American Breweriana Journal September/October 2025
Brewing in Reading: The Lauer Legacy
By Rich Wagner
The story of the Lauer family moving to America mirrors that of many immigrants who left war-torn places. John George Lauer, known as George (1769-1845), was a vintner from the Palatine section of the Rhine Valley. He and his wife had been married thirty-three years and had a large family. He was one of the largest land holders and tax payers near the Fortress of Landau. Due to French occupation he was unable to harvest his crops for nine years and in 1823 at the age of 54, with $600 left to his name, booked passage for his family from Amsterdam to Baltimore. After a long torturous voyage they arrived “half-starved” with a dollar between them, and proceeded to walk to Reading begging food and shelter from farms along the way. His daughter had written to them saying they could find opportunities there. She was married to John Abraham Sprenger, a butcher, who would later become a prominent brewer in Lancaster. John Yost had joined them in their voyage and married Lauer’s daughter Anna Margaretha. Four months later the family went to Myerstown where Lauer set up a distillery and began making brandy from apple jack. In February 1824 they moved to Womelsdorf where he and Yost set up a brewery.
PHOTO 01: Yost brewery building in Womelsdorf. Wagner, April 1982.
Move to Reading
Yost remained in Womelsdorf and his son became a prominent brewer in Lebanon. Lauer, his wife and two sons moved to Reading and rented an old log cabin at Biddle’s Spring near Third & Chestnut streets. George and his son George, Jr. (1807-1879) outfitted the place as a brewery. Frederick built the malt kiln and boiler for a five-barrel kettle. They started out making strong beer. Perhaps with an eye towards resuming his trade as a vintner, Lauer began buying up adjacent properties and had 17,000 vines shipped from his home town but they proved to be incompatible with the climate. He later sought varieties that were well suited for the region and promoted the establishment of viticulture.
The cabin was replaced with a larger brewery turning out ale and porter. In 1835 George, age 66, retired and his sons took over. Frederick purchased his father’s real estate and built a mansion adjacent to the brewery. In 1844 he was the first to brew lager beer in Reading. He purchased seven acres on the west side of Third street north of Walnut and carved the city’s most extensive vaults out of solid rock capable of lagering 15,000 barrels. In 1845 his brother George, Jr. went to Pottsville and took over the Orchard Brewery.
The 1850 U.S. Non-Resident Census lists Lauer’s brewery being capitalized with $12,000. The brewery was steam-powered and employed six men. The brewery consumed 12,000 bushels of barley worth $13,000 and produced 3,500-bbl. of beer, ale and porter valued at $17,500. Frederick continued expanding and improving his plant and from 1854-60 drilled a deep artesian well then advertised “Lauer’s Artesian Lager Beer,” by which time capital investment stood at $40,000. The brewery was powered by a 15 h.p. steam engine and employed 17 men who produced 12,000-bbl. of beer, ale and porter worth $60,000.
PHOTO 02: Frederick Lauer (1810-1883). The Manufactories and Manufacturers of Pennsylvania of the Nineteenth Century. Galaxy Publishing Co., Philadelphia 1875.
PHOTO 03: Lauer’s Ale and Porter Brewery. The Manufactories and Manufacturers of Pennsylvania of the Nineteenth Century. Galaxy Publishing Co., Philadelphia 1875.
PHOTO 04: Lauer’s Lager Beer Brewery. Detail from litho, Parzanese Collection.
