BOURBON WHISKEY - Distillery District

BOURBON WHISKEY
Bourbon (bou’ r’ bon) – 1.) “The Whiskey That Made Kentucky Famous”
and 2.) a whiskey distilled primarily from corn and aged in charred oak barrels.
Bourbon whiskey distilling has remained fundamentally unchanged for the
past two hundred years. Distilling can be broken down into four steps. Industry
terms and modern legal requirements are highlighted in bold and italics,
respectively.
Step One – Raw Materials:
Each distiller has a grain or mash bill made of different proportions of
distiller’s grains - corn, rye, wheat and malted barley. The exact formula is often
a family secret (passed down through generations) and is proprietary. Bourbon
whiskey must contain at least fifty-one (51%) percent but not more than eighty
(80%) percent of corn. In most cases corn will represent around seventy (70%)
percent of the grain bill. For rye whiskey the corn is replaced by rye.
The bulk grains are fed into a roller mill, where they are ground into a
coarse meal. By law no coloring or flavoring agents can be added to the natural
ingredients.
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Step Two – Mashing & Fermentation:
The meal is mixed with limestone water and cooked at around one
hundred twenty degrees in a large vessel called the mash tub. Limestone water is
pure, naturally filtered through the regions’ limestone basin - high in calcium
(hardness) and free of iron. This is ideal distilling water. As the mixture is
cooled, the distiller adds malted barley. This cooked liquid is known as sweet
mash. This process converts the starches contained in the grains into fermentable
or soluble sugars.
The distiller adds yeast to the sweet mash. Yeast converts the soluble
sugars into alcohol during fermentation over the next three to five days. This
process takes place in fermentation tubs. For the sour mash process, a portion
of the previous mash is added to the next day’s batch. This is called setback.
This preserves the flavors of the whiskey by blending a batch with the one before
and then the one after. This maintains a consistent pH levels. After fermentation
is completed, the finished liquid - distiller’s beer - is then consolidated into a
large tank called the beer well.
Step Three – Distillation:
The distiller’s beer is then heated to near boiling and passed through the
whiskey still. The alcohol, which is more volatile (boils at a lower temperature
than water), is carried off with the steam and condensed in the condenser or still
baffle. This liquid is low proof whiskey and known as low wine. The low wine
are then redistilled in the doubler into high wine. The high wine is then adjusted
to the desired proof by adding distilled water and stored in the finished whiskey
tanks. Proofa is the scale for measurement of alcohol content and denoted at
a
Early distillers measured the strength of whiskey by mixing gunpowder with whiskey and then
setting it on fire. If the flame burned blue it was “proven” or roughly fifty percent alcohol. If it
failed to ignite it was too weak and if it burned with a yellow flame it was too strong.
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exactly twice the percentage. One hundred proof would equal fifty percent
alcohol. For bourbon, it must be distilled at less than one hundred sixty proof and
racked into barrels with an entry proof of less than one hundred twenty five.
The new whiskey (a clear liquid) is then racked into new white oak charred
barrels and sealed with a wooden dowel, called a bung. A barrel contains fiftythree gallons of new whiskey. The charring converts a portion of the wood to
charcoal and provides the new whiskey with its caramel color. As whiskey ages the
harshness is slowly dissipated and the mellow flavors develop.
Step Four – Maturation or Aging:
The filled barrels are then stored in a bonded warehouse, under
government supervision. Over the first year, roughly six percent will be lost due
to evaporation and leakage. Thereafter, approximately three percent will be lost
annually. This lost is known as the angels’ share. Straight and bonded whiskies
are aged a minimum of two years and four years, respectively. Most bourbon is
aged from four to eight years. Used or seasoned barrels are not reused for
bourbon, but may be used for other whiskies.
After the aging period is finished, the whiskey is then withdrawn from
the warehouse and the barrels are then dumped in the guaging room. The
whiskey is then filtered and any adjustments made to the proof by adding distilled
water. The finished whiskey is bottled and the excise taxes paid. A proof gallon
is one gallon of whiskey at one hundred proof.
To qualify as Kentucky Bourbon the whiskey must be distilled and
stored in the Commonwealth for at least one year. To qualify as Bottled in Bond
the whiskey must be made at the distillery where it is bottled, aged for four years
and bottled at one hundred proof. Bourbon is not bottled at less than eighty proof.
Single batch bourbon is bottled from a single barrel and small batch bourbon is
bottled from a select few barrels.
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The Whiskey Trade
Many claims have been made regarding who was the first distiller in
Kentucky. However, from available records, the first Kentucky distiller is not
known, but it is known that the first settlers converted their corn into whiskey.
