Duquesne Brewing Company
Encyclopedia
The Duquesne Brewing Company was a major brewery
in Pittsburgh
, Pennsylvania
, from its founding in 1899 until its dissolution in 1972. The brand was revived under the name Duquesne Bottling Company in 2008, in order to re-establish the beer in Western Pennsylvania starting in the summer of 2010.
(though it actually featured a depiction of the Fort Pitt
Blockhouse with the words "Fort Duquesne" underneath it), and the more recognizable "Prince of Pilsners" trademark was added later.
The brewery decided to use refrigerated train cars to ship the beer, an innovated move the early twentieth century. A Chicago stockyard man, Max Epstein, connected Duquesne with Armour and Company
, and had Duquesne's company logo emblazoned on one of the cars. At first sight, the Duquesne reps thought the car was a giant billboard for their company and purchased twenty cars. The money that Epstein netted from the sale enabled him to found the General American Transportation Corporation
.
Even before Prohibition
, Pittsburgh's brewing operations had begun to combine into fewer players, with most ending up under either the umbrella of the Pittsburgh Brewing Company
or the Independent Brewing Company of Pittsburgh
. Duquesne was among one of fifteen joining the latter in 1905.
forced many breweries, distillers
, and tavern
s to close. Duquesne was one of only 725 American breweries left when the movement was repealed in April 1933. In 1937, the company renamed itself as the Duquesne Brewing Company of Pittsburgh. The company, reformed under their original charter, emerged as the largest brewing company in Pennsylvania
at a yearly production rate of 325,000 barrels.
when a new building opened at the South Side site in 1950, making it one of the top ten breweries in the United States. The company's best known brand was "Duke," and its popular advertising slogan was "Have a Duke!"
The company had plants in Carnegie
(Plant 3) and McKees Rocks
(Plant 2), in addition to the South Side flagship brewery, although those soon closed after the new brew house opened at Plant 1 in 1950 (Plant 3 closed in 1952, and Plant 2 in 1950). The curved profile of the 1950 building at Plant 1 was to accommodate the PRR
Whitehall Branch
, which serviced the brewery from sidings along and off Mary Street.
In January 1963, Duquesne expanded into the Cleveland market by purchasing the rights to P.O.C. Beer from the Pilsener Brewing Company after they closed their plant.
Sales at Duquesne Beer had fallen to $13 million by 1971. The company, due to competition from national brands sold its labels to C. Schmidt & Sons Brewing Company of Philadelphia in late 1972, and closed the flagship plant. Schmidt brewed Duquesne in Cleveland into the 1980s, but sales fell drastically after Allegheny County commissioner Thomas Foerster called for a boycott of out-of-town beers; by the very end of the beer's production, the packaging was even changed to look like Schmidt's.
facility. A storage and garage building has become living space. The former office building has become Beitler-McKee Optical. The bottling works has become U.S. Cargo. Raff Printing and Rynn's Luggage occupy the case storage and shipping buildings. The bridge between the bottling works and case storage stands, while the bridge connecting the two brewhouses has been dismantled.
The 60 by 60 ft (18.3 by 18.3 m) clock face, with a 35 feet (10.7 m) minute hand and a 25 feet (7.6 m) hour hand, both of laminated aluminum, is nearly twice the size of London
's Big Ben
, and was built in Georgia by Audichron
for $12,500 and shipped to Pittsburgh. The clock, designed by Audichron founder John L. Franklin, is driven by a 1.25 hp Janett motor.
Originally located on Mount Washington
, the clock's face was used as advertising for a succession of beverages, including Coca-Cola
, and Ballantine, Carling
, and Schlitz
beers. By 1960, the Duquesne Brewing Company had bought the sign and installed it in its current location in the South Side. The Pittsburgh Brewing Company
paid $44,000 to repair the clock when it took over in 1999, paying $5,000 a month to show its logo on the face. In 2002, Equitable Gas
paid to have their name placed on the clock. In October 2009, AT&T
took over the rights to advertise on the clock and has redesigned the face to display the traditional blue and white AT&T logo.
at the Latrobe Brewing Plant
in Latrobe, Pennsylvania
, starting in late June. Dudash and his wife, Maria, had incorporated Duquesne Bottling Company in late 2008 as formal start to the project, and also re-registered the brand's trademark, which had expired.