Frederick Lauer on the National Stage
Frederick Lauer was a delegate to the National Democratic Convention at Charleston in 1860 where he spoke out against secession, and made every effort to adopt a platform and nomination of a candidate for the presidency which would preserve the Union. When the South seceded, he recruited troops and outfitted a company known as “Lauer’s Infantry.” On their way to and from the war they were entertained at Lauer's Garden with music, free food, and lager beer. However, when the government levied a war tax of $1.00 per barrel of beer he pushed back. Brewers contracted for “beer futures” because beer lagered in cold storage for six months or more. The tax was imposed after the price had been established for the season resulting in a loss of revenue for brewers. Frederick Lauer consulted a number of local brewers and together with others met in New York City to organize a group they called the Brewers Congress to speak with one voice to Congress. He was elected president of the resulting United States Brewers Association, the nation’s first Political Action Committee. When Drys attempted to exclude the brewing industry from the Centennial Exposition in 1876 he led the effort to build Brewers Hall which contained a working brewery, malt house and refrigerated space to hold beer from all over the world for judging as well as a bar where visitors could imbibe. They distributed pamphlets proclaiming beer to be the true temperance beverage. Lauer toured Europe with other U.S.B.A. members to see how those countries handled taxes on breweries. Upon their return the committee suggested the use of Federal tax stamps.
Frederick Lauer on the Local Stage
While in Europe he visited all the major breweries to observe their technological innovations. Upon his return, he built the North Park Brewery, a five-story brewery above the vaults at Third and Walnut for the manufacture of lager beer. The brewery at Third and Chestnut became Lauer’s ale and porter brewery.
To say that Frederick Lauer was civic minded would not do him justice. He was on Town Council and led efforts to incorporate Reading as a city in 1847. For many years he sat on the board of directors of: Berks County Board of Health, Reading Dispensary, Relief Society, Benevolent Society and Board of Trade. He served three terms as trustee of the Keystone Normal School in Kutztown [now Kutztown University of Pennsylvania] and was one of the original incorporators and investors of the Philadelphia and Columbia Railroad, serving on its board for twenty years.
He inherited his father’s interest in husbandry and had a farm. He was instrumental in establishing the Berks County Agricultural and Horticultural Society, served as president and led the committee to establish a library, donating many of his own books on agricultural subjects. Like his father, he did a great deal of research and advocated for innovations he believed would improve agriculture and prosperity in Berks County. He promoted sugar beet and hop cultivation, advocated for establishing orchards, was active in the American Pomological Society and developed papers on a variety of topics. Lauer took yearly trips throughout the South and set up an agency in Rome Georgia. He corresponded to the Reading papers on cultural and agricultural observations while traveling and promoted lager beer as the way to sooth the South and keep the Union together.
Trouble in Pottsville and Reading
Frederick Lauer had been involved with his brother’s brewery in Pottsville at least since the early 1870s when he loaned him $50,000. George had been running the brewery for over thirty-five years but for some reason was falling into debt and made a voluntary assignment of credit to his son-in-law, Charles W. Woltjen and Theodore Gugert in March 1874. Creditors would only deal with Woltjen who was “flush.” The following year Frederick was urged to put the brewery in his name, which he did and suffered a similar fate as his brother. Legal battles continued for years.
Frederick Lauer was 74-years old and had been experiencing stomach troubles. He declared bankruptcy in 1882. His personal property including wagons and some beer valued around $1,500 at the Orchard Brewery in Pottsville was auctioned off to a representative of the bank and Anton Schmidt who was leasing the brewery. In Reading the court forbade the brewery from selling beer to private customers. Lauer protested that his product was perishable and halting sales would jeopardize $10,000 worth of beer. He convinced the court that it was in the interest of the creditors to keep the brewery running. When his assets were sold at Sheriff’s sale, local maltster and investor Moses K. Graeff purchased the beer and properties and facilitated the formation of the Lauer Brewing Company, Ltd., with Frederick as president. Graeff, William P. Bard, William Borrel and Frederick’s son, Frank P. Lauer were officers. In 1883 Graeff sued Lauer for money owed to him and retired, leaving Lauer Brewing Co., Ltd. under the control of Frederick Lauer and his two sons, George and Frank.
PHOTO 05: During prohibition the Berks County Christian Endeavor Union passed a resolution calling for the removal of the Lauer Statue. Wagner 2022.
