Columbia Breweries was about to begin a massive expansion project, this would enable them to increase production of their Heidelberg beer and Columbia Ale. Columbia advertised "We are serving Alt Heidelberg. So good--and good for you." Aerial view of Columbia Breweries plant, prior to expansion project, located between Jefferson and C Streets.

Brewing industry--Tacoma--1940-1950; Aerial photographs; Business enterprises--Tacoma; Remodeling--Tacoma; Columbia Breweries, Inc. (Tacoma)--1940-1950;

Equipment at Columbia Brewery. Ordered by Seattle Equipment & Supply.

Columbia Breweries, Inc. (Tacoma)--1950-1960; Brewing industry--Tacoma--1950-1960; Machinery;

A line of tanks are seen in the new cellars at Columbia Breweries. Once the newly brewed beer, "wort", had been boiled it was transferred from the kettles through a strainer, or "hopjack", which separated the hops from the wort. The wort was then cooled in wort coolers. The wort was piped into a large vat, "fermenting tun", housed in a cool cellar or an ice chamber. Yeast was added while the wort was in the fermenting vats. For lager beer, bottom-fermenting yeast was used, taking 7-11 days to complete fermentation. Ale was made using top-fermenting yeast that was faster acting and fermented at a higher temperature. Ordered by Columbia Breweries. (Brewed in the Pacific Northwest, Gary and Gloria Meier)

Columbia Breweries, Inc. (Tacoma)--1950-1960; Brewing industry--Tacoma--1950-1960;

The loading docks at Columbia Breweries are filled with trucks ready to deliver Alt Heidelberg throughout Washington, Oregon, Idaho, and northern California. A warehouse for case goods and a new receiving and shipping depot was added to the plant during the expansion begun in 1948. A gasoline pump can be seen in the left foreground. Ordered by Columbia Breweries.

Columbia Breweries, Inc. (Tacoma)--1950-1960; Brewing industry--Tacoma--1950-1960;

The interior of Columbia Breweries where one of the brewery's more than 160 employees operates the switches to machinery moving materials throughout the facility. Most early breweries had arranged their equipment for efficiency and took advantage of gravity. Grain storage and milling was often located high in the brewery on the 3rd or 4th floor. Ordered by Columbia Breweries. (Brewed in the Pacific Northwest, Gary and Gloria Meier)

Columbia Breweries, Inc. (Tacoma)--1950-1960; Brewing industry--Tacoma--1950-1960;

Workmen are using forklifts to move cartons of Alt Heidelberg into delivery trucks backed up to the loading docks at Columbia Breweries. A warehouse and shipping depot was developed on the Jefferson Avenue frontage of the plant while the main office remained at 2120 South C Street. Ordered by Columbia Breweries.

Columbia Breweries, Inc. (Tacoma)--1950-1960; Brewing industry--Tacoma--1950-1960;

ca. 1940. Columbia Breweries, the manufacturers of Alt Heidelberg and Columbia Ale. Columbia was established in 1900 and had a 41 year record of nonstop continuous brewing. This elevated view shows the plant's facade, automobiles along the street and a delivery truck is backed up to door. A hill and residential buildings are seen in the background. (Argentum)

Brewing industry--Tacoma--1940-1950; Columbia Breweries, Inc. (Tacoma)--1940-1950;

ca. 1940. Columbia Breweries, the manufacturers of Alt Heidelberg and Columbia Ale were getting ready to go through a massive expansion and modernization of their brewing facilities and offices. Columbia was established in 1900 and had a 41 year record of nonstop continuous brewing. During the dry period they produced "Columbia Brew", a near beer. This elevated view shows the plant's facade, automobiles along the street and a delivery truck is backed up to door. A hill and residential buildings are seen in the background. (WSHS)

Brewing industry--Tacoma--1940-1950; Columbia Breweries, Inc. (Tacoma)--1940-1950;

ca. 1939. After the remodeling and rebuilding of Columbia Breweries, it would become the largest brewery north of San Francisco and west of Milwaukee. Their expansion would help the company fill the increasing demands for their Heidelberg beer and Columbia ale. View of Columbia Breweries Alt Heidelberg sign: "We are serving Alt Heidelberg. So good--and good for you." (WSHS)

