Early Kalamazoo Breweries (1837-1915)
“The Brew from Kalamazoo”
1830s—1840s | 1850s | 1860s—1880s | 1890s—1915 | 1915—1933
The Fourth Round: Kalamazoo Union Brewing Co.
After a successful career that spanned more than three decades, George Neumaier retired in the fall of 1894 and turned the brewery over to his son, Alfred George “Fred” Neumaier (born 1872). Before returning to Kalamazoo, Fred Neumaier worked for several years at the Finlay Brewing Company in Toledo, Ohio, a well-established and considerably larger outfit than his father’s brewery in Kalamazoo. Neumaier went into partnership with Leo Wagenman (1861-1926), a German-born brewmaster with twenty years of experience who had been a foreman at Finlay in Toledo. Together they formed a stock company called the Kalamazoo Union Brewing Company and made significant changes within the organization. After four months of work perfecting its product, the first kegs from the new company were tapped in January 1895, and according to the local press, the firm was “turning out a fine article” (Gazette).
City Union Brewery c.1896. View from Portage Street. Courtesy, Western Michigan University Archives and Regional History Collections
Leo Wagenman
The initial 1895 brewing run under the Neumaier/Wagenman partnership was apparently successful—so successful, in fact, that Leo Wagenman announced soon after that the “location near the corner of Lake and Portage streets [was] entirely too small for his growing business” (Telegraph). Wagenman clearly intended to move the entire Kalamazoo Union Brewing Company’s operation to a new location, but it doesn’t appear that Fred Neumaier agreed.
In November 1895, Wagenman purchased the former Galligan & Horn Cart Company’s factory building at the northwest corner of Vine and Mill (now Mills) streets with plans to turn it into an “extensive brewery” (Telegraph) to be operated “as the Kalamazoo Union Brewing company” (Gazette). Wagenman planned to have the new larger facility up and running by the first of February.
Leo Wagenman’s Kalamazoo Union Brewery, c.1896. Sanborn Fire Insurance Map from Kalamazoo, Michigan. Library of Congress
City Union Brewery
Just as production at the Kalamazoo Union Brewing Company was getting underway at the new Mill Street location, cracks in the Neumaier-Wagenman partnership began to appear. The conflict came to a head in February 1896 when Fred Neumaier announced that he had severed his connection with Leo Wagenman and the “Kalamazoo Union Brewery.” Neumaier was about to begin a “new concern” (Telegraph) back at the old building on Lake Street that he then called the “City Union Brewery.” His new partner was an experienced Detroit brewer named Steve Zanda, a recent graduate of the Chicago Brewers Academy. By May, Neumaier was advertising that his new operation was in full production at 823 Lake Street and making a “fine stapletry of choice beer for family use” (Telegraph).
Local History Room
Back on Mill Street, Wagenman went ahead and released the first batch of his own Kalamazoo Union brew during the early weeks of 1896. Although his skills as a brewmaster were highly regarded, his salesmanship and public relations abilities apparently fell a bit short.
“Loyalty is its own reward”
After more than a quarter-century in the local brewing business, the Neumaier family had become well respected members of the Kalamazoo community. For many years, George Neumaier had been an officer and trustee for the local German Workingmen’s Benevolent Association (Arbeiter Unterstützungs Verein, or A.U.V.) and he advocated strongly for its members. A prime example was a time when George Neumaier stepped in to assist a local electrical worker who had become disabled after an accident. Neumaier purchased an empty lot near his brewery and erected a building where the injured worker could operate a grocery store while recovering. Neumaier and the A.U.V. then purchased stock for the store so the man could get back on his feet. That kind of loyalty resonated deeply within the tightly knit local community, something Wagenman had clearly underestimated.
City Union Brewery, c.1896. Sanborn Fire Insurance Map from Kalamazoo, Michigan. September 1896. Library of Congress
When Fred Neumaier announced his split from the Kalamazoo Union Brewery, Wagenman tried to undercut his former partner by selling his beer “bottled for less than the regular price” (Gazette). But the local barkeeps and shop owners wouldn’t have it, and they retaliated by boycotting Wagenman’s product while remaining loyal to Neumaier and buying his beer instead. Without the ability to sell his product, several hundred barrels of Wagenman’s beer sat in storage over the summer and went sour as a result.
When revenue agents came around to collect taxes in mid-November, Wagenman was not about to pay the $1 per barrel tax on his unsaleable stock. Rather, he loaded up all 465 barrels (14,400+ gallons valued at more than $1,000* at the time) and drove them up the road to the nearby stream, where the stale beer “was turned out of the barrels and ran down Portage creek into the Kalamazoo river” (Gazette). Wagenman appeared in court the following spring for violating the liquor law, but the charges were ultimately dismissed. Wagenman ceased his brewing operation thereafter and eventually returned to Toledo.
*In today’s market, 14,400 gallons (115,200 pints @ $5 per pint) would amount to roughly $576,000 retail.
“A night shift has been put on at the local brewery. Kalamazoo is certainly now on the high road to prosperity.”
—Kalamazoo Gazette, (n.d.) c.1899
Kalamazoo Brewing Co., c.1902. Sanborn Fire Insurance Map from Kalamazoo, Michigan. Library of Congress
“Extensive Improvements”
Back up and running on his own, Neumaier made “extensive improvements” (Kalamazoo Evening News) in the Lake Street building during February 1899, including the installation of a new 80-horsepower boiler by the Clark Engine & Boiler Company. By April, Neumaier’s City Union Brewery was producing roughly 140 barrels per day.
“The City Union Brewery, of Kalamazoo, owned by Alfred G. Neumaier, has just completed a new three-story brick brew house and a 75-barrel outfit complete, put in by the Huetteman & Cramer Co., of Detroit. A 20-ton ice machine and a new cellar have also been put in.”
—American Brewers’ Review (Chicago), 20 January 1901
In October 1900, Neumaier announced plans to invest an additional $30,000 for improvements. The brewery was to be rebuilt and made one full story higher to accommodate new machinery and equipment. Production at the Kalamazoo brewery was expected to double.
City Union Brewery, c.1902. (North side of the building looking southwest from Lake Street.) From Commercial Kalamazoo. Published by Doubleday Brothers & Co., A.H. Berry Co. 1902. Local History Room.