William Calk, who settled in Boonsboro in 1775, is records as owning distilling
equipment. In 1776 Stephen Ritchie is recorded as distilling whiskey in Nelson
County. Also, among the earlier distillers were Jacob Meyers and Jacob Forman
of Lincoln County, Marsham Brashear of Jefferson County, Elijah Craig of Scott
County and Jacob Spears of Bourbon County.1 Evan Williams is credited with the
first commercial distillery, founded in Jefferson County in 1783. The first known
distiller in Fayette County was Daniel Stewart of Masterson Station (four miles
from Lexington). In June 1789 he advertised “For Sale, a Copper Still of 120
Gallons Capacity, with a Good Copper and Pewter Worm”.2
In 1792 Kentucky was admitted to the new union and considered at the
time to be the western frontier of the new United States. Kentucky whiskey was
commonly known as “Western Whiskey” to distinguish it from the rye based
whiskies from the east. During this period, whiskey was used as a form of
moneya and many a farm or thoroughbreds were bartered using jugs or barrels of
whiskey.
According to legend, a Baptist minister named Elijah Craig acquired a
number of used oak barrels to store his distilled whiskey. Reverend Craig is
rumored to have burned the insides of these barrels to avoid cleaning the remnants
out. Unknown to him, the fire had converted the linings of these barrels into
charcoal. The raw liquor he stored in these barrels turned out to have smooth,
distinctive characteristics and a rich caramel brown color. Soon thereafter, other
distillers shipped their whiskey in charred oak barrels.
In reality, charring or burning the inside of oak barrels was a common
practice used to clean and sterilize the barrels interior. For centuries, cognac was
produced in charred barrels. Oak barrels also were common for shipping and
storage of a sundry of items; ranging from dry good (such as flour) to nails and
horseshoes. These barrels were often reused for other purposes.
In the 1790s the Federal government imposed an excise tax of $.09 cents
per gallon to pay the costs of the American Revolution. During 1794 resistance in
a
Prior to the Civil War (and the development of Federal “Greenbacks”), coins and banknotes
(often drawn on questionable institutions) were the only money supply.
4
Pennsylvania to the collection of Federal Excise Tax resulted in Federal troops
being deployed by President Washington. In Kentucky, a number of distillers
ignored payment and by 1800 amount two hundred distillers were convicted of
failure to pay the tax. The tax was eventually repealed.3
By 1810 over two thousand distilleries were operating in Kentucky, with at
least one hundred forty distilleries in and around Lexington. Colonel James E.
Pepper, a noted Kentucky distiller, stated during the pioneer period “a small kettle
and a worm [still] placed alongside his cabin were almost as essential of the farmer’s
household equipment as a fail for his grain and a plow for his land.” He continued
“in nearly every family liquor was a daily article of consumption, and the brown jug
an indispensable adjunct to labor on every occasion.”4
Transportation limitations and expenses restricted a distiller’s market area to
his immediate vicinity. Whiskey sales were based upon the reputation of the
distiller. Quality control was also limited based upon the experience of the distiller
and adverse weather conditions. Hence, the usage of “Old” indicated quality from
longevity and experience. The term also was applied to whiskey that was aged.
In 1821 the firm of Stout and Adams of Maysville placed an advertisement for
“Bourbon whiskey by the barrel or keg.” This is the first recorded usage of the
name.5 Bourbon Whiskey was named after Bourbon Countya, Kentucky, home to
many early distilleries. Bourbon County was named after the royal family of
France. Most of the whiskey was shipped from Limestone or Shipping Portb, then
major ports on the Ohio River, to New Orleans. It is assumed that many of these
barrels were marked as being made in Bourbon County, later shorten to Bourbon. In
addition, giver the French influences in New Orleans this name selection was good
marketing.
For the next several decades, the distilling industry was composed primarily
of small proprietorships and partnerships. These distilleries had limited production –
usually enough for family and friends.
In 1833 Oscar Pepper hired Dr. James Christopher Crow as Master Distiller of
his family distillery Glassy Spring Branch of Glenn’s Creek, Woodford County,
a
Bourbon County was one of the three original counties of Kentucky. Eventually thirty-four
counties were designated from the original Bourbon County.
b
Limestone is now known as Maysville, Mason County, Kentucky and Shipping Port is now part
of Louisville, Jefferson County, Kentucky.
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Kentucky. This distillery still operates today as the Woodford Reserve Distillery.