Brewing industry--Tacoma--1930-1940; Beer--Tacoma; Advertisements--Tacoma; Signs (Notices); Columbia Breweries, Inc. (Tacoma)--1930-1940;

Exterior brewery. The Heidelberg Brewing Co. occupied most of the 2100 block of South C Street in the 1950's, with only the J.E. Bunker Co., dealers in bicycles, between its buildings. A sign on the receiving department's exterior indicates that a three-story cellar building was under construction; Heidelberg continued to grow along with Tacoma, expanding and rebuilding, tripling in size in seven years. It would also install in the summer of 1954 a second brewing line which doubled brewhouse capacity. The company, which had purchased Columbia Breweries in 1949, finally changed its name to Heidelberg in 1953. It was later purchased by Carling Brewery in 1959 and closed its doors twenty years later. The above photograph was taken on August 26, 1954. (TNT 9-16-54, C-16)

Brewing industry--Tacoma--1950-1960; Heidelberg Brewing Co. (Tacoma); Signs (Notices);

ca. 1917. A print of a photograph of the Columbia Brewing Company as it appeared in 1917 has been outlined, the date added and measurements written on the left and bottom margins, possibly for use in an advertisement. Stamps have been affixed to the back of the mock-up for Sterling Engraving Company at 1417 Fourth Avenue Building and How. J. Ryan & Son, R Advertising in the Joseph Vance Building, Seattle, Wash. Copies of old prints ordered by Heidelberg Brewing Company in December 1954.

Brewing industry--Tacoma--1910-1920; Columbia Brewing Co. (Tacoma);

ca. 1938. The dark exterior of Columbia Breweries has the name Alt Heidelberg beer painted on the north edge of the top of the main brewery. West Coast Grocery's Coffee Department is seen on the right at 2114 South C Street. West Coast Grocery was at this location from 1928 through 1945. Copies of old prints ordered by Heidelberg Brewing Company in December 1954.

Brewing industry--Tacoma--1930-1940; Columbia Breweries, Inc. (Tacoma)--1930-1940; West Coast Grocery Co. (Tacoma);

ca. 1949. This aerial photograph featuring Columbia Breweries (center) was taken either in December of 1949 or early January of 1950 as snow has blanketed the rooftops and surrounding streets. It appears identical to C87485, image 8, except for the missing Heidelberg logo in the upper left corner. The massive plant had opened in 1900 as the Columbia Brewing Co., underwent several remodels and expansions and purchases, and would survive until 1979 when it finally closed.

Columbia Breweries, Inc. (Tacoma)--1940-1950; Brewing industry--Tacoma--1940-1950; Aerial views; Aerial photographs; Commercial streets--Tacoma--1940-1950;

ca. 1939. After the remodeling and rebuilding of Columbia Breweries, it would become the largest brewery north of San Francisco and west of Milwaukee. Their expansion would help the company fill the increasing demands for their Heidelberg beer and Columbia ale. View of Columbia Breweries Alt Heidelberg sign: "We are serving Alt Heidelberg. So good--and good for you." (WSHS)

Brewing industry--Tacoma--1930-1940; Beer--Tacoma; Advertisements--Tacoma; Signs (Notices); Columbia Breweries, Inc. (Tacoma)--1930-1940;

Columbia Breweries. Brew kettle being dismantled. The kettle was used for brewing beer. Ingredients were added on the upper level of the kettle- barley malt, hops and water. The brewery had two enormous copper kettles with a capacity of 330 barrels each and made an average of 6 brews each day. Two deep artesian wells on the property supplied the water, pumping 66,000 gallons per day. The company was known as Columbia Breweries from 1900-1949. It was purchased by Heidelberg Brewing Co. in 1949 but continued to do business as Columbia. On July 15, 1953, the brewery officially changed its name to Heidelberg Brewing Company. They sold in 1958 to Carling Brewing Co. of Canada and closed their doors in Tacoma in 1979, after 3/4 of a century of brewing.