L to R: Albert Doll (president), Henry Buechner (secretary/treasurer), Fred Neumaier (general manager), Albert Allgaier (head brewmaster). Kalamazoo Public Library
Kalamazoo Brewing Company
In October 1904, the City Union Brewery was converted to a new stock company and incorporated in January 1905 as the Kalamazoo Brewing Company with capital stock of $75,000. Albert Doll, a prominent local saloon owner and future president of the Kalamazoo Liquor Dealers Association, was elected company president. Carl Schanz served as vice president, Henry Buechner was company secretary, and Fred Neumaier was general manager, with William Farley, Frank Flaits, and William Pendleton rounding out the board of directors. Herbert Davis, Vern Yost, Bernard Schwarze, Bamhart Schwarze, Anthony Schwarze, Clinton Gembering, Edward Kem, Leonard Kochler, Phoebe Buchner, Augustus Stevens, and Albert Allgaier were all employed at the brewery around that time.
Kalamazoo Brewing Company racking room c.1910. Albert Allgaier, brewmaster (left), other unidentified. Courtesy, Western Michigan University Archives and Regional History Collections
Albert Allgaier
Born in Unterjettingen, Baden-Württemberg, Germany, in November 1878, Albert Allgaier was a lad of fourteen in July 1892 when he boarded the steamer “SS La Champagne” at the Port of Le Havre in northwestern France and sailed to the United States. Once in Kalamazoo he roomed with the Neumaier family and went to work in the brewery, first caring for the horses that pulled the beer wagons, then later assisting in the brewing process itself. After months studying brewing in Germany and training at the American Brewing Academy in Chicago, Allgaier returned to Kalamazoo in 1906 and became Neumaier’s head brewmaster.
George Neumaier remained active in the company for several years after his retirement. According to Fisher’s Compendium of History and Biography of Kalamazoo County (1906), the elder Neumaier “made it his chief ambition to produce beer of superior quality and purity, and by doing so he popularized his product and gave it a high and wide-spread reputation which brought him a large and profitable trade.” George Neumaier passed away in August 1907 at the age of 65 and was laid to rest in Riverside Catholic Cemetery.
Kalamazoo Brewing Co., c.1908. Sanborn Fire Insurance Map from Kalamazoo, Michigan. Library of Congress
Kalamazoo Beer Styles
Along with its standard Kalamazoo lager that was sold by the barrel and in clear glass embossed quart bottles, the Kalamazoo Brewing Company marketed several additional select styles of bottled beer, including “Royal Export,” “Royal Beer,” “Crystal Cream,” and its “Celebrated Berliner Weiss[sic] Beer.” Of course, these no longer exist, but their names give us some indication of their respective styles.
“Royal Export” (European-Style Export)
“Export” beer typically referred to a style of pale to golden pre-Prohibition pilsner that originated in Dortmund, Germany. Produced and marketed between 1907 and 1909 as “Royal Export” and later as “Royal Beer,” Kalamazoo Brewing packaged both products in clear 12-ounce bottles with multi-color lithographed labels in an effort to compete with the influx of strong rivals like Conrad Seipp (Chicago), Anheuser-Busch (St. Louis), Muskegon Brewing Company (Michigan), Pabst (Milwaukee), and others. “Royal Export” was specifically marketed to “the family trade” and said to be ideal for picnics and “noon-day lunches” (Gazette).
“Crystal Cream” (American-Style Cream Ale)
“Crystal Cream” was most likely an American cream-style ale, designed as an inexpensive ale alternative to the overwhelmingly popular lager styles. Cream ale (or present-use ale) was usually made with ale or lager yeast using a warm fermentation process, then stored like lager at cold temperatures to produce a mild, pale, light-bodied ale. “Crystal Cream” was produced by the Kalamazoo Brewing Company from about 1910 until the brewery closed in 1915. It was packaged in clear 12-ounce bottles using multi-color lithographed labels.
“Berliner Weiss” (Berliner-Style Weisse)
Berliner Weisse is a sour wheat beer style that was especially popular in Northern Germany during the late 19th century. Weisse beer was typically fermented with pale malts and a mixture of yeast and lactic acid bacteria to produce its unique taste. The Kalamazoo Brewing Company packaged its “Celebrated Berliner Weiss[sic] Beer” in amber 12-ounce embossed bottles that carried the “Pure And Without Drugs Or Poison” label, indicating they were probably packaged after the 1906 Pure Food and Drug Act.
“The Kalamazoo Brewing Co. aims to supply the better class of trade—those who appreciate quality and the value of a first class, healthful refreshing beverage.”
— Kalamazoo Gazette, January 17, 1909
“Strictly A Temperance Beverage”
Facing formidable competition from much larger firms in Detroit, St. Louis, and Milwaukee, in addition to the ever-growing opposition to alcoholic beverages, the Kalamazoo Brewing Company made every attempt to appeal to a mass audience by positioning its product as a healthful “temperance” drink, a suitable alternative to hard liquor. Brewers both locally and nationally tried to downplay the alcohol content of the product while emphasizing its food value.
Kalamazoo Brewing Company lagering cellar c.1910. Courtesy, Western Michigan University Archives and Regional History Collections
“You know what is in it…”
To further differentiate itself from the competition, Kalamazoo Brewing made additional attempts to promote its product as a “safe” alternative to the highly competitive national and regional brands by implying that those out-of-town products could be contaminated with unknown or “cheap” ingredients, unlike (safe) locally made beer. In line with the Food and Drug Act of 1906, labels on the local product clearly stated that Kalamazoo beer was made “pure and without drugs or poison.”
A 1911 article cited an “unsolicited recommendation” by the United States Health Bulletin, commending the Kalamazoo product for its “high degree of perfection from its care in preparation, its freedom from adulteration, purity of water used in its manufacture, and the sanitary and hygienic methods employed in the handling of it during both its production and delivery” (Gazette). Other advertisements boldly claimed that the “Famous Brew of Kalamazoo” was “highly recommended by physicians for its purity and quality” (Telegraph).
Kalamazoo Brewing Co., c.1909. (North side of the building looking southeast from Lake Street.) Local History Room. From Picturesque Kalamazoo, published by E.E. Labadie, 1909,
“Call for the Brew from Kalamazoo”
Kalamazoo Gazette, 2 August 1907
By 1909, a major advertising campaign was underway in hopes of attracting “the better class of trade—those who appreciate quality and the value of a first class, healthful refreshing beverage” (Gazette). In other words, Kalamazoo beer was more expensive, but worth it.