Dudash stated that the second incarnation of Duquesne Beer will cost $16.95 a case for loose bottles, and would be ready for sale in eight wholesalers throughout Western Pennsylvania by mid- to late July, or early August. The new brew is a "golden yellow pilsener
with three hops
for just a 'gentle bite' with no aftertaste and extra malt
for a bright white head".
The beer became available for purchase throughout western Pennsylvania in early August 2010.
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Brewery
A brewery is a dedicated building for the making of beer, though beer can be made at home, and has been for much of beer's history. A company which makes beer is called either a brewery or a brewing company....
in Pittsburgh
Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania
Pittsburgh is the second-largest city in the US Commonwealth of Pennsylvania and the county seat of Allegheny County. Regionally, it anchors the largest urban area of Appalachia and the Ohio River Valley, and nationally, it is the 22nd-largest urban area in the United States...
, Pennsylvania
Pennsylvania
The Commonwealth of Pennsylvania is a U.S. state that is located in the Northeastern and Mid-Atlantic regions of the United States. The state borders Delaware and Maryland to the south, West Virginia to the southwest, Ohio to the west, New York and Ontario, Canada, to the north, and New Jersey to...
, from its founding in 1899 until its dissolution in 1972. The brand was revived under the name Duquesne Bottling Company in 2008, in order to re-establish the beer in Western Pennsylvania starting in the summer of 2010.
Founding
The Duquesne Brewing Company was officially incorporated on April 4, 1899. The first president was Henry Miller, formerly a furniture salesman. The original trademark of the brand was a depiction of Fort DuquesneFort Duquesne
Fort Duquesne was a fort established by the French in 1754, at the junction of the Allegheny and Monongahela rivers in what is now downtown Pittsburgh in the state of Pennsylvania....
(though it actually featured a depiction of the Fort Pitt
Fort Pitt (Pennsylvania)
Fort Pitt was a fort built at the location of Pittsburgh, Allegheny County, Pennsylvania.-French and Indian War:The fort was built from 1759 to 1761 during the French and Indian War , next to the site of former Fort Duquesne, at the confluence the Allegheny River and the Monongahela River...
Blockhouse with the words "Fort Duquesne" underneath it), and the more recognizable "Prince of Pilsners" trademark was added later.
The brewery decided to use refrigerated train cars to ship the beer, an innovated move the early twentieth century. A Chicago stockyard man, Max Epstein, connected Duquesne with Armour and Company
Armour and Company
Armour & Company was an American slaughterhouse and meatpacking company founded in Chicago, Illinois, in 1867 by the Armour brothers, led by Philip Danforth Armour. By 1880, the company was Chicago's most important business and helped make the city and its Union Stock Yards the center of the...
, and had Duquesne's company logo emblazoned on one of the cars. At first sight, the Duquesne reps thought the car was a giant billboard for their company and purchased twenty cars. The money that Epstein netted from the sale enabled him to found the General American Transportation Corporation
General American Transportation Corporation
GATX Corporation is an equipment finance company based in Chicago, Illinois. Founded in 1898, GATX's primary activities consist of railcar operating leasing in North America and Europe...
.
Even before Prohibition
Prohibition
Prohibition of alcohol, often referred to simply as prohibition, is the practice of prohibiting the manufacture, transportation, import, export, sale, and consumption of alcohol and alcoholic beverages. The term can also apply to the periods in the histories of the countries during which the...
, Pittsburgh's brewing operations had begun to combine into fewer players, with most ending up under either the umbrella of the Pittsburgh Brewing Company
Pittsburgh Brewing Company
The Iron City Brewing Company is a beer company that until August 2009 had been located in the Lawrenceville neighborhood of Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania, USA. On June 11, 2009, it was reported that the brewery was "moving" to Latrobe, Pennsylvania...
or the Independent Brewing Company of Pittsburgh
Independent Brewing Company of Pittsburgh
The Independent Brewing Company of Pittsburgh was a conglomerate of breweries, formed by the merger of fifteen Pittsburgh breweries in 1905.-History:...
