In 1852 Gabriel Hail, originally from England, began his brewing operation along a bluff in Potosi, Wisconsin. His establishment was appropriately named the Gabriel Hail Brewery and was constructed of local limestone. The business originally consisted of a boiler (engine) room, a brewhouse, an ice house, a malt house, and fermenting and aging cellars with large cypress vats. Hail had intentionally built his brewery next to a large spring which gushed forth from limestone rocks. Hence the brewery, later to become the Potosi Brewing Company, established its reputation from beer made with “sparkling spring water.” The market in the early days was limited to the Village of Potosi and nearby towns because of poor transportation facilities. Each village had its own little brewing business.
In 1879 Adam Schumacher came to Potosi from Bavaria, Germany, to seek out employment in America. An uncle, Christian Schumacher, lived on a farm near the village. It was he who introduced Adam to Gabriel Hail and arranged for his employment at the brewery. Hail was a leader in the community and employed about eight men in the early 1880s. However, Hail hung himself in the engine room of the brewery about 1884. Reasons for the suicide remain unclear, but business problems or a broken heart were both suggested. As a result, the brewery lay idle, and Adam Schumacher went to work for the Vogelsburg Brewery in British Hollow, a hamlet near Potosi, for a period of two years. By this time Adam had amassed considerable brewing experience and began to consider owning a business of his own. Through a Lancaster bank loan, Adam was able to purchase the Gabriel Hail Brewery in 1886.
The first type of beer the Adam Schumacher Brewery produced was the traditional German lager. This apparently met with success and the business began to grow. When conditions allowed, Adam arranged for three brothers, still in Germany, to come to the United States and join him in the brewing operation. First Nicholas came in 1891, followed by Henry and George in 1893. Nicholas assisted in management while Henry became the brewmaster, and George worked a variety of tasks in the plant.
From a defunct ferry operation near Potosi, Adam purchased a steamboat in the late 1890s. He renamed it the “Potosi” and the brewery used it for hauling beer to the Dubuque market, some 12 miles down the Mississippi River. The boat could carry six to eight drawn wagonloads of beer or farm produce on the lower deck, and could transport as many as 100 people atop. Some special excursions were also undertaken by the “Potosi” to the theater and other diversions in Dubuque. Later, with improved railroad transportation and the development of highways, the need for the river steamboat declined, and the “Potosi” was sold.
The brewery managed to gradually increase its share of the market. New additions were constructed and modernization of the physical facilities was undertaken. A new bottling house was built whichvided space for bottling operations on the ground floor and sleeping room for unmarried employees upstairs. “Grandma” Schumacher prepared meals which were served in a house adjacent to the brewery. The new bottling works provided the brewery with the capability to meet the competition by not having to sell beer in keg form only. Quart bottles (24 oz.) and “picnics” which held half a gallon, became popular sizes. Bottles were filled, one at a time, sealed, pasteurized and labeled, all by hand. They were then packed in wooden cases, burlap bags or shipping barrels, using wood shavings, excelsior or heavy paper jackets to prevent breakage in transport.
In 1906 the brewery became incorporated, and the name was changed to the Potosi Brewing Company. Adam became the president, Nicholas was elected as secretary, and Henry served as treasurer. Further expansion followed this move. An office building, a tavern, a blacksmith shop, a barn and stables were all added to the brewery grounds. A new ice house was constructed to increase refrigeration capacity. A second and third floor were built atop the original building to provide a new brewhouse equipped with both a 100 barrel copper brew kettle and mash tub. A mill was installed on the third floor to grind malt, and a hop storage room maintained hops at the proper temperature. Sales increased and the Potosi Brewing Company's beer became known as that “Good Old Potosi.” Volume again increased and sales expanded further. The Potosi Brewing Company's market stretched into new territory in Wisconsin, Iowa, and Illinois.
In 1910 Adolph Schumacher, the son of Nicholas, joined the business. He spent his entire lifetime in it, serving as president when operations ceased. Rudolph Schumacher, the son of Henry, started his brewing career in 1916 and eventually became the bottling and canning production manager. He was later succeeded by his son Robert.