Advertisements at the time attempted to emphasize the advantages of Kalamazoo beer by promoting it as a clean and well-made local product crafted by brewers like German native Leonard Kochler and Charles Grothen from Ohio, “brewers who ‘know how’” (Gazette). Recent renovations were cited that called attention to “the most up-to-date” equipment, including a new filter, which was installed “at enormous cost,” and a “Deckenbach cooler of the latest design” (Gazette).
“In manufacturing the ‘Brew from Kalamazoo,’ stated Henry Buechner, “we use hops and malt, and extend all a cordial invitation to pay us a visit so that we may show just how good pure beer is made” (Gazette). Advertisements urged the locals to “enjoy the best beer brewed,” and “continue to build up your hometown and patronize home industry by calling for The Brew from Kalamazoo” (Gazette).
Last Call for Alcohol (1915)
Kalamazoo Goes ‘Dry’
Kalamazoo Gazette, 25 April 1915
In April 1915, Kalamazoo County voters elected to outlaw the production and sale of alcoholic beverages—still five years ahead of the nationwide Eighteenth Amendment.
On 1 May 1915, sixty-five business establishments across Kalamazoo County closed their doors, including thirty-four saloons within the city of Kalamazoo, and the Kalamazoo Brewery, the only remaining alcohol manufacturing facility in Kalamazoo County. At the time of its closing, the plant had a yearly capacity of 12,000 barrels. Twenty five workers lost their jobs when it closed.
Kalamazoo Telegraph-Press, 6 April 1915, page 1. Local History Room
“Malt to Milk”
After the brewery equipment was dismantled and sold, Alfred Neumaier retired. The building remained vacant until 1917 when the stockholders voted to sell the brewery property and liquidate the firm. The Kalamazoo Creamery Company bought the former brewery and converted it into a pasteurization plant, which went into operation at the new location in 1919. Alfred Neumaier, the last of Kalamazoo’s original brewers, passed away in January 1937 at the age of 64, just three years after the sale of beer in Kalamazoo was once again legalized. He was laid to rest in Riverside Cemetery.
Al Allgaier moved to Detroit after the Kalamazoo Brewery closed and worked the night shift for a time at the Philip Kling Brewing Company. When statewide prohibition went into effect in May 1917, Allgaier returned to Kalamazoo and went to work as an engineer for the Kalamazoo Creamery Company in the same building where he had previously served as brewmaster. Albert Allgaier passed away in September 1942 at the age of 63 and was buried at Mount Olivet Cemetery in Kalamazoo.
“Needed repairs have been made on numerous store buildings in Kalamazoo, but no new stores have been erected in the heart of the city this year. Kalamazoo is not in need of more stores at this time. Many downtown places of business, especially on East Main street and North Burdick street, are still vacant as result of the great draught[sic] that hit this town when state-wide prohibition prevailed.”
—Kalamazoo Gazette, 31 August 1919
End of an Era
After nearly 80 years of use, the creamery was shuttered in 1997 and the remaining building complex gradually fell into a state of disrepair. The old brewery building was finally razed in November 2011 to make way for a new housing and mixed-use development called The Creamery, which opened in 2021.
Kalamazoo Brewery building from Portage Street c.1890s (left) and November 2011, shortly before demolition (right). Photo credits: WMU Archives (left), Keith Howard (right)
Kalamazoo Brewery building from Lake Street c.1909 (left) and November 2011, shortly before demolition (right). Photo credits: Kalamazoo Public Library (left), Keith Howard (right)
Written by Keith Howard, Kalamazoo Public Library Staff, 2011. Additional revisions and corrections, March 2024.
Sources
Books
Johnston’s Detroit city directory and advertising gazetteer of Michigan
Detroit, MI : James Dale Johnston & Co., 1861, page 226 (C.W. Minard)
Harvard University Library
Compendium of History and Biography of Kalamazoo County, Michigan
Chicago, IL : A.W. Bowen & Co., 1906, page 268 (George Neumaier)
H 977.417 F53 (CEN)
Labadie’s souvenir of picturesque Kalamazoo
Kalamazoo, MI : E.E. Labadie; printed by Kalamazoo Publishing Company, 1909, page 99
H 977.418 P62 1909 (CEN)
Kalamazoo, the place behind the products : an illustrated history
Larry B. Massie
Woodland Hills, CA : Windsor Publications, 1981
H 977.418 M417 (CEN)
977.418 M417 (CEN, OSH)
Kalamazoo, the place behind the products : an illustrated history
Larry B. Massie
Sun Valley, Calif. : American Historical Press, 1998, (revised edition)
H 977.418 M417A (CEN)
977.418 M417A (CEN, OSH)
Last call : the rise and fall of Prohibition
Daniel Okrent
New York : Scribner, c2010
363.41 O418 (CEN)
Yes, there were Germans in Kalamazoo : a short study of the German element and its influence in Kalamazoo County, Michigan, 1830-1978
Elizabeth M. Mayer
Kalamazoo, MI : Kalamazoo County Historical Society, 1979
H 325.243 M468 (CEN)
Articles
“Improvements in Kalamazoo”
Kalamazoo Gazette, 15 April 1837, page 2
“Summer beer”
Kalamazoo Gazette, 5 May 1838, page 1
“…improvements now going forward…”
Kalamazoo Gazette, 4 December 1846, page 2
“To make beer”
Kalamazoo Gazette, 13 August 1847, page 2
“Brewery for sale”
Kalamazoo Gazette, 2 April 1852, page 2
“Kalamazoo, its business”
Kalamazoo Gazette, 17 October 1856, page 2
“Peter Herboldsheimer…”
Kalamazoo Telegraph, 9 March 1859, page 3, column 2
“Syke & Foegele”
Kalamazoo Gazette, 29 March 1861, page 3, column 5
“Fire.”
Kalamazoo Telegraph, 16 October 1867, page 4
“Ale, lager beer, and porter”
Kalamazoo Telegraph, 21 May 1869, page 4
“List of liquor dealers who have taken out the liquor tax license”
Kalamazoo Gazette, 11 June 1875, page 3
“Centennialities: the brewers…”
Kalamazoo Daily Telegraph, 2 March 1876, page 2, column 2
“Report of tax collected on the business of selling and manufacturing liquors in Kalamazoo County for the year ending December 25, 1877”
Kalamazoo Gazette, 1 January 1878, page 4
“Kalamazoo. A general review of the business and commercial interests of the ‘Big Village.’”