. Duquesne was among one of fifteen joining the latter in 1905.
Prohibition
Starting in 1920, ProhibitionProhibition
Prohibition of alcohol, often referred to simply as prohibition, is the practice of prohibiting the manufacture, transportation, import, export, sale, and consumption of alcohol and alcoholic beverages. The term can also apply to the periods in the histories of the countries during which the...
forced many breweries, distillers
Distillation
Distillation is a method of separating mixtures based on differences in volatilities of components in a boiling liquid mixture. Distillation is a unit operation, or a physical separation process, and not a chemical reaction....
, and tavern
Tavern
A tavern is a place of business where people gather to drink alcoholic beverages and be served food, and in some cases, where travelers receive lodging....
s to close. Duquesne was one of only 725 American breweries left when the movement was repealed in April 1933. In 1937, the company renamed itself as the Duquesne Brewing Company of Pittsburgh. The company, reformed under their original charter, emerged as the largest brewing company in Pennsylvania
Pennsylvania
The Commonwealth of Pennsylvania is a U.S. state that is located in the Northeastern and Mid-Atlantic regions of the United States. The state borders Delaware and Maryland to the south, West Virginia to the southwest, Ohio to the west, New York and Ontario, Canada, to the north, and New Jersey to...
at a yearly production rate of 325,000 barrels.
Expansion
Duquesne's production capacity increased to two million barrels after World War IIWorld War II
World War II, or the Second World War , was a global conflict lasting from 1939 to 1945, involving most of the world's nations—including all of the great powers—eventually forming two opposing military alliances: the Allies and the Axis...
when a new building opened at the South Side site in 1950, making it one of the top ten breweries in the United States. The company's best known brand was "Duke," and its popular advertising slogan was "Have a Duke!"
The company had plants in Carnegie
Carnegie, Pennsylvania
Carnegie is a borough in Allegheny County, Pennsylvania, United States and is part of the Pittsburgh Metro Area. The population was 7,972 at the 2010 census.-Geography:Carnegie is located at . It is approximately southwest of Pittsburgh...
(Plant 3) and McKees Rocks
McKees Rocks, Pennsylvania
McKees Rocks, also known as "The Rocks", is a borough in Allegheny County, Pennsylvania, along the south bank of the Ohio River. The borough population was 6,104 at the 2010 census.In the past, it was known for its extensive iron and steel interests...
(Plant 2), in addition to the South Side flagship brewery, although those soon closed after the new brew house opened at Plant 1 in 1950 (Plant 3 closed in 1952, and Plant 2 in 1950). The curved profile of the 1950 building at Plant 1 was to accommodate the PRR
Pennsylvania Railroad
The Pennsylvania Railroad was an American Class I railroad, founded in 1846. Commonly referred to as the "Pennsy", the PRR was headquartered in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania....
Whitehall Branch
Whitehall Branch
The Whitehall Branch was a rail line owned and operated by the Pennsylvania Railroad in the U.S. state of Pennsylvania. The line ran from Monongahela Branch near the 30th Street yard to a connection with the Pittsburgh and Lake Erie Railroad and the Allegheny and South Side Railway at 21st Street...
, which serviced the brewery from sidings along and off Mary Street.
In January 1963, Duquesne expanded into the Cleveland market by purchasing the rights to P.O.C. Beer from the Pilsener Brewing Company after they closed their plant.
Dissolution
While the company had been profitable through the 1950s, profits had declined by 1962 to $211,586 and the trend showed no sign of abating. A proposed 1965 acquisition by Pittsburgh Brewing ran afoul of anti-trust laws, and was enjoined in United States v. Pittsburgh Brewing Co. and Milton G. Hulme. The Friday family, longtime stewards of the brand, would lose control to investor Raymond Sigesmund in a stock battle in 1966. Sigesmund brought in his son-in-law, Franklyn D. Jeans, to run the brewery, but the problems continued. Jeans fired Lando, Inc., the company which had replaced long-time agency Vic Maitland in 1965 on the Duquesne Brewing advertising account, and replaced them with his own company, Admark.Sales at Duquesne Beer had fallen to $13 million by 1971. The company, due to competition from national brands sold its labels to C. Schmidt & Sons Brewing Company of Philadelphia in late 1972, and closed the flagship plant. Schmidt brewed Duquesne in Cleveland into the 1980s, but sales fell drastically after Allegheny County commissioner Thomas Foerster called for a boycott of out-of-town beers; by the very end of the beer's production, the packaging was even changed to look like Schmidt's.