Death of Frederick Lauer
The United States Brewers Association held their 23rd annual convention in 1883 in Detroit. Lauer was called for as “Old War Horse of the Brewers” and delivered his farewell address. His admonishment regarding prohibitionists was prescient: “...Enemies who, under the disguise of religion and philanthropy, would convert the constitution and laws into one of the worst forms of despotism.” He died late in September, leaving his sons to manage the corporation. In November directors of the Pennsylvania Ale and Porter Brewers’ Association, came to Reading to present the family with a handsome framed copy of the resolutions passed by the organization in honor of the deceased.
As a founding member and former president, the United States Brewers’ Association had lost one of their fiercest advocates. Jacob Conrad, who as a twenty-year-old émigré obtained employment with George Lauer in Pottsville before moving to Philadelphia was also a Civil War veteran and owner of the Keystone State Brewery in Philadelphia. He referred to Lauer as “the father of our industry” and proposed that the organization finance a monument with a statue of Frederick Lauer in his honor which resulted in $12,000 being raised in less than two years. On May 23, 1885, a special train from New York filled with delegates of the United States Brewers’ Association’s 25th Annual Convention steamed into Reading. They convened at City Park for the monument’s unveiling and dedication. Henry H. Reuter, the famous Boston Ale and Porter brewer spoke on the life of Frederick Lauer and succinctly summed up his character: “...Towards this wonderful progress no man in this country did more than Frederick Lauer, his hand was ever on the plough, and his shoulder to the wheel. Wherever danger was to be averted; where ignorance, prejudice or malice were to be overcome; where invasion of the personal liberty of the people was to be met, or where the rights of the brewer were to be guarded, Frederick Lauer was eager for the fray and ready to defend our cause with might and main...” The monument was then formally unveiled with full Masonic honors and presented to the citizens of Reading.
PHOTO 06: George Frederick Lauer (1850-1928). One Hundred Years of Brewing.
PHOTO 07: Franklin Pierce Lauer (1852-1926), born on inauguration day of President Franklin Pierce. One Hundred Years of Brewing.
PHOTO 08: “Beer and Pretzels” exhibit. Berks County Historical Society 2008.
PHOTO 09: Lauer Mansion. Berks County Historical Society
The Next Generation
George F. and Frank P. Lauer were on the board of the Lauer Brewing Co., Ltd. when their father died. George the older son was president and Frank was secretary/treasurer. At fourteen and sixteen years of age, the Lauer brothers had been shipped off to Europe to complete their education in Wűrtemberg. They traveled extensively and visited major German breweries. Letters written home of their adventures amounted to travel logs featured in the local press. They also attended school in Lausanne, Switzerland where, despite his age, Frank became organist for the French Lutheran Church. Their mother was from Switzerland and they were hosted by relatives there. They described their fifty-city hiking tour through Germany, France and Austria before returning to Landau by steamboat where they stayed with relatives until after harvest before returning to school.
As adults they managed the Lauer Brewing Co. Ltd. After their mother’s estate had been settled in 1892 the company was reorganized. Frank took over the lager brewery and George got the ale and porter brewery along with the family mansion overlooking it. What followed were countless headlines about the “Lauer Brothers’ Legal Strife.” Put simply, George was a bon vivant and Frank was a serious businessman who was vice president of the Schuylkill Valley Bank, on the board of Union Traction Co. and was a director of the prestigious Neversink Mountain Hotel Co. along with other notable brewers: John R. Bechtel, John Barbey and M.K. Graeff. He was constantly purchasing hotels and acquired the Hill Farm in Spring Township.