Columbia Breweries, Inc. (Tacoma)--1950-1960; Brewing industry--Tacoma--1950-1960; Heidelberg Brewing Co. (Tacoma)--1950-1960; Kettles;

A new bottle shop was included in the expansion program at Columbia Breweries begun in 1949. Earlier legislation had required bottling works to be across the road from the brew house. Columbia Breweries' new bottle shop has expanded into new, three-story facilities along South C Street with state-of-the-art bottling lines filling 2,400 cases per hour. One hundred and fifty persons are employed in this department under the supervision of I.E. Heath, bottle shop manager, and his assistant manager, Lawrence Alnutt.

Columbia Breweries, Inc. (Tacoma)--1950-1960; Brewing industry--Tacoma--1950-1960;

Seven men are enjoying Alt Heidelberg at Columbia Breweries. They each hold a bottle of the beer bottled in a short-necked "stubby" bottle. An insignia hangs on the wall behind them for Columbia Beer. In 1950 the company launched an advertising campaign featuring the theme of "Brewed in Tacoma" to emphasize the fine beer available right in the home community.

Columbia Breweries, Inc. (Tacoma)--1950-1960; Brewing industry--Tacoma--1950-1960;

Preliminary filtering operations at Columbia Breweries. Columbia's two fine beverages were pumped through this filtration process as their first step in assuring clarity. The beer would pass through one more battery of filters before bottling. Glass inserts can be seen in the left forefront to show the progress of filtering the beer and ale from the secondary fermentation tanks. Ordered by Columbia Breweries. (TNT, 1/8/1952, p.B-6)

Columbia Breweries, Inc. (Tacoma)--1950-1960; Brewing industry--Tacoma--1950-1960;

Columbia Breweries was proud of their new storage cellars where thousands of barrels of Alt Heidelberg Beer and Columbia Ale were constantly in the process of being perfected. Floor upon floor, cellar after cellar, there were rows of giant tanks holding up to 800 barrels each. Ordered by Columbia Breweries. (TNT, 1/7/1952)

Columbia Breweries, Inc. (Tacoma)--1950-1960; Brewing industry--Tacoma--1950-1960;

Assembly-line methods were also provided in the shipping areas of the recently expanded plant at Columbia Breweries. Cartons filled with cans of Alt Heidelberg travel along moving belts to be sealed and prepared for shipment. Ordered by Columbia Breweries.

Columbia Breweries, Inc. (Tacoma)--1950-1960; Brewing industry--Tacoma--1950-1960;

Sophisticated pumps and filters have been added during the remodeling and rebuilding of the plant at Columbia Breweries begun in 1948. A workman stands by the controls. Ordered by Columbia Breweries.

Columbia Breweries, Inc. (Tacoma)--1950-1960; Brewing industry--Tacoma--1950-1960;

Not all operations had been automated at the newly expanded Columbia Breweries plant on May 31, 1951. Empty Alt Heidelberg bottles were being pulled from cartons in the left foreground to add them to the automated processes. Lines of cartons moved along conveyor belts from one level to another looking like freeway entrance ramps while workmen made sure nothing caused the line to be stopped. Every working day in 1952, 20,000 cases, or nearly 500,000 bottles, entered through one entrance to the bottling department and left by another. Ordered by Columbia Breweries. (TNT, 1/8/1952, p.B-8)

Columbia Breweries, Inc. (Tacoma)--1950-1960; Brewing industry--Tacoma--1950-1960; Assembly-line methods--Tacoma--1950-1960; Bottles;

A large group of drivers was given a tour of the Columbia Breweries on July 28, 1951. Over thirty drivers from Everett participated in the tour of the plant which had undergone massive expansion and modernization. They are posed on the sidewalk before the main entrance to the plant. Columbia Breweries manufactured Alt Heidelberg and Columbia Ale, two very popular beverages.

Brewing industry--Tacoma--1950-1960; Business enterprises--Tacoma; Industrial facilities--Tacoma; Columbia Breweries, Inc. (Tacoma)--1950-1960; Group portraits--1950-1960;

Columbia Breweries began operation in Tacoma in 1900. By 1951 Alt Heidelberg beer and Columbia Ale, produced by Columbia Breweries, were being sold in Washington, Oregon, Idaho and Northern California and were two of the fastest selling brews on the market. Chief Chemist Edward Ehmke, head of the breweries technical staff, helped maintain quality as the company expanded production to meet increased demand. By 1954 they were producing 750,000 barrels of beer a year. The Columbia plant was sold to Carling Brewing Co. in 1959. It closed in 1979. (TNT, 1/8/1952, p.B-4)