Beers
The Duquesne Brewery's stable of brands included Silver Top Lager, Silver Top Ale, Duke Ale, Duquesne Pilsener, Duquesne Bavarian Beer, Duquesne Bock Beer, Duquesne Heavy-Dry Beer, Duquesne Draft Beer, Duquesne Porter, Old Nut Brown Ale, Frontenac Pale Ale, Duquesne Beer, Carnegie Beer and Duquesne Buccaneer Beer.Duquesne Brewery building
The 1899 Duquesne Brewery brewhouse building, located at Mary Street and 21st Street in the South Side Flats neighborhood, now is home to the Brew House Association, which provides housing, studio space, and a gallery for Pittsburgh artists. The adjacent 1950 brewhouse building has been partially restored but is currently vacant. The cellar and keg department is now a self storageSelf storage
Self storage is an industry in which storage space is rented to tenants, usually on a monthly basis. A self storage business provides rooms, lockers, containers, and/or outdoor space in which tenants can store and access their goods. Self storage tenants include businesses and individuals...
facility. A storage and garage building has become living space. The former office building has become Beitler-McKee Optical. The bottling works has become U.S. Cargo. Raff Printing and Rynn's Luggage occupy the case storage and shipping buildings. The bridge between the bottling works and case storage stands, while the bridge connecting the two brewhouses has been dismantled.
Duquesne Brewery clock
The Duquesne Brewery clock, a Pittsburgh landmark, was the largest single-face clock in the world when it was installed in 1933, advertising a "nationally known soft drink".The 60 by 60 ft (18.3 by 18.3 m) clock face, with a 35 feet (10.7 m) minute hand and a 25 feet (7.6 m) hour hand, both of laminated aluminum, is nearly twice the size of London
London
London is the capital city of :England and the :United Kingdom, the largest metropolitan area in the United Kingdom, and the largest urban zone in the European Union by most measures. Located on the River Thames, London has been a major settlement for two millennia, its history going back to its...
's Big Ben
Clock Tower, Palace of Westminster
Big Ben is the nickname for the great bell of the clock at the north end of the Palace of Westminster in London, and is generally extended to refer to the clock or the clock tower as well. It is the largest four-faced chiming clock and the third-tallest free-standing clock tower in the world...
, and was built in Georgia by Audichron
Audichron Company
Audichron Company was a company founded in the 1930s by John Franklin in Doraville, Georgia, to produce the Audichron, a talking clock. By the 1970s, there were thousands of Audichron time-of-day announcers in use all over the world. Audichron had also developed a machine to announce the temperature...
for $12,500 and shipped to Pittsburgh. The clock, designed by Audichron founder John L. Franklin, is driven by a 1.25 hp Janett motor.
Originally located on Mount Washington
Mount Washington (Pittsburgh)
Mount Washington is a neighborhood in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania's south city area. It has a zip code of 15211 and has representation on Pittsburgh City Council by both the council members for District 3 and District 2 .It is known for its steep hill overlooking the Pittsburgh skyline, which was...
, the clock's face was used as advertising for a succession of beverages, including Coca-Cola
Coca-Cola
Coca-Cola is a carbonated soft drink sold in stores, restaurants, and vending machines in more than 200 countries. It is produced by The Coca-Cola Company of Atlanta, Georgia, and is often referred to simply as Coke...
, and Ballantine, Carling
Carling
Carling brands are currently owned by the Molson Coors Brewing Company. In South Africa it is distributed by SABMiller.Carling Black Label is the name of a brand of Canadian lager in Australia, Canada, Ireland, the United Kingdom and South Africa...