George spent two years altering and modernizing the mansion. In April 1894 a reporter described what he saw on a tour: 350 electric lights, 150 gas jets and 160 electric call bells, an electric elevator, Turkish bath and sauna as well as a large music box with a repertoire of 150 tunes. The architect for the project later sued George for non-payment. Around the same time his wife, Maria took him to court for divorce, alimony payments and demanded he be thrown in jail for adultery. Shortly thereafter George announced he was off for an extended tour of Europe and published a notice in the paper stating that he was not responsible for any of his wife’s debts. She had him arrested a second time to prevent him leaving the country. In the ensuing trial the judge gave George just forty-eight hours to evaluate his net worth for the purpose of determining the value of alimony payments. He then traveled to Europe and returned in October to face more court battles with Maria. In December all of his properties went up for Sheriff’s sale but there were no buyers. In May 1895 Maria had a warrant issued accusing him of desertion and failure to make alimony payments during the pending divorce proceedings. He was arrested attempting to board a train to New York City.
The Schuylkill Valley Bank together with Penn National Bank of Reading sued George for $40,000 which forced him to appoint an assignee for the benefit of his creditors and the court appointed two expert brewery accountants from New York City to assess his worth. George had 119 of the 300 shares of stock in the corporation. His attorneys requested the brewery’s books and records. Frank denied the request and fought it in court, however the ledger from 1892 was missing which implied irregularities specifically that Frank had purchased hotels in his name using corporate funds. This was supported by the fact that when both brothers purchased 50 shares of stock, Frank’s was paid for by the corporation. The strategy of having taverns without a direct connection to the brewery was a way around laws prohibiting “tied houses.” In 1896 George was scrambling for cash to pay off his creditors and fought to get money he claimed the corporation owed him as his properties went up for Sheriff’s Sale. The case dragged on for several years, all the way to the State Supreme Court which ruled against George’s claims and in 1899 Frank purchased all the shares of the company. Shortly thereafter he announced that all the properties including both of the breweries, park, gardens and two mansions had been sold to a syndicate for $1,500,000.
In April 1902 it was reported that Philadelphia capitalists were behind the formation of the George F. Lauer B.C. in the old ale and porter brewery with subscribers for $150,000 of the $200,000 being raised. They intended to have beer on the market by October. A week later U.S. District Court declared George bankrupt and scheduled a meeting of creditors who wanted $9,452 from the sale of his real estate including his mansion and the ale and porter brewery. Clifford Kissinger and Harry F. Kantner purchased the ale and porter brewery for $9,000 and built a modern plant.
George’s creditors ended up with $0.42 on the dollar. He then proceeded to travel around the country presenting himself as an owner of the Lauer brewery, getting people to front him money using various ruses. He was arrested all over the country from Milwaukee to Pittsburgh, York, Philadelphia and Norristown and was told to get out of Muncy, Indiana under suspicion of being a German spy. Frank ended up getting the family mansion and one of George’s hotels for a song. He brought his son, Carl F. on as secretary of Lauer B.C. and in 1916 purchased the Allentown Flint Bottle Works.
Franklin P. Lauer died at the age of 74 in March 1926. George F. Lauer died in March 1928 at the age of 77. The obituary for Frank was extensive and the subsequent execution of his estate was covered in detail by the press. Notice of George’s death appeared as a simple obit without details of his life.
PHOTO 10: Frank’s son, Corporal Carl F. Lauer (1890-1957) was involved in the battle of the Argonne Forest and the capture of Montfaucon and the taking of Beileau Woods during WWI. Find a Grave.
