A little Prohibition history

In keeping with my apparent trend in pointing to historical beer items, I thought this anecdotal bit of history about the Fesenmeier Brewing Comany was interesting. (Though it died as a result of Prohibition.)

Sons of the German Fesenmeier family, which had started a brewing beer in the Cumberland, Md., area shortly after the Civil War, came here in 1899 and bought the 6-year-old American Brewing Co.

The new owners overcame all sorts of obstacles to sell their product, including unpaved streets and swamps that stood between the brewery in Central City — later West Huntington — and its retail markets in Huntington, a devastating fire in 1905 and the 1913 flood. But Prohibition was the last straw, and longtime employees were laid off and scattered in all directions.

One comment

  1. Nice article by Mr. Withers. He works with my Dad at the newspaper.

    If you’re interested in the Fesenmeier and Little Switzerland breweries, please check out my new website, Huntingtonbeercans.com.

    Thanks!

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