Walters Beer

 Home of Walters Beer Collections

Walters Beer of Eau Claire

Based in Eau Claire, WI the Walter Brewing Company started by Johannes (John) Walter in Spencer, WI in 1874.
John was one of nine children born in Wurtemburg, Germany all of whom emigrated to America. A fire in his original brewery forced Walter to move operations to Eau Claire in 1893 where he purchased the shuttered Dells Brewery.
 This plant had been started by another branch of the Leinenkugel family from the Chippewa Falls brewery fame, but the venture had failed.
 John Walter proved to be a bit more adept at running the business than the Leinenkugels & his company prospered. His original site, on Forest and Elm streets was destroyed by a fire in 1909.
 It was rebuilt on 318 Elm Street. In 1913, a new bottle house was constructed which was one of the first in the industry to have tiled floors for sanitation purposes.

By the time Prohibition had been repealed, John Walter had passed away and the business remained in the hands of his widow, Linea. in 1933, John's cousins Martin, Charles, & Edgar Walter all journeyed to Eau Claire from Appleton, WI along with partners John Balliet, Charlie Hofenburger, and Mr. Stroby to negotiate ang purchase the brewery from Mrs. Walter. Martin and Charles had previously run the Lithia brewery in West Bend, Wi.

With the repeal of Prohibition, the other branches of the extended Walter family also reopened their breweries in Menasha, Appleton, and West Bend, Wisconsin as well as Pueblo, Colorado. Martin Walter was named President of the Eau Claire operations and remained at the helm from its reopening until 1967.

The Walter Brothers around 1963 - (l to r) John Walter, Bill Walter, Edgar Walter, Karl Walter, and George Walter. They were being honored by the Eau Claire Chamber of Commerce. Photo thanks to Dan Walter.

     

A bit of Walters history:

The Walter brothers, Johannes, Georg, Martin, Christian and Matthaus, emigrated from their hometown of Bergfelden, Germany and came to America to find a better life than what they could find in Germany. Their path led them from Hamburg, Germany, to New Orleans, Louisiana, and lastly to Wisconsin. Wisconsin had a large German immigrant population at the time and the region reminded them of their home in the Black Forest region of Germany. Their father was a cobbler, family legend purportedly them having expanding on their knowledge of the brewing trade at Miller in Milwaukee before striking out on their own.

Martin Walter's company began making beer in Pueblo, CO in 1898 and continued until 1975. Martin headed westward with his family earlier due to the Menasha, WI brewery unable to support the financial needs of an ever growing family from 3 (Martin, Matthaus and Christian) of the 5 Walter Brothers. He settled on Pueblo and began his endeavor to expand the family business. The company faced several small recessions during its existence, including the closing of the plant during state and federal Prohibition after 1915. Martin died before prohibition, reportedly due to heart ailments.

After prohibition, Martin II joined his Wisconsin cousins from Appleton, WI to buy their namesake uncle's company from John's widow, The John Walter Brewing Company, and reopen the Eau Claire, Wisconsin institution as The Walter Brewing Company.^[1] The Pueblo company was awarded a "Gold Award" in 1956 and the "Excellence of Quality" award in 1972 by the Brewers Association of America. The Walter Brewing Company of Pueblo closed permanently on January 3, 1975.^[2]

Subsequently, in 1975, The Walter Brewing Company of Eau Claire acquired the Pueblo labeling from General Brewing and introduced the slightly modified Pueblo label to the regional market it served in 1976. Walter's of Eau Claire also won awards for its quality in 1975 but was often considered a cheap local beer by many of its local detractors who preferred the status of the brews from large corporate brewers, Anheuser-Busch, Miller, Pabst and such.

The Walter brothers created a large brewing dynasty, that had it survived the trials and tribulations from nearly a century of brewing operations that rivaled that of the Busch's in its day, likely would still be in operation today had it been destined to be.

Wanted

Walters Beer of Eau Claire

Products.

Contact: radck@yahoo.com