Prohibition
When Federal agents descended on Reading at noon on Monday May 16, 1921 word quickly spread and saloon men hid bottles of spirits and were just selling “beer and ginger pop.” It truly seemed as if prohibition had not affected the city in the least. The agents started with the United States Hotel where they ordered glasses of Lauer’s beer then poured it into bottles and took them to a chemist stationed nearby with a mobile lab. Analysis proved it to be “good beer” ranging from 2% to 3.5%. Agents placed government seals on the hotel’s kegs and went on to obtain samples from other saloons which got similar treatment. By 4 P.M. the Lauer plant was closed. When asked the following day, the local prohibition division chief said he knew nothing about the actions taken by Federal agents, and didn’t know exactly where they came from and by whose orders. He did say the raid was conducted properly. Two days later the brewery was formally seized by the Federal government, placed under guard and no one was permitted on the property. A complete inspection of the books and inventory of the plant was initiated. The manager of the plant traveled to Washington, D.C. to speak with John F. Kramer, Federal Prohibition Commissioner who later explained in an interview that depending on the complaint, generally a fine was paid and the brewery was returned to the owners, with the expectation that only cereal beverages would be placed on the market. The Commissioner was sympathetic to the breweries, saying that “good beer” sometimes made it to market inadvertently, not through willful misconduct on the part of the brewing company. After having been put on notice, the brewery continued selling “good beer.” At the end of May the local U.S. Revenue agents guarding the Lauer brewery were replaced by officials from Philadelphia who took complete charge and tightened security to make sure no kegs were coming or going. All of their beer was seized and kept under seal.
In court the brewery pleaded no contest and offered a bond so they could continue doing business until the amount of the fine was determined. However, they were known as the most flagrant violator in Pennsylvania by Federal agents who said the case was being watched closely by other brewers to see “what they can get away with.” By July 4, 1921 Lauer was given permission to release cereal beverage in stock at the time of the Government seizure of the plant. Soon afterwards, agents descended on the brewery to find barrels full of beer, despite the fact that the brewery was under strict scrutiny by the internal revenue department. The Lauer plant continued processing their stock on hand and then shut down. By the end of September, the government took possession and the brewery was “sealed” with guards on duty. In April 1922, with the negotiations on the amount of fine Lauer owed the government, the brewery rescinded its application for a brewery license citing there was no market for cereal beverages, hoping to get their bond returned. In February 1923 they got a brewing license. It was at this point that they rented the brewery to Reading’s “Beer Baron” Max Hassel and it became Gierot Mfg. Co.
In August federal agents observed 200 halves being loaded into a box car and boarded the string of cars until it was switched to a siding where they waited until six men arrived to transfer the beer to trucks and swooped down and began making arrests. Later agents went to the Lauer brewery, obtained samples and subsequently placed the plant under guard. They petitioned the court for an order to dismantle the plant. By the end of the month, authorities had issued warrants for the owners and operators of three Reading breweries. Carl F. Lauer was among six connected with the Lauer brewery including Max Hassel and his brewmaster William B. Moeller. At the end of December, following efforts by officials to padlock the Lauer brewery, the guard was removed, the brewery given a bond of good faith. Three weeks later two special agents from Washington, D.C. seized two freight cars containing 400 halves leaving the Lauer brewery. The cars were taken to Philadelphia where libel proceedings were brought to dismantle the brewery and forfeiture of a $10,000 bond. It was alleged that guards were being threatened and agents were being “shadowed.” That resulted in a raid in February. In March 1925 eleven brewery men were arrested including Carl F. Lauer. Having been reflagged as Gierot Mfg. Co., Carl’s attorney insisted that he had nothing to do with the place other than running the ice plant adjacent to the brewery. It was determined that workers had to stand trial and became a test case to see if employees could be held responsible for knowingly violating the prohibition law. Lauer and four others were released because they did not directly work manufacturing beer. Three caught in the raid were indicted in November. By the end of the month Lauer brewery was ordered to be padlocked for 10 months, with confiscation of raw materials and “high test” beer. An injunction restraining the company from further violations was issued and the dismantling of machinery and equipment was ordered.
After years of negotiating, the government determined the fine and taxes owed by Lauer brewery to be $48,307, based on four raids that seized over 4,000 barrels of beer. But the judge determined the government failed to show that Lauer manufactured or sold the beer and they couldn’t collect. Three partners: Carl F. Lauer, Florence E. Landis and William C. Haberle published a dissolution notice in March 1932. In December with repeal all but imminent, reporters scouted out Reading brewers for a status report, to which Carl Lauer replied, “I have no intentions of operating and I have had no inquiries regarding sale of the property,” closing the last chapter of the Lauer brewing legacy.