, and Schlitz
Joseph Schlitz Brewing Company
The Joseph Schlitz Brewing Company was an American brewery based in Milwaukee, Wisconsin, and was once the largest producer of beer in the world. Its namesake beer, Schlitz, was known as "The beer that made Milwaukee famous" and was famously advertised with the slogan "When you're out of Schlitz,...
beers. By 1960, the Duquesne Brewing Company had bought the sign and installed it in its current location in the South Side. The Pittsburgh Brewing Company
Pittsburgh Brewing Company
The Iron City Brewing Company is a beer company that until August 2009 had been located in the Lawrenceville neighborhood of Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania, USA. On June 11, 2009, it was reported that the brewery was "moving" to Latrobe, Pennsylvania...
paid $44,000 to repair the clock when it took over in 1999, paying $5,000 a month to show its logo on the face. In 2002, Equitable Gas
EQT
EQT Partners is a private equity firm with approximately €13 billion in equity capital. Founded in 1994 by Investor AB, EQT Partners manages, through holding companies, numerous funds under the EQT banner. The company employs more than 220 people, of which are approximately 120 investment...
paid to have their name placed on the clock. In October 2009, AT&T
AT&T
AT&T Inc. is an American multinational telecommunications corporation headquartered in Whitacre Tower, Dallas, Texas, United States. It is the largest provider of mobile telephony and fixed telephony in the United States, and is also a provider of broadband and subscription television services...
took over the rights to advertise on the clock and has redesigned the face to display the traditional blue and white AT&T logo.
Restoration of the brand
In June 2010, Pittsburgh-area attorney Mark J. Dudash announced plans to resurrect the Duquesne Beer brand, to be brewed by the City Brewing CompanyCity Brewing Company
City Brewing Company is a large brewery located in La Crosse, Wisconsin, USA. It also goes by the trade name of City Brewery.- History :In 1999 the old G...
at the Latrobe Brewing Plant
Latrobe Brewing Company
Latrobe Brewing Company in Latrobe, Pennsylvania, founded in 1893, was one of the largest breweries in the United States and the maker of Rolling Rock beer...
in Latrobe, Pennsylvania
Latrobe, Pennsylvania
Latrobe is a city in Westmoreland County, Pennsylvania in the United States, approximately southeast of Pittsburgh.The city population was 7,634 as of the 2000 census . It is located near the Pennsylvania's scenic Chestnut Ridge. Latrobe was incorporated as a borough in 1854, and as a city in 1999...
, starting in late June. Dudash and his wife, Maria, had incorporated Duquesne Bottling Company in late 2008 as formal start to the project, and also re-registered the brand's trademark, which had expired.
Dudash stated that the second incarnation of Duquesne Beer will cost $16.95 a case for loose bottles, and would be ready for sale in eight wholesalers throughout Western Pennsylvania by mid- to late July, or early August. The new brew is a "golden yellow pilsener
Pilsener
Pilsner is a type of pale lager. It takes its name from the city of Pilsen , Bohemia, in today's Czech Republic, where it has been developed since 1842, when a bottom-fermented beer was first produced. The original Pilsner Urquell beer is produced there today.-Origin:Until the mid-1840s, most ...
with three hops
Hops
Hops are the female flower clusters , of a hop species, Humulus lupulus. They are used primarily as a flavoring and stability agent in beer, to which they impart a bitter, tangy flavor, though hops are also used for various purposes in other beverages and herbal medicine...
for just a 'gentle bite' with no aftertaste and extra malt
Malt
Malt is germinated cereal grains that have been dried in a process known as "malting". The grains are made to germinate by soaking in water, and are then halted from germinating further by drying with hot air...
for a bright white head".
The beer became available for purchase throughout western Pennsylvania in early August 2010.
External links
- Duquesne Bottling Company (official website)
- Duquesne Beer's fan page on FacebookFacebookFacebook is a social networking service and website launched in February 2004, operated and privately owned by Facebook, Inc. , Facebook has more than 800 million active users. Users must register before using the site, after which they may create a personal profile, add other users as...
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