OLD 1950s STEGMAIER’S GOLD MEDAL BEER ADVERTISING TRAY ~ WILKES-BARRE, PA ~ COOL

Description

OLD 1950s STEGMAIER’S GOLD MEDAL BEER ADVERTISING TRAY ~ WILKES-BARRE, PA ~ CLEAN!
This week on Ebay we are offering up this very cool old Stegmaiers Brewing Company beer tray.
The tray is the typical 12” size with a 1” lip. Condition is quite nice for a tray this old. No significant damage or major blemishes.
There are a couple of very small, very light, early rough spots starting to show. The worst of this can be seen at the far left and very bottom. It’s not that bad, but should be pointed out. The rest of the tray looks great, great colors and displays great.
The ‘dings’ are quite small and don’t really detract from this cool old tray. I added close-up high resolution pictures of the areas so you can see them better. I tried to give photos from all angles. The underside is chocolate brown and clean with no major scratches or dings.
Some very light early ageing is noted but it displays great and has terrific character. I tried to give high resolution photos of all angles of the tray so you can see its condition. I gave detailed photos of the worst spots, but they’re not bad at all. I washed it off with soap and water but did not try to address any of the minor wear that the tray may have. I’ll leave that up to the winning bidder.
Overall, the tray looks great and displays great.
It’s a very nice piece to add to your collection.
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THE HISTORY OF THE STEGMAIER BEWING COMPANY
Like so many American brewers of the late 1800s, Charles Stegmaier, left Germany and moved to America. He settled in Philadelphia. His brewing skills got him a job with the Corporation Brewery there in Philly. He went on to work at the Louis Bergdoll Brewery, also in Philly, where he met John Reichard who owned a brewery, Reichard & Weaver, in nearby Wilkes-Barre. Charles moved to Wilkes-Barre, worked at several local breweries, and then decided to open his own Bottling business.
He soon realized more money was to be made brewing and bottling his own beer, rather than selling bottles to other breweries. Teaming up with his father-in-law, George Baer, the Baer & Stegmaier Brewery was started in 1857 down on South Canal Street. In those early days, Charles Stegmaier personally delivered each barrel of beer with a wagon drawn by a husky goat. Both the beer and the goat became locally popular.
The Brewery expanded and was quite popular. As was common in that mountainous part of Pennsylvania, they stored their beer bottles in an abandoned coal mine tunnel, saving on refrigeration. They stored up enough stock to keep them in sales while they built a new, bigger, modern Brewery over on Market Street.
It opened in 1863. The brewery was temporary owned by financiers during the Economic Panic of 1873.
After the financial crisis passed, Charles purchased the Joel Bowkley Brewery and luckily by 1880 Charles and his son, Christian, were able to re-purchase the old Bauer & Stegmaier brewery and begin growing the business under the new name C. Stegmaier & Son. Business then rose steadily and they incorporated as Stegmaier Brewing Co. in 1897.
Stegmaier’s beer was very popular in Wilkes-Barre and the region. Many felt it was the best beer made in the area. Between 1910 and 1913 Stegmaier won 8 gold medals at expositions in Paris, Brussels, Vienna and Rome. This recognition caused sales to take off and they started calling their primary product Stegmaier’s Gold Medal Beer. Their advertising and labels proudly showed a group of the medals they won.
Sales took off further despite a bump caused by the depression and prohibition. After prohibition, Stegmaiers became one of the largest independent breweries in North America, reaching an output of a half million barrels in 1940. By using an innovative fleet of refrigerated trucks and rail cars, Stegmaier’s was soon sold all over the east coast. Their advertising slogan was “Brewed to the Taste of the Nation.”
The brand continued success thru the 50s and 60s, but by the 1970s it was having trouble competing with the big giant breweries. In 1974, Stegmaiers closed and was acquired by local competitors Lion Brewery of Wilkes-Barre.
The Stegmaier brand continued for several years but the original beer that was locally favored and won all those gold medals was gone.
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This is a beautiful vintage Gold Stegmaiers Beer tray. It dates from about 1953 when this style of label and advertising was used.
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This is a very cool 1950s Stegmaier’s Gold Medal Beer tray that would look great in your collection or man-cave. A great example of mid-Century Modern advertising design that is becoming all the rage for interior designers now. Vintage beer tray advertising art has suddenly become cool again.
I think the tray looks terrific. It has authenticity and character and displays great.
Please look at all the pictures. They are part of the description and show the condition and details better than I can explain with words.
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