Dr. Crow was a physician trained in Edinbrough, Scotland. Dr. Crow brought a
scientific approach to distilling – using the hydrometer, saccharimeter (alcohol
measurer) and thermometer to study fermentation. He was the first to perfect the
sour mash process – where a portion of the “sour” stillage from the prior day was
mashed with the next day. This created consistency between batches by balancing
the pH. It was noted “this Scottish chemist was able to produce a superior whisky
commanding 25 cents a gallon, or considerable more than the normal price of that
day.”6
Scientific Instruments, circa 1850s
<M. Veach>
Henry Clay, noted Kentucky Senator, would annually ship a barrel of Crow’s
whiskey to Washington “to lubricate the wheels of government.” Other famous
customers included Andrew Jackson, John C. Calhoun, Ulysses S. Grant, William
Henry Harrison and Daniel Webster. “Old Crow Bourbon” was named in his honor.
By the 1840s, Kentucky distilleries were able to expand by using the
paddlewheel steamboats to ship barrels down the Ohio and Mississippi Rivers.
Kentucky whiskey established a strong following in the South, especially in New
Orleans. Around this period, corn whiskey from Kentucky became commonly
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known as Bourbon Whiskey. By the 1860s the advances in transportation from the
expanding network of railroads made it economically feasible to ship whiskey
anywhere in the United States. In addition, steamships made it possible to ship
whiskey anywhere in the world.
Whiskey Being Loaded on Steamboat
<M. Veach>
Civil War & Industry Development:
During the Civil War, the Internal Revenue Act of 1862 authorized the Federal
government to impose a temporary excise tax on distilled sprits. This tax was signed
into law by President Lincoln to finance the war. The tax was originally $.20 per
gallon (but increased to $2.00 per gallon by 1865) and due at the time of distilling.
This temporary tax – for some unknown reason – is still being collection to this day.
Between the Civil War and Prohibition, excise taxes accounted for twenty-five to
fifty percent of the Federal budget.
Distilleries were required to register with the Federal government – Kentucky
was divided into eight districts, with Central Kentucky assigned to the Seventh
District.a Every distillery was assigned a Register Distillery (“RD”) number within
each district.
a
Central Kentucky, including Bourbon (Paris), Clark (Winchester), Fayette (Lexington), Franklin
(Frankfort), Montgomery (Mt. Sterling) and Woodford (Versailles) Counties.
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This act also authorized a distiller to construct a “bonded warehouse” on its
premises to store whiskey. These warehouses were built to government
specifications; including the requirement to have iron bars on the windows and doors
secured with padlocks. Two sets of padlocks were used – one for the government
and one for the distiller. This kept both honest. These padlocks were sealed with
special seals or stamps to prevent tampering.
The distiller was required to put up a surety bond (cash, property or acceptable
personal guarantee) to cover payment of these taxes. Distillers were required to
report production and inventory three times per month.
Warehouse Tax Stamp, Series of 1871
Due to this taxation and economic concerns, the smaller distilleries gradually
ceased operating during this period. Larger, commercial distilleries developed, from
shortly before, but mainly after the Civil War. Distilling expanded into a national
industry, establishing "Kentucky Bourbon” as a "gentleman's drink". The period
was the first golden age of distilling - the Ashland, Henry Clay, Commonwealth,
Silver Springs, Woodland and Lexington Distilleries were all established or
reorganized as national distilleries.
These distilleries usually produced whiskies of two types – a rye (made
principally with rye) and bourbon (made principally with corn). In addition, both
types of whiskey could be subdivided into sweet and sour mashes. At this time,
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most distillers did not age the products beyond a year and sold their products only
in barrelsa.
In 1866 the Ashland Distillery was formed in Lexington as the first licensed
distillery. The plant had the capacity of around thirty barrels per day. During the
eight-month production seasonb, they could produce approximately six thousand
barrels of whiskey. Fermentation required temperatures below eighty degrees.
Without a method of refrigeration the mash distilleries closed during the heat of the
summer.
Commercial distilleries required a significant amount of capital to start up and
operate. The initial costs ranged from $35,000 to $50,000 - included the land
($5,000), distillery plant ($10,000 to $15,000), warehouses ($5,000 each) and barrel
inventory ($15,000). Barrels for example cost $2.50 each.
However, the profit margins of these distilleries were in excess of fifty percent
and many concerns doubled or tripled their total investments in three to five years.
For example, the Ashland Distillery could generate annual revenues of around
$150,000.c Operating expenses for the first year could be conservatively estimated at
$100,000 – with raw materials of $40,000, wages of $20,000d, replacement barrels
of $15,000 and overhead of $25,000. This resulted in a net profit of $50,000 or one
hundred percent return on their investment.
