 1873 thebuildings of the great plant, excepting the brewery proper, were totallydestroyed by fire. With characteristic energy, however, the proprietor clearedaway the ruins, and by the beginning of the following year a new and completelyequipped building was erected and occupied. About this time his malt house inKenosha was burned, and sixty thousand bushels of barley were precipitated intothe ruins.
Mr. Blatz was elected president of the SecondWard Savings bank in 1868, and was continued in that position up to the time ofhis death. He was an alderman from his ward in 1882, but he was too muchengrossed with the cares of his vast business to give much thought to thedetails of public affairs, or to desire and seek after official honors. Hetraveled extensively in this country and Europe, and his observations made himan intelligent and extremely entertaining companion. He was apublic-spirited citizen, and benevolent where he saw that benevolence wasneeded; but he had small patience with the drones of society and those who gavelittle thought or effort to making their own way in life.
He was married to Louise Braun, a native ofGuedingen, Prussia, on the 14th of December, 1851. Her father was mayor of thecity, and a man of prominence in the region where he lived. Four sons and twodaughters were born to Mr. and Mrs. Blatz, all of whom are living.
1889 (1891?) – Blatz sells part of its business to Milwaukee and Chicago BreweriesLtd.
The Blatz brewing interests were incorporated in 1889 asthe Val Blatz Brewing Company with a capitalization of $2,000,000. In1891, Valentin Blatz sold out to a group of London financiers known in brewingcircles as “the English Syndicate”.
1938 – Emil Blatz donates $100,000 to build a “Temple of Music” -a bandshell and amphitheater in Washington Park.
Although Blatz was the first Milwaukee brewer to go national, it was forced toclose in 1959, and the label was sold to Pabst. Heileman purchased it in 1969after Pabst’s anti-trust problems.
1986 – the HeilemanBrewing Company unveiled its new automated Val Blatz plant in Milwaukee.
1988 – The Blatz brewery was converted to “upscale” apartments.
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The following is a portion of an article that Ron Feldhaus wrote concerningthe Blatz business in the Minneapolis/St. Paul area.
Minneapolis and St. Paul each had a Blatz agency. From precedingarticles itwould seem the St. Paul branch was established prior to 1877, but no record ofit appears in the city directory until 1884. Its’ various known addresses were asfollows:
1884-90 282 Jackson
1891-93 Levee & foot of Pine
1894-04 Levee & foot of John
1894-10 184-188 Eagle
There exists a very, very rare pottery beer marked BLATZ &CO./ST. PAULMIN. This would have to be from the early days of the St. Paul branch, as theabbreviation MIN was not used much after the 1870’s.
The Minneapolis city directory first lists “V. BLATZ MILWAUKEE BOTTLINGCOMPANY” in 1884. In 1889 Val Blatz sold out to a London syndicate and theMinneapolis Branch’s name was changed to the “Val Blatz Brewing Co.”It was located at 245 2nd Ave. S. from 1884-90 and at 1316-18 S. 6th from1891-10. (This was right on the Chicago, Milwaukee, and St. Paul Railroadtracks). In 1900 the Minneapolis Journal wrote “The plant consists ofoffice building, warehouse, cooler, bottling works, and stable, and covers halfa block. All the product handled is shipped direct to Minneapolis from theMilwaukee brewery. This branch receives a thousand carloads every year which isdistributed throughout Minnesota, the two Dakotas, and most of the northwesternstates. The Val Blatz beer is noted among epicures for its clearness andsparkle. It is widely used as a tonic and invigorator for invalids and isendorsed by the medical profession.
Val Blatz bottles are among the most eagerly sought of theMinneapolis and St. Paul beers, some being very rare. Among the earliest are those manufactured by the Chase Valley Glass Co.(1880-81) and Marked C.V.G. Co. or C.V.G. Co. #1 or C.V.G. Co. #2. The quartsize Chase Valley bottles have an extra large blob, nice whittling and a ton ofeye appeal.
In rough chronological order, other bottles are marked as follows:
WISC. GLASS CO. MILW. 1881-86
D.O.C. 1882-1937
C.C.G. CO. 1888-1894
W.F.& S. 1895-1926
S.B.& CO. 1881-1905
Most of the S.B.& CO. bottles have a year of manufacture marked on theside of the base and were made after 1895.
Three of the rarest Val Blatz bottles (having less than 5of each known ) are 1. the amber bottle from the St. Paul branch, 2. the bottlemarked simply BLATZ/MINNEAPOLIS, 3. the St. Paul branch bottle with a backwards’Z”.
A real puzzler are the bottles (circa 1882-84) markedMINNEAPOLIS AND MILWAUKEE BOTTLING CO. (Karl Hutter) stopper and those markedMILWAIKEE AND MINNEAPOLIS BOTTLING CO. So Far I (Ron Feldhaus) have been unableto find any evidence definitely attributing those bottles tot he Val Blatzcompanies, but I believe it to be so.
On Fri, 28 July 2000, Sarah.Braden@intpark.com wrote: > > I justdiscovered that my nephew lives in an old building in Chicago with > thewords “Val Blatz” in stone on the side and wonder if you know any of> the history behind this. The address is 835 N. Wolcott. > > Thankyou. I haven’t delved that deeply into the Blatz history yet but the building helives in most likely was a saloon owned by the Val Blatz company at one time(before prohibition). If it’s very large, it might have been a warehouse orother distribution center, like a wholesaler. Mike Reilly (Schlitzpro) MY NEPHEWTALKED TO THE LANDLORD; TURNS OUT THIS PARTICULAR BUILDING WAS BUILT IN 1896 ASA RESIDENTIAL BUILDING FOR EMPLOYEES WHO WORKED AT THE PLANT ACROSS THE STREET(WHICH IS NO LONGER THERE … A BASKETBALL COURT SITS ON THE SITE). ORIGINALLYTHERE WAS A CHICKEN COOP IN THE BASEMENT!! THOUGHT YOU’D LIKE TO KNOW. IT’S ABEAUTIFUL BUILDING IN AN UNFORTUNATE NEIGHBORHOOD …
John Blatz, a dealer in hotel china, bar, glassware and restaurant suppliesfrom Richmond Hill, NY.