Simply What is Baltimore’s American Brewery House?
The American Brewery’s main structure serves as a reminder of Baltimore’s once-significant beer business, which grew as a result of the city’s sizable German immigrant population.
A distinctive example of industrial architecture from the 19th century is the brew house of the American Brewery. However, the exterior characteristics are reflections of the age and of the people who lived and worked in the neighborhood. Its height and the arrangement of the inner areas were defined by the necessities of brewing. It’s best characterized as “middle-European chalet” in terms of style.
Weissner Brewing Company endured tough times during Prohibition, just like many other alcoholic beverage businesses. The plant was ultimately forced to close in 1920.
The structure was sold to the American Malt Company in 1931, who renovated the inside and ran their brewery there until 1973. The structure was included to the National Registry of Historic Sites in 1973 as well.
History of American Brewery in Baltimore
Of all the structures in the city, the American Brewery Building at 1701 North Gay Street may be the most “Baltimore.” It is extremely odd and designed in the same High Victorian architectural style as much of our city. The 1887 J.F. Weisner and Sons brewery building, subsequently known as the American Brewery, has been a towering shell that rules over a run-down neighborhood since 1973.
The Northeast Baltimore brewery, one of the biggest in the state of Maryland, was established in 1887 by German immigrant John Frederick Wiessner for his Weissner Brewing Company. At its busiest, the brewery employed 61 people: 16 for brewery work, 17 for driving, 14 for bottling, 8 for maintenance, and 6 for office work.
It was formerly abandoned and let to deteriorate for forty years, but it has just been fixed, remodeled, restored, and made beautiful. Currently, Humanim Inc., a local social services organization, calls it home.
American Brewery in Baltimore’s Structure
An magnificent five-story brick and stone edifice with an iron frame serves as the brewery’s main building. It has been mockingly referred to as “Teutonic Brewery,” a crazily eclectic late Victorian structure. The industrial operation that is taking place inside is hidden by the facade’s beautiful brickwork and round and arched windows. The core seven-story tower is surrounded by two six-story buildings.
The inside was set up for gravity flow processing, as was common at the time. The central tower housed the malt storage towers. The Frank Wolf Company’s plans were used to construct a four-story stockhouse that was part of the complex in 1901. A garage and bottling facilities were added in 1910 and 1900, respectively.
A cooperage, boiler house, engine room, and office building were also present. The substantial Wiessner home across the street was constructed to house both the family and freshly arrived German laborers temporarily.
Installation of Refrigeration Equipment
Modern technology was used by American Brewery, including two Linde ice machines for artificial refrigeration, which were purportedly used for the first time in a Baltimore brewery.
The construction of refrigeration equipment was required in American breweries due to the rise in popularity of lager, which needed to be kept at low temperatures for extended periods of time. Brewers relied on underground storage spaces or ice houses before the invention of modern refrigeration. German immigrant Fred W. Wolf (1837–1922) purchased the rights to the German-made Linde ice machine in the United States.
As a result, although Charles Stoll is suggested as the brewery’s architect, the Fred Wolf Company likely contributed to its design as well.
Restoration of American Brewery
The Baltimore, Maryland-based American Brewery remodeling had a $22.5 million price tag.
Its renovation is a notable sign of hope for the venerable building and the neighborhood. Humanim, a nonprofit organization based in Columbia, Maryland, has relocated to The Brewery after securing $22.5 million to transform the American Brewery complex into its new headquarters.
The building permit was issued by the City of Baltimore in early 2004, and the work is now finished. One of East Baltimore’s most dilapidated neighborhoods is where The American Brewery is located.
The $22.5 million renovation included restoring the building’s vast Victorian brick façade, cleaning and preserving the grain silo housed in the large central tower, and adapting some brewing tanks as reminders of the structure’s previous use as a brewery.
New windows were built using instructions from old pictures. Federal, state, and private donations as well as historic tax credits allowed for this building’s renovation. For its remarkable efforts in historic preservation and community renewal, the project was given a National Preservation Award by the National Trust for Historic Preservation.
The brewery’s transformation into a health and community center for Humanim is a perfect fit for the mission of the group, which is to “find those in most need and deliver uncompromising human services.”
The project was recognized for its adaptive reuse and compatible design with a 2010 Baltimore Heritage Preservation Award, which went to Humanim, Inc., architects Cho Benn Holback + Associates, and builder Struever Bros. Eccles & Rouse.
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