Schoenhofen Brewing Company
| Company type | Private |
|---|---|
| Industry | Brewing |
| Founded | 1861 in Chicago, Illinois, United States |
| Founder | Peter Schoenhofen, Matheus Gottfried |
| Fate | Acquired by National Brewing Company after Prohibition; brand discontinued in 1951 |
| Headquarters | Chicago , United States |
| Products | Edelweiss beer, Green River soda |
The Peter Schoenhofen Brewing Company was an American brewery established in 1861 by Peter Schoenhofen and Matheus Gottfried in Chicago's Pilsen district. The firm gained recognition primarily for its Edelweiss beer brand and the Green River soda.
History
During the 1850s, Peter Schoenhofen, a Prussian immigrant, began his career in Illinois' brewing sector. He initially collaborated with Mueller Brothers in Lyons before joining the Conrad Seipp brewery in Chicago. In 1861, Schoenhofen and Matheus Gottfried launched a brewery located at Jefferson and 12th Streets in Chicago. Annual production was roughly 600 barrels until 1867, when Schoenhofen purchased Gottfried’s share, moved operations to a larger plant at 18th Street and Canalport Avenue, and renamed the company after himself. By 1868, output had grown to over 10,000 barrels.
The company experienced continuous growth, culminating in the construction of a powerhouse in 1902 designed by Hugh Garden that employed a natural spring as its water source for brewing. By 1910, annual production exceeded one million barrels, largely fueled by the popularity of Edelweiss beer.
In 1919, Schoenhofen obtained the recipe for Green River soda from Richard C. Jones. The success of Green River enabled the company to survive Prohibition, during which sections of the brewery were repurposed into grain storage facilities serving adjacent rail yards.
After Prohibition ended, the brewery was acquired by the National Brewing Company, which resumed producing Edelweiss beer alongside Green River soda. In the late 1940s, Atlas Brewing took ownership of the facility and discontinued Edelweiss production in 1951 to focus on Drewry's Beer, marking the end of the Schoenhofen brand.
In 1978, the brewery location was recognized as the Schoenhofen Brewery Historic District and added to the National Register of Historic Places.