Kalamazoo Gazette, 4 July 1878, page 3
“Mortgage sale”
Kalamazoo Gazette, 30 September 1879, page 4
“A scarcity of water. Old brewery building totally destroyed by fire”
Kalamazoo Gazette, 13 June 1886, page 2
“Local gleanings”
Kalamazoo Gazette, 17 July 1890, page 5
“He was a true patriot”
Kalamazoo Telegraph, 24 September 1891, page 6, column 2
“On draught Saturday”
Kalamazoo Gazette, 18 January 1895, page 1
“Where beer is made”
Kalamazoo Gazette, 26 April 1899, page 6
“$30,000 in improvements”
Kalamazoo Gazette, 28 October 1900, page 8
“City Union Brewery”
Kalamazoo Gazette, 14 February 1904, page 10
“Irish pioneer is ninety today”
Kalamazoo Gazette, 3 June 1905, page 8, column 2
“Brewing company directors”
Kalamazoo Gazette, 16 January 1907, page 9
“Call for the brew from Kalamazoo”
Kalamazoo Gazette, 2 August 1907, page 5, column 5
“High approval given Kalamazoo Brewing Co.”
Kalamazoo Gazette. 20 August 1911, page 6
“Home made beer, its advantages”
Kalamazoo Gazette, 19 June 1912, page 24
“Kalamazoo County goes dry with majority of 890”
Kalamazoo Gazette, 6 April 1915, page 1
“Your last chance”
Kalamazoo Gazette, 25 April 1915, page 11, column 4
“Booze specials into this city tabooed”
Kalamazoo Gazette, 1 May 1915, page 1, column 8
“County bars close their doors, Friday”
Kalamazoo Gazette, 1 May 1915, page 9
“Kazoo Brewing property sold”
Kalamazoo Gazette, 3 May 1917, page 1
“Brewing company is now dissolved”
Kalamazoo Gazette, 5 September 1917, page 7, column 4
“Creamery buys brewery plant”
Kalamazoo Gazette, 25 February 1919, page 5
“Kazoo in olden days had five breweries…”
Kalamazoo Gazette, 30 May 1920, page 7
“Kalamazoo had four breweries in operation half century ago”
Kalamazoo Gazette, 19 April 1933, page 23
“One-time brewery tumbles”
Kalamazoo Gazette, 4 November 1968, page 21, column 3
“The impact of organized crime in the city of Chicago”
Taylor Hales and Nikolas Kazmers, English 217 Student Projects
University of Michigan, 2004
“Michigan’s beer boom: for craft brewers, the glass isn’t just half-full, it’s overflowing”
Kalamazoo Gazette, 20 February 2011, page 1
“Former Kalamazoo Creamery building on Portage Street to be demolished as officials look to redevelopment possibilities”
Kalamazoo Gazette, 4 May 2011 [MLive online]
“Former Kalamazoo Creamery Co. building being razed with plans for property redevelopment in the future”
Kalamazoo Gazette, 15 November 2011 [MLive online]
Databases
Ancestry Library (In Library Only)
New York, Passenger and Crew Lists (including Castle Garden and Ellis Island), 1820-1957
United States Federal Census (1850, 1860, 1870, 1880)
U.S. IRS Tax Assessment Lists, 1862-1918
Michigan Census, 1827-70
Census Records
Nicholas Bauman household, 1860 United States Federal Population Census [database on-line]
Census Place: Kalamazoo, Kalamazoo, Michigan, page 108, dwelling 788, family 788
Online database, Ancestry Library (in library only)
Nicholas Bauman household, 1880 United States Federal Population Census [database on-line]
Census Place: Kalamazoo, Kalamazoo, Michigan, page 47, dwelling 498, family 498
57 Burdick Street
Online database, Ancestry Library (in library only)
Joseph Burchnal household, 1860 United States Federal Population Census [database on-line]
Census Place: Kalamazoo, Kalamazoo, Michigan, page 10, dwelling 148, family 139
Online database, Ancestry Library (in library only)
Joseph Burchnal household, 1870 United States Federal Population Census [database on-line]
Census Place: Kalamazoo, Kalamazoo, Michigan, page 19, dwelling 67, family 69
Online database, Ancestry Library (in library only)
George Foegle household, 1860 United States Federal Population Census [database on-line]
Census Place: Kalamazoo, Kalamazoo, Michigan, page 86, dwelling 634, family 634
Online database, Ancestry Library (in library only)
George Foegle household, 1870 United States Federal Population Census [database on-line]
Census Place: Kalamazoo, Kalamazoo, Michigan, page 35, dwelling 10, family 10
Online database, Ancestry Library (in library only)
Benjamin Hall household, 1850 United States Federal Population Census [database on-line]
Census Place: Kalamazoo, Kalamazoo, Michigan, page 16, dwelling 122, family 124
Online database, Ancestry Library (in library only)
John Hall household, 1860 United States Federal Population Census [database on-line]
Census Place: Kalamazoo, Kalamazoo, Michigan, page 132, dwelling 963, family 965
Online database, Ancestry Library (in library only)
Jacob Harlan household, 1840 United States Federal Population Census [database on-line]
Census Place: Kalamazoo, Kalamazoo, Michigan, page 5, Line 25
Online database, Ancestry Library (in library only)
Jacob Harlan household, 1850 United States Federal Population Census [database on-line]
Census Place: Kalamazoo, Kalamazoo, Michigan, page 48, dwelling 362, family 375
Online database, Ancestry Library (in library only)
Jacob Harlan household, 1860 United States Federal Population Census [database on-line]
Census Place: Kalamazoo, Kalamazoo, Michigan, page 107, dwelling 783, family 783
Online database, Ancestry Library (in library only)
Peter Harboldsheemer household, 1860 United States Federal Population Census [database on-line]
Census Place: Kalamazoo, Kalamazoo, Michigan, page 28, dwelling 207, family 205
Online database, Ancestry Library (in library only)
George Judge household, 1860 United States Federal Population Census [database on-line]
