Foundation Christian Heurich, a native of
Saxe-Meiningen, was born in 1842. He
apprenticed as a
brewer and butcher, then spent his
Wanderjahr working at breweries throughout what is now Austria, Germany, France, and the Czech Republic. In 1866 he migrated to the United States, first living in the
Fells Point area of
Baltimore with a sister and her husband, then spending time in Chicago, Kansas, and St. Louis before returning to Baltimore. Heurich wanted to start his own brewery but debated where the best opportunity existed. Partnering with a fellow German immigrant and coworker, Paul Ritter, Heurich decided upon Washington, DC. The city had expanded radically in size during the
American Civil War (1861–1865), and a new city government worked to improve the capital city, to make it a world-class capital city. Led by Vice-chair of the city's five-person Board of Public Works, "Boss"
Alexander Robey Shepherd, the foul
canal which ran down what is now
Constitution Avenue was filled in, roads were paved, and sewer and water lines were installed. The frantic pace of improvement soon attracted the ire of Congress, and the independent DC Government was eliminated. However, Shepherd's improvements did make the city more attractive to newcomers, including Heurich and as many as a dozen other brewers. Heurich reacted the same way many other brewers did, by trying to market his product as a healthy beverage, and trying to make beer appear family-friendly. In late 1913 Heurich introduced a low-alcohol product, Home Beer. It contained less than 2% alcohol and was marketed as suitable for women and "others with a weak stomach." In 1914 the brewery began offering a
cookbook for free in exchange for coupons that came with each case of beer. The back cover of the cookbook advertised Home Beer. Such efforts were in vain. In 1914 Virginia voted to go dry in a statewide
referendum beginning in November 1916. "because of a decline in sales and because of the knowledge that the government would seek to acquire the site of the brewery for the approaches to the new
Theodore Roosevelt Bridge." For five years,
Arena Stage staged productions in the former brewery, which it nicknamed "The Old Vat." The brewery and all of its buildings were torn down in 1961.
Olde Heurich Brewing Company Heurich's grandson, Gary Heurich, would resurrect the Heurich brand as the Olde Heurich Brewing Company in
Utica, New York in 1986. He developed a Foggy Bottom label and reproduced the Old Georgetown and Senate beers produced by the old company. The Olde Heurich Brewing Company would ultimately shut down in 2006. ==See also==