Jacksonville's Own JAX Beer - HMBS
Jacksonville's Own JAX Beer by Lisa Lofton
he last brewery built in the country before Prohibition.
The History of the Jacksonville Brewing Company
Married to the daughter of Jacob Schorr of Schorr-Kolkschneider Brewing Company of St. Louis, with the help of the Schorr family, William Ostner broke ground with the Jacksonville Brewing Company in 1913. The first brew from Ostner’s 30,000-barrel-a-year brewery hit the market on May 16, 1914. By the time Jacksonville went dry in 1918, the brewery’s employment was up to 243, and its debts had been retired. The brewery’s name was changed to the Jax Ice and Cold Storage Company during Prohibition. The beer production was replaced with Velvet Brand ice cream, Florida Export, Old Fashioned Dark “near beer,” and the bottling of root beer and ginger ale. Anticipating the end of prohibition, brewing capacity was expanded four months before the passage of the 21st Amendment, enabling Ostner to hit the ground running in 1933.
In 1940, the company’s name was changed to the Jax Brewing Company, and by 1943, production had increased to 100,348 barrels annually. By the 1950s, its Jax Beer label and trademark cockatoo dominated the Florida, Georgia, and South Carolina drinking scenes. Other brands included Ostner’s Lager Beer, Ostner’s Sparkling Ale, Ostner’s Stout, Hi Jax Beer, Jax Export Beer, Mecca Pale Beer, Jax Ale, Jax Brock, Royal Palm Beer, Fine’s Sparkling Ale, Peninsula Ale, Rhein King Beer. Due to the high cost of aluminum cans and the rising revenues of Jax Brewing’s cold storage operation, Ostner’s son sold his Jax Beer copyright to New Orleans-based Jackson Brewing Company in 1956.
The company was eventually sold to a brewery in Louisiana.
EXHIBITION AND SALES INFORMATION:
This piece is part of the Happy Medium Book Cafe Art Exhibition at 2724 Park St, in Riverside from March 5th - May 26th, 2024. This piece can be bought online, and your purchase may be picked up from the Happy Medium Book Cafe or at the TAC Gallery upon notification of it being ready. Please join us for a wonderful reception to be held on April 7th, 2024, from 2-4pm. Food, Drinks, and ART will all be provided, and the artists will be available for questions.
Details
Artist Lisa Lofton
22 x 28 Framed
Acrylic on Canvas
- Colors of the art may differ slightly from the original. Computer monitor color display settings differ; please call the gallery with any questions.
- Size includes frame in the dimensions if applicable.
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