Census Place: Kalamazoo, Kalamazoo, Michigan, page 111, dwelling 807, family 807
Online database, Ancestry Library (in library only)
George Judge household, 1870 United States Federal Population Census [database on-line]
Census Place: Kalamazoo, Kalamazoo, Michigan, page 227, dwelling 1387, family 1349
Online database, Ancestry Library (in library only)
George Judge household, 1880 United States Federal Population Census [database on-line]
Census Place: Kalamazoo, Kalamazoo, Michigan, page 39, dwelling 492, family 492
Residence: 132 North Burdick Street
Online database, Ancestry Library (in library only)
C.W. Minard household, 1860 United States Federal Population Census [database on-line]
Census Place: Census Place: Detroit Ward 9, Wayne, Michigan, page 36, dwelling 243, family 260
Online database, Ancestry Library (in library only)
George Neumaier household (w/ Alfred Neumaier), 1880 United States Federal Population Census [database on-line]
Census Place: Kalamazoo, Kalamazoo, Michigan, page 7, dwelling 60, family 60
Address: 6 Lake Street
Online database, Ancestry Library (in library only)
Alfred Neumaier household, 1910 United States Federal Population Census [database on-line]
Census Place: Kalamazoo, Kalamazoo, Michigan, page 13, dwelling 170, family 178
Address: 825 Lake Street
Online database, Ancestry Library (in library only)
Alfred Neumaier household, 1920 United States Federal Population Census [database on-line]
Census Place: Kalamazoo, Kalamazoo, Michigan, page 2, dwelling 12, family 12
Address: 825 Lake Street
Online database, Ancestry Library (in library only)
Alfred Neumaier household, 1930 United States Federal Population Census [database on-line]
Census Place: Kalamazoo, Kalamazoo, Michigan, page 22, dwelling 252, family 279
Address: 803 Lake Street
Online database, Ancestry Library (in library only)
Jason Russell household, 1850 United States Federal Population Census [database on-line]
Census Place: Kalamazoo, Kalamazoo, Michigan, page 16, dwelling 122, family 124
Online database, Ancestry Library (in library only)
J Sessaman household, 1860 United States Federal Population Census [database on-line]
Census Place: Kalamazoo, Kalamazoo, Michigan, page 23, dwelling 169, family 169
Online database, Ancestry Library (in library only)
Joseph Slater household, 1870 United States Federal Population Census [database on-line]
Census Place: Brady, Kalamazoo, Michigan, page 11, dwelling 87, family 87
Online database, Ancestry Library (in library only)
Joseph Slater household, 1880 United States Federal Population Census [database on-line]
Census Place: Brady, Kalamazoo, Michigan, page 2, dwelling 13, family 14
Online database, Ancestry Library (in library only)
John Stern household, 1860 United States Federal Population Census [database on-line]
Census Place: Kalamazoo, Kalamazoo, Michigan, page 86, dwelling 634, family 634
Online database, Ancestry Library (in library only)
Sebastian Syke household, 1860 United States Federal Population Census [database on-line]
Census Place: Kalamazoo, Kalamazoo, Michigan, page 72, dwelling 535, family 535
Online database, Ancestry Library (in library only)
Sebastian Sykes household, 1880 United States Federal Population Census [database on-line]
Census Place: Kalamazoo, Kalamazoo, Michigan, page 38, dwelling 395, family 395
Address: 1 Lovell Street
Online database, Ancestry Library (in library only)
Leo Wagenman household, 1900 United States Federal Population Census [database on-line]
Census Place: Toledo Ward 1, Lucas, Ohio, page 27, dwelling 296, family 306
Address: 1825 Ontario Street
Online database, Ancestry Library (in library only)
Peter Harpoldshimer, 1860 U.S., Selected Federal Census Non-Population Schedules, [database on-line]
Census Place: Kalamazoo, Kalamazoo, Michigan, page: 1; line: 11; Schedule Type: Industry
Online database, Ancestry Library (in library only)
Syke & Fogle, 1860 U.S., Selected Federal Census Non-Population Schedules, [database on-line]
Census Place: Kalamazoo, Kalamazoo, Michigan, page: 1; line: 16; Schedule Type: Industry
Online database, Ancestry Library (in library only)
Gustavus Sipaman (Sesemann), 1860 U.S., Selected Federal Census Non-Population Schedules, [database on-line]
Census Place: Kalamazoo, Kalamazoo, Michigan, page: 1; line: 8; Schedule Type: Industry
Online database, Ancestry Library (in library only)
James S. Holmes, 1860 U.S., Selected Federal Census Non-Population Schedules, [database on-line]
Census Place: Kalamazoo, Kalamazoo, Michigan, page: 1; line: 20; Schedule Type: Industry
Online database, Ancestry Library (in library only)
Nonpopulation Census for Michigan – Industry (1850, 1860)
Deeds and Land Records
Walnut Street Brewery (& related)
4/16/1851: Lorenz Brentano from Caleb Sweetland. Liber Q, page 439. Sec 28 (T3S, R11W) (see deed) $4,950
10/15/1857: Lorenz Brentano from Louis R. Davis. Liber 4, page 38. (T2S, R11W) Lot 4, ep(east part?) $1,100 Village lot numbered four (4) in Alexis Ransom’s Addition (East side of Burdick Street between Walnut and Cedar Streets)
8/11/1858: Lorenz Brentano to Matilda Haeflin. Liber 5, page 153. Sec 8 (T3S, R11W)
3/26/1859: Caroline Brentano from Matilda Haeflin. Liber 8, page 131. Sec 8 (T3S, R11W) NW ¼
10/15/1859: L. Brentano to Gustav A Brooks. Liber 8, page 716. Sec 8 (T3S, R11W) NW ¼
9/22/1862: Lorenz Brentano and Caroline Brentano to F.A. Jensch (Frederick Augustus Jensch). Liber 16, page 182. Sec 22 (T2S, R11W) Lot 240 den Bleyker Addition ($800 mortgage due to P. den Bleyker)
