# Leisy  Peoria, Ill.



## logueb (Oct 7, 2010)

I posted this one on the Ol Dump Thread a while back, but have had no luck finding any history on this one.  Thought that Plumbata  might have seen this one back in Peoria.  Probably real common there, but was a first for me.  Any info would be appreciated.   "Leisy" on one side and "Peoria, Ill. " on otther side .Buster.


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## logueb (Oct 7, 2010)

close up


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## Plumbata (Oct 7, 2010)

Cool Leisy Beer Buster! the Leisy brewery was in operation between 1884 and 1919 and was a rather massive brewery in this area, its facilities being absorbed eventually by Pabst which had a plant in Peoria Heights until the early 1980s. The Leisy family had a mansion built on Grandview Drive which is a road at the top of the west bluff of the Illinois river, termed "The World's most beautiful drive" by Theodore Roosevelt. You can see for miles at certain spots up there. Rumor has it that there was a tunnel from the mansion to the river that was used for smuggling spirits during prohibition. Gotta make that money, lol. Last I heard the family's fortune was worth around 80 million, so they made it last.

 That looks like a picnic size export beer and probably dates no earlier than 1912 or 1913 or so. It is worth 3-5 bucks around here because they are indeed common (not as common as the 12 ounce ones), but people buy them up because of their connection to the rich brewing and distilling history of this area. They come in a range of colors including ball blue and amber, I think, though that may just be for the small ones.


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## logueb (Oct 8, 2010)

Thanks Stephen.  Dummy me,[8|] I realized that I was googling the name incorrectly and that was the reason I was coming up zilch on the info.  Here's an interesting tid bit of info.  Seems like the Leisys invested all that money from the brewery and invested it into real estate.  Wow!! wouldn't you like to be one of the lucky three employees?

 Leisy Brewing Co Inc is a private company categorized under Operators of Nonresidential Buildings and located in Peoria, IL. Our records show it was established in 1895 and incorporated in Illinois. Current estimates show this company has an annual revenue of 10,000,000 and employs a staff of approximately 3.


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## surfaceone (Oct 9, 2010)

Hey Buster,

 The Leisy family began brewing in Iowa, When Iowa went Dry in 1884, they moved operations to Cleveland, Ohio, and Peoria Illinois. Separate branches of the family ran each operation, as unique corporations. They brewed a "Budweiser" style beer in the Czech tradition. There's some hhistory here.




From. 

 Here's a book for the dedicated Leisy student: 
	

	
	
		
		

		
		
	


	


A History of the Leisy Brewing Companies by Bruce R. Leisy 
From. 




From.

