History: Emery O. Walker
Emery Osgood Walker brewed in Portland and Saco. Walker was born in Portland in November 1844, but then lived with his family on a farm in Livermore, in central Maine, until around 1852. The Walkers then moved to Portland, where his father, Benjamin F. Walker [link], began brewing. Emery served in the Civil War, enlisting […]
History: Benjamin F. Walker
Benjamin F. Walker was one of the more persistent brewers in nineteenth century Maine, judging by the historical record. He started brewing small beer at 46 Portland Street (around 98 Portland Street today), with Tristram Walker. Benjamin moved his operation about a block away to 25 Adler Street (approximately 41 Adler by today’s numbering) in […]
History: Tristram Walker
Tristram Walker, an erstwhile porter and “hack driver” at the Depot Hotel, started brewing commercially at his house on 46 Portland Street in 1852. He was about thirty years old. By 1856, he had turned the business over to Benjamin F. Walker at the same address. Tristram moved to Chesterville, in central Maine, where […]
History: The Depot Hotel
John Walker owned and operated the short-lived Depot Hotel, located across Commercial Street from the Portland, Saco & Portsmouth Railroad. He built a brewhouse in the basement of the hotel, ca. 1851. The forty-one-year-old Walker owned $1200 in real estate. While operating the hotel, Walker was also trying to sell his property in the village […]
History: Asahel Penniman
Penniman lived and worked on Sea Street in Rockland, which ran from Main Street to the water. He is believed to have brewed small beer. His occupations are variously listed, between 1868 and 1880, as a proprietor of a confectionary and fruit store, a saloon keeper, a bottler of mineral water, and a grocer — […]
History: J. Parlin Wyman
Wyman was a beer manufacturer on Front Street in Waterville. It appears that he began his operation in 1879. He then moved to 3 Mechanic Square and continued brewing for a time. After 1886, he no longer advertised beer sales, as he is listed only as a soda manufacturer after that point. See the location […]
History: L. R. Marsh
Marsh brewed small beer for a short period of time in the mid to late 1870s in Waterville. An 1871 directory lists an L. R. Marsh as a confectioner in Lincoln. No other record of his life or business has been found.
History: Robert W. Armour
Armour was born ca. 1826 in England. He traveled from Liverpool aboard the Harvest Queen, arriving in New York City on September 5, 1857. He worked as a shoemaker as late as 1870 before moving from Trenton to Waterville, where he began his brewing venture. Armour brewed small and hop beers from his location on […]
History: Charles T. Gardner
Gardner was born in Maine in 1838 to parents who themselves were also born in Maine. Before venturing into brewing, he was a farmhand in nearby Sidney. Gardner (also spelled Gardiner) manufactured beer at 4 Main Street in Waterville. His operation ran from 1879 until 1883, at which point he discontinued his brewing venture in […]
History: Sumner A. Wheeler
The Wheelers brewed small beer on Silver Street in Waterville from 1875 until 1883. Sumner A. Wheeler, Sr. was born in about 1801 in Massachusetts. Sumner Jr. was born in about 1834 in Maine. Like most brewers of the time, the Wheelers were jacks of many trades. Census records track Senior’s occupations from being a […]