History of the Independent Brewing Company
of Seattle (1902-1915)
and its successor Brewery construction was well underway when disaster struck. On 18 September, 1902, the trade publication, Pacific Wine & Spirit Review reported: "The nearly completed new brewery at South Seattle owned by Ben Moses (sic) and other capitalists of Tacoma, burned to the ground recently. It looks as though rebuilding of the same would not be attempted." In spite of this major setback the investors regrouped and rebuilt the plant. On 22 October, 1904, Pacific Wine & Spirit review printed this short announcement: "The Independent Brewing Company of Seattle has been incorporated. Capital stock $150,000. Incorporators are Samuel S. Loeb, Herman Klaber, and Ben Moyses." Samuel Loeb served as president, and his brother-in-law, Albert Weinberg, was vice-president, with Benjamin Moyses serving as sec./treas. Their millionaire partner, Herman Klaper - "the Hop King" - left the company prematurely when he went down with the Titanic on her ill-fated, maiden voyage. In 1906, the Seattle Brewing & Malting Co., annoyed by the upstart enterprise, purchased controlling interest in the brewery, but Samuel remained with his company. Headaches or not, "Old German Lager" was well received in Seattle and the surrounding areas, and even found favor with the beer drinkers of San Francisco. The bottle label, shown on the tray below, became a registered trademark in April, May and June of 1912 - in Oregon, California, and Washington, respectively. However, the label was also used as early as 1908. The San Francisco contract with Wagner remained in effect until 1916 when Loeb's Independent Brewery was closed by state-wide prohibition. Other Washington State brewing companies chose to move their operations to San Francisco rather than stay in business making soft drinks or near-beer. Independent's parent company, Seattle Brewing & Malting, as well as Tacoma's Pacific Brewing & Malting, chose to make the move to California believing that national prohibition would not be adopted. Loeb made the same choice, but rather than raise funds for the construction of a new brewery, he chose to contract for his beer and bottle it himself. Apparently Wagner felt the loss of the Old German Lager account, so he came out with his own brand. Loeb couldn't copyright the words, Old, German, or Lager, but he did have rights to the graphics and general appearance of the label. He used the marketing slogan: "Demand the Brown Label." Despite Loeb's effort to protect his brand, Wagner contracted for beer from the Humbolt Brewing Co. of Eureka, which he bottled and marketed as "Wagner's Old German Lager Type Beer." He even used a similar, brown-hued label. The Fresno Brewing Co. also used the same tactic with its look-alike, mono-chromatic, beige label for their "Old German Style Lager." With the anti-German sentiment rising - due to the war in Europe - Loeb wisely chose to remove the word "German" from his company name and brand name. Consequently, the revised name for his enterprise became the Old Lager Brewing Company, home of "Old Original Lager." The appearance of the label remained unchanged but for the revised wording. When national Prohibition took effect in January of 1920, many brewers attempted to keep their plants running by producing soft drinks and/or non-alcoholic cereal beverages called near-beer. In San Francisco, the Acme, Milwaukee, Rainier, and John Wieland breweries chose to keep their plants running with both product lines, but Loeb chose to stay in business by selling near-beer. However by 1924, the Old Original Lager Brewing Co. had closed, and Samuel Loeb retired to Los Angeles. Old German Lager beer glass. Go to: GLASSES For any comments, additions, or corrections - or for brewery collectibles you wish to sell -
Old German Lager Brewing Company
of San Francisco (1915-1924)
In 1902, Samuel S. Loeb and other business associates who had been with him in his Tacoma brewery, laid plans to open a brewery in Seattle. As detailed in his biography, the American born, Loeb, came to Seattle in 1902, three years after the closure of his Milwaukee Brewery - a branch brewery of the Pacific Brewing & Malting Co.
The brewery's first product was a Pilsner style lager beer, as can be seen by the label above. This same label was also used by the Grace Bros. Brewing Co. of Santa Rosa. I've yet to establish who was copying who.
The beer tray (below) was a stock tray, that had a center area free for a brewery's text and/or logo. This would have been more economical than commissioning a tray with original artwork designed specifically for their brewery. The tray depicted further below, showing a bottle of beer with the "brown label" is also a stock tray. All that was required by the tray manufacturer was to change the label graphics. They also used a stock tray, "Bertha" which was copyright in 1908. The Bellingham Bay Brewery also used this tray prior to 1910. An example of "Bertha" is shown on that history site.
The brewery flourished in spite of the major competition of Seattle Brewing & Malting's "Rainier Beer." Their flagship beer was now "Old German Lager" with the slogan: "Prosit! Es Giebt Kein Kopeweh," which means - "Good Health! It won't give you a headache." This was no doubt inspired by Pacific Brewing & Malting's use of the "anti-katzenjammer" beer tray depicting two cats, one of which has a headache and the other - who drank Pacific Beer - without a headache.
22 ounce bottle
The earlier label below is similar to the design on the etched glasses (above). Both of these labels measure 4¾" tall by 7½" wide and wrapped three-quarters around a 22 ounce bottle.
It appears that the 1908 label was superceded in 1912 by the label below (right) with different graphics, but identical verbiage. That label also suggests that bottles greater than 22 ounces may have been used. During this period approximately 70% of the output of breweries was given over to draft beer, which was dispensed in taverns. The remaining 30% was bottled for home consumption.
Old German Lager label, c.1908
Old German Lager label, c.1912
The Old German Lager Brewing Company
(1916-1918) 
cap lifter, c.1916
The interjection of the word "type" or "style" appears to have been mandated by the patent office (which regulated the trade marks then) since earlier beer labels didn't use this terminology. This may have been to prevent confusion over imported German lager beers.
The Old Lager Brewing Company
(1918-1924)
cap lifter c.1918
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