Bonded Warehouses:
The Internal Revenue Act of 1868 lowered excise tax to $.50 per gallon. The
Internal Revenue Bureau was established to collect excise taxes on distilled sprints.
Revenue agents, called storekeepers or gaugers, were assigned to every distillery to
supervise payment of taxes. Distillers were authorized to store whiskey for up to
one (later three years) before this tax was due or the whiskey destroyed.
a
Whiskey in barrels or kegs was known as in wood, in bottles as case goods and in jugs as jug
goods.
b
Whiskey production was divided into a fall and spring season, with the year ending in June.
c
New whiskey valued at $25.00 per barrel or $.47 cents per gallon. Cost estimated at $10 per
barrel or $.20 cents per gallon, including the overhead burden.
d
A distiller was paid $1,500 to $3,000 per year. Skilled distiller workers were paid $1.00 to $1.50
per twelve-hour workday.
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No withdraws could be made without the gauger’s approval and collection of
the excise tax. The distillers would periodically rotate and inspect the barrels for
leaks, with the work supervised by the gauger. The gaugers maintained offices at
the distillery.
The act also established labeling requirements for whiskey barrel. The distiller
was required to mark every barrel with its name, type of whiskey, date produced and
serial number. This was known as the government head. This act had the effect of
promoting the aging of whiskey. As whiskey ages the harshness is slowly dissipated
and the mellow flavors develop.
After the excise tax was paid, the distiller would varnish a tax stamp on the
barrelhead. These “tax on the barrelhead” barrels were stored in the free
warehouse, with other tax paid whiskey.
Warehouse Receipt, circa 1900s
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Warehouse Receipts:
After the Civil War, a market developed for receipts issued for “whiskey under
bond” stored in distillery warehouses. The distillery could immediately sell his new
whiskey by issuing warehouse receipts and collected the market value of their
production. These sales would fund the operations of the distiller. Investors could
speculate on the value of bonded whiskey as the whiskey matured. These receipts
were negotiable instruments secured by specific barrels of whiskey pledged as
collateral. These receipts traded like stocks and bonds. The value of these receipts
was based upon the distiller, the age and with the supply and demand for whiskey.
Whiskey receipts were considered prime investments, with banks advancing up to
eighty percent of the value. Banks at the time only advanced fifty percent of the
value of real estate.
Whiskey Jugs – Sizes from a quarter, one-half, one,
two, three, four and five gallons
Whiskey Brokers:
After the Civil War, a number of whiskey brokers were established in
Louisville, Covington and Cincinnati to purchase bulk bourbon whiskey from
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Kentucky distillers and resell the whiskey around the United States. These brokers
developed the distribution system for Kentucky bourbon across the United States.
In Louisville these brokers were located on “Whiskey Row”, adjacent to the
wharves on the Ohio River. These firms shipped whiskey on paddle wheelers, down
the Ohio and Mississippi Rivers to New Orleans and other points along the way.
These brokers also shipped their products by railroads to the frontier out west.
Kentucky Bourbon was available in most western saloons – a number of sheriffs and
outlaws in Dodge City were known to partake.
Many distillers also were partners in these brokerage firms. In Lexington,
distillers controlled the brokerage firms of Stoll, Hamilton Company, Stoll, Vannatta
& Company and J. A. Lail & Company. In addition, the James E. Pepper operated
an agency in New York City.
Many of these dealers were also rectifiers of whiskey. Rectifiers used three
methods to produce whiskey. These were:
1. filter raw whiskey from different sources through charcoal and
add caramelized sugars.
2. redistill raw whiskey to remove harsh flavors and balance with
some aged whiskey.
3. mix natural or grain alcohol with flavoring and coloring agents to
create whiskey. For example, acid provides a bite and brown shoe
polish coloring.
These mixtures were also known as compound whiskey and of questionable quality
(sometimes lethal). Without any legal “truth in labeling” requirements, these
whiskies were often sold as straight whiskey.
Bourbon – Supply & Demand:
Given distilling profitability, after the Civil
War investors established a number of distilleries to
enter the whiskey market. For several years, these
firms generated significant returns on investment,
but periodically production (supply) would exceed
demand and the entire whiskey industry experience
a recession. These recessions limited excess
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Production
Year
1865
June 1869
June 1870
June 1871
June 1872
Annual Output
(Barrels)
80,000
220,000
160,000
105,000
135,000
production and reduced the number of competitors, as the weaker firms failed. Then
the cycle would repeat itself about every ten years.