Business continued to grow, and on the eve of Prohibition, Potosi beer was in demand in five states. In order to survive the Prohibition years, the brewery produced “Near Beer” which had an alcoholic content of less than 1 percent. Between 20 and 30 men were employed by the brewery during this time, and Adam retired while Nicholas and Adolph took over management operations. A de-alcoholizer was attached to the cooker, and eventually the product gained acceptance. New markets opened up in Kansas, Nebraska, Minnesota and western Iowa. Adam Schumacher Jr., a nephew of the four brothers, came from Germany in 1925 and succeeded Henry as brewmaster in 1934. Edward Ragatz, a grandson of Adam Schumacher Sr., began in the bottling house in 1928 and eventually worked his way up to the executive vice president position, a post he held from 1962 to the brewery's closing in 1972. Walter, a son of Adam, joined the business in 1933 and became secretary and director. Virgil Millen, a son-in-law of Nicholas, began his brewery career in 1933 as manager of the transportation department and was later elected vice president and member of the board of directors. He became secretary upon Walter's retirement.
In order to survive during the Depression era, the brewery operated a dairy farm and a coal and ice business, delivering those products to retailers and consumers in the area. The rate of pay varied from 30 cents to 60 cents an hour. When the Volstead Act was repealed in 1933, much to the delight of the Potosi Brewing Company, trucks were lined up half a mile on Main Street waiting to load 4 percent alcoholic beer again at midnight, April 14, 1933. After the repeal, an increased demand developed for Potosi beer. New storage cellars and a new office building were constructed, and modern production equipment was purchased for the brewery and bottling house. Aluminum kegs, which were lighter and easier to handle, replaced wooden kegs. A fleet of brewery trucks delivered beer to areas within 300 miles of Potosi including Chicago, Milwaukee, Minneapolis, St. Paul, and Des Moines. Rail shipments went as far as California, Texas, and Arizona.
During this time the brewery made the transition from a small business selling 4000 barrels of beer per year to a high of 75,000 barrels annually in 1963. As times changed, the competition from big breweries grew more serious. The giants of the industry introduced new brands which flooded the market at reduced prices. Small breweries were forced to close. In 1933, 79 breweries were operating in Wisconsin; by 1972 that number had dropped to eight. In order to compete, Potosi occasionally introduced new brands, such as Pure Malt, Potosi, Pilsner, Schumacher, Garten Brau, Alpine, Holiday, Bohemian Club, and Augsberger. Private labels for chain stores were also produced. Stainless steel kegs, non-returnable bottles and cans were tried in an attempt to keep customers and satisfy their demands. However, the large brewers were able to implement more automation and operate regional plants to combat high transportation costs.
The Potosi Brewing Company fought back with a new addition to the storage cellar which could house 1000 barrel glass lined steel tanks. A new steel warehouse with loading docks was constructed and automatic packers and labelers installed. As a result, the brewery was able to accept bulk deliveries of malt and corn syrup. However, these efforts did not stop the large national breweries from steadily increasing their share of the beer drinking market. The demand for the local product was lost as the giants of the industry offered a cheaper product.
Toby Christensen, the Potosi brewmaster from Holland, retired in 1968 after brewing “Good Old Potosi” for 13 years. He was sorely missed by the company. Although other brewmasters were hired, none stayed long. The large breweries could offer higher salaries, without the problems of the small brewery. Edward Ragatz writes, “Thus, handicapped by the loss of the most vital part of the organization, the brewmaster, coupled with the relentless onslaught of the National breweries, it was finally decided to terminate the operation of the company.” Operations ceased in November 1972, and the brewery became a wholesale distributor until the supply of beer had been depleted. Eastwright Lumber Company purchased the ground in 1975, and Huber Brewing Company in Monroe, Wisconsin, purchased a number of Potosi brand names including Augsberger. Much of the equipment was sold in 1973-1974 and the remainder was sold at a public auction. Liquidation was complete by the summer of 1975.
This history was compiled from newspaper clippings and from Edward Ragatz's “History of the Potosi Brewing Company, Potosi, Wisconsin, 1852-1972,” in Grant County History, 1900-1976, p. 418-425.
