Minnesota Then
John Frederick Orth was born in Rott, Alsace, France, on May 20, 1821. He learned to brew beer while in Rott and honed his skills as a brewer after leaving in 1840. Before immigrating to America, Orth traveled to Germany, Italy, and Spain. In 1847 he arrived in Erie, Pennsylvania. On August 6, 1849, Orth wed Mary Weinell. Not long after their wedding, the couple moved to Galena, Illinois, before settling in St. Anthony, MN, in July of the following year. He and his wife were the area's first German settlers.
Orth built a brewery near the Mississippi River shortly after he and his wife arrived in the area. The first beer the company produced was made on November 1, 1850. Located at 1228 Marshall Ave NE, the small 18' x 30' wooden structure was the first commercial brewery in Hennepin County and the second in Minnesota, behind Saint Paul's Yoerg Brewing Company.
As Orth established his brewery in the nascent lumber town, he and his wife began growing their family. Their eldest son, John W., was born on September 9, 1850, the first of six children—four boys and two girls—born over the next eleven years. Sadly, their second son, Charles, died at the age of seven. On December 17, 1850, an ad Orth ran in the Minnesota Democrat formally announced the brewery's opening and lauded the superior taste of its product. Because the brewery was in a Yankee settlement with few Germans, it initially featured ale and porter beer rather than lager.
The family lived nearby at 1207 (1211) Marshall Street, N.E., and each adult son eventually worked at the brewery in some capacity. Success came quickly—the initial output of two-and-a-half barrels lasted the townspeople of St. Anthony less than a month. By the following year, production had grown to 300 barrels annually. To support expansion, cellars were dug into the nearby sandstone on the north end of Nicollet Island to cool and store beer during the fermentation and conditioning phases.
Output grew throughout the decade due to population growth and increased demand, surpassing 1,000 barrels a year by 1860. In 1861, a larger facility replaced the original brewery. The small wood-frame building was removed, and a three-story brewhouse with a stone first story and wooden upper levels was built in its place. Orth's beer continued to gain popularity, and was 'in good demand in the Minnesota Valley' by the early 1870s.
He was politically active during his tenure as a brewery owner. In 1855, Orth was elected from St. Anthony's first ward to serve on its first city council. A committed abolitionist and an early member of the Minnesota Republican Party, he grew frustrated as the party increasingly supported temperance and switched to the Democratic Party. In 1872, after Minneapolis annexed a portion of St. Anthony, he served two terms on its new city council.
That year Orth reported in the local paper that he anticipated producing 4,000 barrels of beer. Technological advances and population growth helped push production to nearly 7,000 barrels by the decade's end. By 1880, the brewery was producing over 11,000 barrels. On June 1, 1883, the brewery, now at 1228 Marshall, was incorporated as the John Orth Brewing Company, with a reported capital worth of $200,000. Orth was the company's president, and his sons each took roles on its Board of Directors.
By the mid-1880s, he had stepped away from the day-to-day operation of the brewery. In November 1886, he and his wife took an extended vacation through Europe, Algiers, and North Africa, where Orth contracted hay fever and became violently ill. In early June 1887, during their return home, Orth suffered paralysis in New York City. Despite this, they continued. On June 15, 1887, Orth died near Chicago while on a passenger railroad toward Minneapolis. He was sixty-six years old, and after his death, his sons carried on the operation of the brewery.
During this period, the brewery industry was consolidating. While U.S. production had grown 81% since 1880, the number of breweries decreased by 43%, driven by new federal liquor taxes, increased competition, and foreign investment. In July 1890, the John Orth Brewing Company, Heinrich Brewing Association, Germania Brewing Association, and F.D. Nuremberg Brewing Association merged to form the Minneapolis Brewing Company. Orth's son, John W., was named president.
In July 1892, a massive, modern facility with a peak brewing capacity of 150,000 barrels annually was constructed at 1215 NE Marshall Street, on the site of the old Orth brewery.