1/3/1865: Nicholas Baumann from Abraham Silas. Liber 19, page 406. Sec 22 (T2S, R11W) Lot 236 den Bleyker Addition
7/14/1866: B. Locher from F.A. Jensch. Liber 24, page 232. Sec 22 (T2S, R11W) Lot 240 den Bleyker Addition
2/24/1866: Lorenz Brentano to Lucia E. Lorenz. Liber 16, page 440. Sec 22 (T2S, R11W) Lot 4 Ranson’s Addition
7/9/1867: Bernhard Locher from Dorothy Bradley. Liber 25, page 375. Sec 22 (T2S, R11W) Lots 236, 237, 238, 239 den Bleyker Addition
3/26/1869: Caroline Brentano from Matilda Haeflin. Liber 12, page 379. Sec 8 (T3S, R11W) NW ¼
Winsted Street Brewery (& related)
6/10/1852: Nicholas Baumann from Abraham Letti. Liber 19, page 271
6/28/1856: Nicholas Baumann from Rice & Van De Walker. Liber 1, page 467. Sec 22 (T2S, R11W) Lots 8 & 9 (Rice & Van De Walker Addition)
7/16/1859: Nicholas Baumann to Gustav Sesemann. Liber 5, page 785. Sec 22 (T2S, R11W) Lot 7, 8, 9 (Rice & Van De Walker Addition)
1/26/1860: Nicholas Baumann from P. den Bleyker. Liber 18, page 359. Sec 22 (T2S, R11W) Lot 165 den Bleyker Addition
9/17/1860: G Sesemann to Phebe Hughes. Liber 11, page 366. Sec 22 (T2S, R11W) Lots 7 8 9 (Rice & Van De Walker Addition)
1/28/1866: Nicholas Baumann to B. Meadin. Liber 18, page 360. Sec 22 (T2S, R11W) Lot 165 (den Bleyker Addition)
7/10/1869: Nicholas Baumann from Merritt Goff. Liber 23, page 548. Sec 20 (T2S, R11W) Lot 205
11/8/1870: Phebe Hughes to Fredrich Sieferth. Liber 31, page 340. Sec 22 (T2S, R11W) Lot 9 and part of Lot 1 (Rice & Van De Walker Addition)
North Burdick Street Brewery (& related)
3/6/1841: H.H. Comstock to James F Cooper. Liber F, page 225. Sec 15 (T2S, R11W) Village lots (block 16)
11/16/1846: William H. Averill from J. Fennimore Cooper. Liber P, page 390. Sec 15 (T2S, R11W) Lot 1 Block 16
5/6/1848: James S. Holmes from Luther Trask. Liber Q, page 525. Sec 16 (T2S, R11W)
5/5/1852: John Dudgeon from William H. Averill. Liber S, page 189. Sec 15 (T2S, R11W) Lot 1 Block 16, Lot 5 Block 15
5/4/1853: Jacob Harlan from T.C. Sheldon. Liber Y, page 238. Sec 15 (T2S, R11W) Part of Lots 237, 235
5/23/1854: John Dudgeon to Cock & Thomas (Henry F. Cock and Alfred Thomas). Liber V, page 542. Sec 15 (T2S, R11W) Lot 1 Block 16 “ex yrd 4 rods front on Burdick St, south end of lot”
1/4/1855: James S. Holmes from Warren Barrell. Liber V, page 73. Sec 16 (T2S, R11W) part of lot 17
5/26/1856: Jacob Harlan to John Mentz. Liber 2, page 164. Sec 15 (T2S, R11W) E ½ of Lot 235
11/1/1856: Hall & Holmes from Rollin Wood. Liber 2, page 75. Sec 15 (T2S, R11W) part pf Lot 1 Block 16
3/20/1857: Jacob Harlan from Horace Moran. Liber 5, page 612. Sec 15 (T2S, R11W) part of lot 235
3/26/1857: Jacob Harlan to Horace Moser. Liber 2, page 468. Sec 15 (T2S, R11W) W ½ of Lot 237
8/24/1857: Jacob Harlan to Joseph Miller, Jr. Liber 3, page 395. Sec 15 (T2S, R11W) part of lot 235
5/20/1857: Jacob Harlan to Horace Moser. Liber 2, page 468. Sec 15 (T2S, R11W) west ½ of lot 237
8/24/1857: Jacob Harlan to Joseph Miller, Jr. Liber 3, page 395. Sec 15 (T2S, R11W) part of lot 235
2/15/1859: Jacob Harlan to Lawrence S Welty. Liber 5, page 692. Sec 15 (T2S, R11W) Part of lot 235
7/7/1859: Benjamin Hall to John W. Breese. Liber 5, page 753. Sec 15 (T2S, R11W) lot 263
7/12/1859: Benjamin Hall to John Hall. Liber 8, page 698. Sec 15 (T2S, R11W) Part of Lot 1 Block 16 & brewery
10/10/1859: John Hall to James S. Holmes. Liber 8, page 708. Sec 15 (T2S, R11W) (see deed)
Michigan Avenue Brewery (& related)
10/22/1844: Jason Russell from Anthony Cooley & wife. Liber J, page 74. Sec 15 (T2S, R11W) 1st W of Lot 1 (first lot west of Village Lot #1, south side of Water Street)
2/6/1845: Jason Russell from W.R. Watson. Liber M, page 137. (T2S, R11W) Lot 9 Block 21
4/19/1845: Jason Russell to Anthony Cooley. Liber J, page 223. (T2S, R11W) 4 x 8 rods
4/21/1845: Jason Russell from Anthony Cooley & wife. Liber J, page 224. Sec 15 (T2S, R11W) (see deed)
6/15/1846: John Hall from Lovett Eames. Liber K, page 443. Sec 21 (T2S, R11W) Agreement
9/7/1846: John Hall from J.G. Abbott. Liber K, page 592. Sec 21 (T2S, R11W) 1 acre
6/24/1847: John Hall from Sam Clark. Liber M, page 102. Sec 16 (T2S, R11W) Lot 7
7/3/1847: John Hall from Sam Clark Liber M, page 176 Sec 16 (T2S, R11W) Lot 7
7/10/1847: Jason Russell to Brown & Garrett. Liber M, page 138. (T2S, R11W) Lot 9 Block 21
6/5/1848: John Hall and others from Russell & Allard. Liber N, page 352. (Contract between John Hall & Andrew Taylor and Jason Russell & Rip Allard for water use rights)
4/14/1849: John Hall from Jason Russell. Liber ‘O’, page 194. (T2S, R11W) (see deed)
1/5/1849: Jason Russell to George W. Russell. Liber ‘O’, page 14. (T2S, R11W) (see deed)
4/14/1849: Jason Russell to John Hall. Liber ‘O’, page 194. (T2S, R11W) (see deed)
4/14/1849: John Hall to Caroline Russell. Liber ‘O’, page 250. Sec 21 (T2S, R11W) 1 acre
12/8/1849: John Hall from D.B. Webster. Liber N, page 482. Sec 16 (T2S, R11W) (see deed)
4/26/1851: Jason Russell to Ansel. K. Post. Liber S, page 458. (T2S, R11W)
4/26/1851: Jason Russell from Ansel K. Post. Liber Q, page 583. Sec 21, 28 (T2S, R12W)
4/26/1851: Ansel K. Post to Jason Russell. Liber Q, page 583. Sec 21, 28 (T2S, R12W)
1/2/1852: John Hall to Adeline Green. Liber S, page 179. (T2S, R11W) (see deed)
2/12/1852: Jason Russell to George Thomas Clark. Liber R, page 650. Sec 21, 28 (T2S, R12W) (see deed)
6/10/1852: Nicholas Baumann from Abraham Letti Liber 19, page 271 (see deed)
8/7/1852: Ansel K. Post to John Ell. Liber S, page 474.