 "EDWARD C. LEISY. Edward C. Leisy is perhaps most widely known outside of Peoria as the president of the Leisy Brewing Company, but in the city his work has included not only the upbuilding of this mammoth enterprise but extended also to other fields whereby Peoria has largely profited. He is the builder of some of the finest structures of the city and has again and again shown his faith in Peoria by placing his investments in business projects here. His sound judgment and enterprise are forces which overcome difficulties and obstacles, and he has at all times been able to coordinate seemingly diverse elements into a unified and harmonious whole.
      Mr. Leisy was born in Keokuk, Iowa, November 16, 1859, and, as the family name indicates, comes of German ancestry. The family record running back two hundred years in Germany shows that throughout this entire period representatives of the name have been connected with the brewing business, and their adaptability thereto comes largely to them through heredity. John Leisy, the father of Edward C. Leisy, left his native land to establish a home in America and resided for some time in Keokuk, Iowa, where he owned and operated a brewery. He was also at one time connected with the brewing business in Cleveland, Ohio, under the name of the Isaac Leisy Brewing Company. The thorough training which he received in Germany well qualified him for the successful conduct of the business after coming to the new world. When the family removed to Peoria, Edward C. Leisy purchased the plant which is now conducted, in its enlarged state, under the name of the Leisy Brewing Company. It was in 1884 he purchased the Old City Brewery which had been established in 1849 and was the oldest in the city. In 1890 the Leisy Brewing Company was incorporated, prior to which time the business had been conducted under a partnership relation between Edward C. Leisy, who is now the president, Albert Leisy, secretary and treasurer; John Leisy, vice president and Gustave Leisy, who at present is not connected with the business. These gentlemen are brothers and have continued in the line of trade which was the ancestral business of the family through many generations. When John Leisy, the father, came to the new world he brought with him between thirty-two and thirty-three thousand dollars in gold. He therefore had no difficulty in establishing himself in business on this side of the Atlantic, and under his guidance his sons were trained to the work in which he had been so carefully reared.
      Edward C. Leisy spent his youthful days under the parental roof and acquainted himself with the business in his father's establishment. He has been identified with brewing interests in Peoria since the purchase, in 1884, of what is now the Leisy Brewery. From the beginning success has attended the under taking here and the firm today does the largest brewing business in the state outside of Chicago, their plant having a capacity of two hundred and fifty thousand barrels annually. Their barrel and keg trade has been extended throughout the states of Illinois, Iowa and Missouri, while their bottle products are shipped throughout the west to the Pacific coast, one firm in Los Angeles, California, handling nothing but the Leisy goods. To provide for their growing bottle trade the company, in 1910, erected at a cost of fifty thousand dollars, an extensive addition to their bottling plant, and equipped it with the latest improved machinery, including two machines which fill, cork and label ninety bottles a minute each. During the busy season this plant runs night and day and turns out over four hundred thousand bottles in the twenty-four hours. The beer is bottled from enameled storage tanks under government supervision in a two story brick building absolutely fire proof. In shipments by the barrel and keg the business has reached a corresponding ratio, and the Leisy Brewing Company controls the biggest switching interest on the Rock Island track, distributing twenty-eight carloads daily. They employ three hundred and sixty people and pay out annually two hundred thousand dollars in salaries. For the accommodation of the trade in this city and agencies seventy-five wagons and one hundred and sixty horses are used. The plant is a most extensive one, including a number of buildings, and the business transacted each year approximates two million dollars. The upbuilding of this mammoth enterprise is due to Edward C. Leisy and his associates, and yet this does not cover the scope of his business activities. In many other connections Peoria has profited by the labors, enterprise and ability of Mr. Leisy, who is a director of the Merchants National Bank and also of the Home Savings and State Bank of Peoria. He is president of the Jefferson Deposit Company, owner of the Jefferson building, which is the finest and largest office building in the city, and a director of the new Jefferson hotel which has just been completed and is the finest hotel in the state outside of Chicago. The Jefferson building is a strictly modern steel structure twelve stories in height with attractive interior finishings and most modern equipment. Metal and marble have been used in the interior decoration and mosaic tiled floors. The building contains over four hundred stores and office rooms and is occupied by the Home Savings and State Banks, the Peoria Journal and many other of the leading business concerns of the city. It represents an investment of seven hundred and fifty thousand dollars, and stands as a perpetual monument of the enterprise of the man who erected it. After the destruction of the Grand Opera House by fire Edward C. Leisy and his brothers began the erection of the Orpheum Theater on Madison street, which was completed, equipped and furnished at a cost of two hundred and fifty thousand dollars and will compare with the finest theatrical structures in the middle west. All this indicates how largely Edward C. Leisy has been identified with the improvement and upbuilding of the city and how important has been his work in its behalf.
      In 1893 Edward C. Leisy was united in marriage to Miss Emma Welte, of Peoria, a daughter of Ferdinand Welte, and they have four children, Florence, Lucile, Lena and Elizabeth. Mr. Leisy stands for all that is of general interest to the Peoria public and is now president and largely the financial backer of the Peoria Baseball Club. He belongs to the Schiller Lodge of Masons and to the Redman Camp and is also a member of the Creve Coeur and the Country Clubs. Speaking of the Leisy brothers one of the local papers said, "They are men with brains, and with the constantly increasing capital at their command have ideas that extend beyond their original business and make for a city beautiful." They are still in the prime of life, and what they have done is an example of what they will continue to do. Their future is rich in hope and the promise of still greater achievements. (Peoria, City and County, Illinois (1912) by James M. Rice, pages 20-22, submitted by Janine Crandell)" From the comprehensive Biographies of Peoria County People.






 "#1
 Aqua Blue
 Pint
 Export
 Tooled Crown
 Plate Mold" 
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 "#2
 Aqua Green
 Quart
 Export
 Tooled Crown
 Plate Mold" 
 ***************** 
	

	
	
		
		

		
		
	


	




 "#3
 Amber
 Quart
 Export
 Tooled Crown
 Plate Mold" Thanks to Bruce Mobley.