Brewing industry--Tacoma--1950-1960; Chemistry--Tacoma; Scientists--Tacoma; Laboratories--Tacoma; Columbia Breweries, Inc. (Tacoma)--1950-1960; Ehmke, Edward; Columbia Breweries, Inc. (Tacoma)--People;

Brew kettles, Columbia Breweries, Davis. An employee adds hops to the large copper brew kettle used to boil the wort, one of the early stages of beermaking. The kettle is fitted with a curved cap with a large tube that filters the evaporation coming from the kettle. The brewery owned two of the kettles that had a capacity of 330 barrels each. Anders W. Erikson was the brew master in 1948.

Columbia Breweries, Inc. (Tacoma)--1940-1950; Kettles; Brewing industry--Tacoma--1940-1950;

In 1948 Columbia Breweries appointed four new officers and President Norman Davis announced that they would be going through an extensive expansion program. The expansion project was to include a 20,000 square feet two story building housing a new bottle shop, and a can beer line. View of the new canning machinery at Columbia Breweries.

Brewing industry--Tacoma--1940-1950; Machinery; Laborers--Tacoma; Columbia Breweries, Inc. (Tacoma)--1940-1950; Cans;

Long view exterior brewery. This photograph of the Heidelberg Brewing Co. was taken from down the street on August 26, 1954, and shows that the brewery's shipping & receiving department was apparently separated from the main buildings by the J.E. Bunker Co., a dealer in bicycles. Heidelberg had purchased the well-known Columbia Breweries in 1949 and changed its name formally in 1953. By 1954, it had tripled its size. The building between the bicycle store and the shipping department was the new three-story cellar building which was used for storage and fermentation. Costing $700,000, it had three floors full of storage tanks with enough beer to fill 45 million bottles. (TNT 9-3-54, C-16) TPL-6499

Brewing industry--Tacoma--1950-1960; Heidelberg Brewing Co. (Tacoma); Signs (Notices);

ca. 1920. A fan of Columbia Brew, a "near beer" produced by the Columbia Brewing Company, models a suit for not-just-any occasion. The jacket and pants have been made by pasting labels for Columbia Brew on pants and a striped shirt. The top hat also displays an enlarged label for Columbia Brew. The Columbia Brewing Company opened their brewery on South C Street between South 21st and South 23rd in 1900. They made "Columbia Brew" during the dry period of prohibition. Columbia Brewing Co. was purchased by Heidelberg Brewing Co. in 1949; which was purchased by Carling Brewery in 1959. The plant closed in 1979. (Copies of old prints ordered by Heidelberg Brewing Company in December 1954.) Format 6" x 8". TPL-5565

Brewing industry--Tacoma--1910-1920; Columbia Brewing Co. (Tacoma); Costumes; Prohibition--Tacoma;

ca. 1919. Gustav Schuster was the manager of the Columbia Brewing Company in Tacoma from September 17, 1917 to October 31, 1929. For the whole time he was manager, the brewing industry was prevented from making beer by state and federal prohibition laws. In 1919 Mr. Schuster began producing "Colo - a malt beverage of quality" at the Tacoma plant. Colo was a nonalcoholic "near beer" and was classified as a soft drink. The Columbia Brewery managed to survive prohibition and in 1949 they were bought out by Heidelberg Brewery. Heidelberg was in turn purchased by Carling Brewery which operated the Tacoma plant at 2120-32 South C Street until 1979, when it closed.

Brewing industry--Tacoma--1910-1920; Columbia Brewing Co. (Tacoma); Offices--Tacoma--1910-1920; Desks; Writing materials; Safes; Columbia Brewing Co. (Tacoma)--People; Schuster, Gustav;

ca. 1923. The rear of Columbia Breweries showing the Northern Pacific Railway tracks and properties across the tracks that faced west to Jefferson Avenue including J.J. Gunlocke Auto Tops who were located at 2121 Jefferson Avenue from 1918 through 1925. Copies of old prints ordered by Heidelberg Brewing Company in December 1954. (This was a copy print made by the Richards Studio of a Marvin D. Boland photograph #B14364)

Brewing industry--Tacoma--1920-1930; Columbia Brewing Co. (Tacoma);