4/4/1853: John Ell to George Thomas Clark. Liber V, page 741. Power of Attorney
10/22/1853: J.M. Johnson to Lovett Eames. Liber U, page 232. (see deed)
9/15/1857: George Foegele from Lawrence Welty. Liber 4, page 375. (T2S, R11W) part of Lot 193
12/16/1858: George Foegele to Lawrence Welty. Liber 5, page 214. (T2S, R11W) part of Lot 193
1/26/1960: Nicholas Baumann from P. den Bleyker. Liber, 18 page 359. Lot 165 den Bleyker Addition
9/29/1860: George Foegele to Latham Hull. Liber 24, page 286 (see deed)
4/2/1862: Nicholas Baumann from Bassett & Bates. Liber, 12 page 363. Sec 20 (T2S, R11W)
12/27/1862: Baumann & Foegele from J.G. Abbott. Liber, 14 page 433. Sec 21 (T2S, R11W) (see description)
12/27/1862: Foegele & Baumann from Silas Trowbridge. Liber, 15 page 260 (see deed)
3/21/1863: Baumann & Foegele from Silas Trowbridge. Liber 15, page 260. Sec 21 (T2S, R11W) (see description)
11/12/1866: George Foegele from Louisa V Bryant. Liber 27, page 30. NW ¼
Olmstead Road (Lake Street) Brewery
6/11/1853: Walter R. Watson to Levi S Hodge. Liber 7, page 594. Sec 22, 23 (T2S, R11W) (see deed)
6/17/1853: Levi S. Hodge to Waldron Van Den Brink. Liber T, page 684. Sec 22, 23 (T2S, R11W) (see deed)
10/23/1855: Isaac C. Birdzell to Lewis Reky. Liber Y, page 527 (536). Sec 22 (T2S, R11W) (see deed) $200
9/26/1856: Richard Taylor from W.H. Rice. Liber 18, page 199. Sec 30 (2, 10) W ½ of SW ¼
10/2/1865: Richard Taylor from Garrett Brooks. Liber 20, page 484. Sec 30 + 31 (2, 10) (see deed) 6 acres
10/11/1867: Lewis Reky & Wife (Ann Reky) to Richard Taylor. Liber 28, page 40. Sec 22 (T2S, R11W) (see deed) $800
7/14/1869: Elizabeth Taylor from John Thackwray. Liber 29, page 329. Sec 31, 30 (T2S, R11W) (see deed)
7/13/1869: Richard Taylor from John Thackwray. Liber 33, page 329. Sec 22 (T2S, R11W) (see deed)
7/14/1869: John Thackwray from Richard Taylor. Liber 29, page 325. Sec 31, 30 (T2S, R11W) (see deed)
7/28/1869: Reuben J. Taylor from Elizabeth & Richard Taylor. Liber 33, page 340. Sec 22, 23 (T2S, R11W) (see deed)
6/17/1878: George Neumaier from S.H. Malley. Liber 48, page 557. Sec 22, 23 (T2S, R11W) (see deed)
6/26/1886: George Neumaier from T.P. Sheldon. Liber 71, page 155. Sec 23 (T2S, R11W) 2 ¾ acres
11/5/1887: George Neumaier from Dewitt C. Reed. Liber 74, page 223. Sec 22 (T2S, R11W) (see deed)
Additionitional property of interest north of Lake Street
3/18/1844: Jacob Harlan from J. Burdick. Liber J, page 577. Sec 22 (T2S, R11W) 28 4/10 acres
7/8/1850: Jacob Harlan to Richard Gilbert. Liber Q, page 606. Sec 22 (T2S, R11W) 28 4/10 acres
4/6/1851: Richard Gilbert, Jr. to A.B. Mullinell. Liber R, page 207. Sec 22 (T2S, R11W) 28 4/10 acres
8/16/1851: A.B. Mullinell to Martin Healey Liber R, page 209. Sec 22 (T2S, R11W) 28 4/10 acres
3/8/1864: Martin Healey to Edmond Atkins. Liber 20, page 84. Sec 22, 23 (T2S, R11W) (see deed) 28 4/10 acres
Other Records
Nicholas Baumann, U.S., Find A Grave Index, 1600s-Current [database on-line]
Death: Apr 1895, Burial: Mountain Home Cemetery, Sec 6, Lot 22, Grave 4
Online database, Ancestry Library (in library only)
Lorenz Brentano, New York, Passenger and Crew Lists, 1820-1957 [database on-line]
Year: 1849; Arrival: New York, New York; Ship Name: Splendid
Online database, Ancestry Library (in library only)
Joseph Burchnell [sic], U.S., Find A Grave Index, 1600s-Current [database on-line]
Death: 20 Apr 1873, Burial: Riverside Cemetery, Section E
Online database, Ancestry Library (in library only)
Dorothy Nichols Burchnell [sic], U.S., Find A Grave Index, 1600s-Current [database on-line]
Death: Apr 1892, Burial: Riverside Cemetery, Section E
Online database, Ancestry Library (in library only)
Benjamin Hall, U.S., Find A Grave Index, 1600s-Current [database on-line]
Death: 12 Feb 1859, Burial: Mountain Home Cemetery, Sec I, Lot 416, Grave 6
Online database, Ancestry Library (in library only)
John Hall, U.S., Find A Grave Index, 1600s-Current [database on-line].