 "Edward and Albert Leisy's Brewery was founded in 1884 and remained in operation until the Prohibition Act of 1920. The brewery was then sold to the Premier Malt Company, which eventually became associated with the Pabst Brewing Company. Pabst built a large plant in Peoria Heights in 1933 that remained there until 1982." From.

 There was quite a bit of information available on the Leisys, and I didn't even go into the Cleveland stuff. If you're already feeling the effects of Leisy overload, stop now...

 "John Leisy, the Keokuk representative of the Leisy Brewing Company, of Peoria, Illinois, of which he is a partner, was born in this city, March 17, 1862, his parents being John and Christina (Showalter) Leisy. The father was born in Germany, July 4, 1835, and came to America in the year 1856, settling at Franklin Prairie. Lee county, Iowa, where he engaged in farming for one or two years. He then removed to Keokuk and forming a partnership, established a brewery conducted under the name' of Eaehr & Leisy Brothers, his. brother Isaac being also interested in the business. There were several brothers of the family who came to the United States, most of them after John Leisy's arrival, namely: Abraham, Jacob, 'August, Isaac, Rudolph and Henry. Isaac Leisy afterward became the proprietor of an extensive brewery in Cleveland, Ohio, while Abraham and Jacob became residents of Lee county, Iowa, and Abraham is yet living near Dover, this state. Rudolph, Henry and August Leisy went to Nebraska and were stock dealers and bankers, of Wisner.

 Unto John and Christina (Showalter) Leisy were born four sons and a daughter: Gustav,' Edward, John, Lena, wife of Jacob Schwellbacher, of Peoria. The father, John Leisy, Sr., died in 1873, and following his demise his brother, Randolph, managed the business in Keokuk. Gustav, Edward and John Leisy, of this review, entered the brewery as soon as old enough, learned the business in every detail, and as soon as able took charge of the plant, which they conducted with success until the Prohibition law went into effect, when the brewery was closed down. The brothers went to Peoria, Illinois, in June, 1884, and there established a large brewing plant under the name of the Leisy Brewing Company, and since the 4th of July of that year John Leisy has had charge of the distributing depot at Keokuk. He is a partner with his brothers in the business, which has become a profitable enterprise, with a large annual output and profitable sales.

 Mr. Leisy was married October 8, 1901, to Margaret Weisemann, a daughter of Charles and Anna Weisemann.

 WILLS & PROBATES
 LEISY, JOHN (JOHANNES) LEISY, JOHN (JOHANNES) SELF 191 
 LEISY, JOHN (JOHANNES) LEISY, CHRISTINA (SCHOWALTER) EXECUTOR AND WIFE 191 
 LEISY, JOHN (JOHANNES) SCHOWALTER, CHRISTINA GUARDIAN FOR CHILDREN 191 
 LEISY, JOHN (JOHANNES) SCHOWALTER, CHRISTIAN GUARDIAN FOR CHILDREN (MINISTER) 191 
 LEISY, JOHN W. LEISY, JOHN W. SELF 191 
 LEISY, JOHN W. LEISY, MARGARET EXECUTOR AND WIFE 191 
 LEISY, JOHN W. WIESEMANN, MARGARET NIECE 191 
 LEISY, JOHN W. WIESEMANN, FRED BROTHER-IN-LAW 191 
 LEISY, JOHN W. LEISY, GUS BROTHER 191 
 LEISY, JOHN W. LEISY,EDWARD BROTHER 191 
 LEISY, JOHN W. WIESEMANN, ANNA (MRS) ? 191 

 1959 CITY DIRECTORY
 LAST NAME/FIRST NAME - OCCUPATION - ADDRESS
 LEISY Jno. (Bachr & L) h n w c 13th & Johnson

 OBITUARY
 LEISY, John Keokuk, Iowa Sep 25 1873 

 1901 KEOKUK CITY DIRECTORY
 LEISY BREWING CO.. John Leisy agt. 1301 Johnson, both phones 84.
 LEISY JOHN, agt Leisy Brewing Co, r 1301 Johnson.

 DEATH CERTIFICATE
 Leisy, John; w, Margaret; Mar 17, 1862 - Jan 19, 1931; c. Keokuk, Iowa" From.


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## logueb (Oct 11, 2010)

Thanks Surfaceone. That's the kind of info that helps put a date on  a bottle.  Looks like the Leisy clan had a large brewing operation before prohibition.  From the layer that this one came out of in the dump, appears to be around 1919.  Thanks again for the history on this brewing company.


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