Death: 14 Mar 1866, Burial: Mountain Home Cemetery, Sec I, Lot 416, Grave 12
Online database, Ancestry Library (in library only)
George Judd [sic], New York, Passenger and Crew Lists, 1820-1957 [database on-line]
Year: 1850; Arrival: New York, New York; Ship Name: Ocean Queen
Online database, Ancestry Library (in library only)
George Judge, U.S., Find A Grave Index, 1600s-Current [database on-line]
Death: 7 Apr 1893, Burial: Riverside Cemetery
Online database, Ancestry Library (in library only)
Leo Kinast, New York, State and Federal Naturalization Records, 1794-1943 [database on-line]
Declaration Date: 22 Oct 1868
Online database, Ancestry Library (in library only)
Leo Kinast, New York, Passenger and Crew Lists, 1820-1957 [database on-line]
Year: 1866; Arrival: New York, New York; Ship Name: Floride
Online database, Ancestry Library (in library only)
Alfred Neumaier, U.S., Find A Grave Index, 1600s-Current [database on-line]
Death: 26 January 1937, Burial: Riverside Cemetery
Online database, Ancestry Library (in library only)
George Neumaier, U.S., Find A Grave Index, 1600s-Current [database on-line]
Death: 10 Aug 1907, Burial: Riverside Catholic Cemetery
Online database, Ancestry Library (in library only)
George Neumaier, New York, Passenger and Crew Lists, 1820-1957 [database on-line]
Year: 1866; Arrival: New York, New York; Ship Name: Floride
Online database, Ancestry Library (in library only)
Gustav Sesemann, New York, Passenger and Crew Lists, 1820-1957 [database on-line]
Year: 1853; Arrival: New York, New York; Ship Name: Hermann Chevdorg
Online database, Ancestry Library (in library only)
Gustav Sesemann, New York, Emigrant Savings Bank Records, 1850-1883 [database on-line]
Transaction Date: 4 Oct 1862; Emigrant Savings Bank Transfer, Signature, and Test Book.
Online database, Ancestry Library (in library only)
Joseph Slater, U.S., Find A Grave Index, 1600s-Current [database on-line]
Death: 18 Sep 1885, Burial: McKain Cemetery, Pavilion, Kalamazoo County, Michigan
Online database, Ancestry Library (in library only)
Maps
Kalamazoo, Kalamazoo Co., Mich., 1853
Surveyed & Published by Henry Hart, New York, 1853
Lithography: Sarony & Major, New York
Local History Room
Map of Kalamazoo, Kalamazoo Co., Mich., 1858
C.F. Miller, New York : McKenzie & Simmons, 1858
Local History Room
Map of Kalamazoo Co., Michigan, 1861
Published by Geil & Harley, et al, Philadelphia, 1861
Library of Congress
Kalamazoo, Michigan, bird’s-eye-view lithograph, 1867-1868
Charles Shober & Co.
Publisher: Chicago Lithographing Co., Chicago, Illinois
Courtesy, Kalamazoo Valley Museum
Atlas of Kalamazoo County, Michigan, 1873. From recent and actual surveys and records
Published by F. W. Beers & Co., New York, 1873
Local History Room
Kalamazoo, Michigan, 1874
A. Ruger, J.J. Stoner, Charles Shober & Co., 1874
Publisher: J. J. Stoner, Madison, Wis.,
Chicago Lithographing Co.
Library of Congress / Local History Room
Bird’s eye view of Kalamazoo, Mich., 1883
Henry Wellge, A.F. Poole, J.J. Stoner, Beck & Pauli, 1883
Publisher: J.J. Stoner, Madison, Wis.
Library of Congress / Local History Room
Sanborn fire insurance map from Kalamazoo, Kalamazoo County, Michigan, 1887
Sanborn Map Company, Jul 1887
Library of Congress
Illustrated atlas, Kalamazoo County, Michigan, 1890
Published by WM. C. Sauer, C.E., 1890
Local History Room
Sanborn fire insurance map from Kalamazoo, Kalamazoo County, Michigan, 1891
Sanborn Map Company, Oct 1891
Library of Congress
Sanborn fire insurance map from Kalamazoo, Kalamazoo County, Michigan, 1896
Sanborn Map Company, Sep 1896
Library of Congress
Sanborn fire insurance map from Kalamazoo, Kalamazoo County, Michigan, 1902
Sanborn Map Company, Apr 1902
Library of Congress
Sanborn Fire Insurance Map from Kalamazoo, Kalamazoo County, Michigan, 1908
Sanborn Map Company, 1908
Library of Congress
Illustrated atlas, Kalamazoo County, Michigan, 1910
Published by Geo. A. Ogle & Co., 1910
Local History Room
Videos
The Michigan beer film
Kalamazoo, MI : Rhino Media, [2014]
H DVD 338.47663 M6242 (CEN)
Websites
Kalamazoo Craft Beverage Week
An annual weeklong series of events that support the local craft beverage experience through special tastings, dinners, and interactive events.
West Michigan Beer Tours
Celebrating and promoting the world class breweries through unique public and private tours.
Commercial Breweries currently operating in Kalamazoo:
Bell’s Brewery A regional craft brewery that employs over 100 people over an 18 state area.
Brite Eyes Brewing Co. Established in 2013 at 1156 South Burdick.
Brewery Outré Opened April 2022 at 567 E Ransom St.
Latitude 42 Brewing Company Established in 2013 at 7842 Portage Road.
One Well Brewing Established in 2014 at 4213 Portage St.
Presidential Brewing Co. Established in 2018 at 8302 Portage Road.
Saugatuck Brewing Co. Kalamazoo location opened in 2023 at 200 E. Michigan.
Texas Corners Brewing Co. Opened in 2015 at 6970 Texas Drive.
Wax Wings Brewing Co. Established in 2018 at 3480 Gull Road.
Local History Room Files
Michigan File: Michigan – Breweries
Subject File: Breweries
Subject File: Bell’s Brewery Inc.
Subject File: Buildings – Kalamazoo – Lake, 706
Subject File: Kraftbrau Brewery