By 1869, production of whiskey in Kentucky
had tripled over the last four years to over two
hundred thousand barrels. Demand was significant
lower, estimated at around one hundred twenty five
thousand barrels.a In 1870, the whiskey market
entered a severe recession that last about two years.
Bonded
Whiskey
Dec. 1869
Dec. 1870
Dec. 1871
July 1872
Inventory
(Barrels)
140,000
60,000
40,000
60,000
In July 1872 Buchanan, Newcomb & Company of Louisville issued, a circular
that analyzed the whiskey market. They concluded that:
“The great depression caused by the excessive over production of the
year ending 30th June 1869 has passed away, and goods of that season’s
distillation are rapidly tending to a proper level of prices.
Notwithstanding the production of the seasons of 1870 and 1871;
following so enormous a production as that of 1869, stocks of 1870 and
1871 goods are now very much broken and command relative high
prices, and as that the portion of 1870 and 1871 goods carried over the
summer will constitute our supplies of two and three year old gods next
season, they must from their scarcity necessary rule dear.
The production of the season now about drawing to a close is considered
within the legitimate wants of the trade.”7
During the 1870s and 1880s, bourbon production in Kentucky again tripled and
doubled, respectively.
Carlisle Revenue Act of 1879:
The Carlisle Revenue Act of 1879 b extended the bond period from one to
three years (later extended to eight in 1894 and then twenty years in 1958). The act
also authorized the distiller to pay excise tax only on the remaining whiskey in a
barrel after losses to leakage and evaporation. These losses were known as outage.
The gauger measured the whiskey at withdraw and collected taxes on the actual
amount of whiskey remaining, instead of government estimates.
a
Estimated based upon production for season ending June 1871 of roughly 105,000 barrels and
reduction in bonded storage of roughly 20,000 barrels from December 1870 to December 1871.
b
John G. Carlisle was a prominent Kentucky Senator and Secretary of the Treasury for President
Grover Cleveland. He was a close friend of Colonel E. H. Taylor, Jr.
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Whiskey Depression:
During the 1880s the distilling industry remained strong, with a short-lived
recession in 1882 caused by over production. During this recession the D. A. Aiken
& Company, operator of the Lexington Distillery, closed.
Bonded whiskey traded in the range of $.35 to $.75 per gallon for new
whiskey and $1.50 to $3.00 for aged whiskey. In 1890 the warehouse receipts for
local whiskey traded for:
“Ashland”
“Commonwealth”
“Jas. E. Pepper”
“Old Pepper”
“Old Tarr”
“Woodland”
“Ashland Rye”
Spring
’90
$0.35
$0.40
$0.70
$0.45
$0.475
$0.475
Spring
’89
$0.525
$0.55
$0.65
$0.825
$0.675
$0.60
$0.675
Spring
’88
$0.70
$0.75
Spring
’87
$1.90
$1.95
$2.65
Spring
‘86
$2.50
$2.90
$2.25
$1.00
By the 1890s the accumulated production of Kentucky distilleries was over
one and a half million barrels of whiskey. The result was that production again
exceeded demand. Distillers found that they were unable to sell their whiskies at a
price to cover their costs, storage and taxes. Overproduction devastated the entire
industry in Kentucky. The price of bonded whiskey traded as low as $.15 to $.25
per gallon. Banks liquidated some lots held as collateral for $.05 to $.10 per gallon,
while some lots failed to find buyers at any prices.
Distilleries all over Kentucky closed or faced ruin.
Compounding the oversupply problems, in 1893 a banking panic started on
Wall Street with the collapse of Western mining stocks. A number of banks failed
and the supply of money dried up. It was not until 1897 that the economic began
recovering.8
All the distilleries in Lexington, but one, failed in some manner during this
period. The Commonwealth Distillery survived, but its backers – the Stoll family were prominent bankers with the wherewithal to keep it afloat. The Henry Clay
Distillery entered receivership but the wealth of the owner, James E. Pepper and his
wife, allowed it to continue. The Ashland Distillery was liquidated and eventually
sold to the Stoll interests. The Woodland Distillery was also liquidated after issuing
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fraudulent warehouse receipts. The Silver Spring Distillery was sold to James E.
Pepper. None of the smaller concerns survived this period.
Whiskey Trust:
During the late 1880s several attempts were made to “rationalize” the
distilling industry by creating a trust or monopoly. In 1888 the Distillers’ and
Cattle Feeders’ Trust was created in Peoria, Illinois to consolidate the distilleries
in the region. This attempt quickly failed due to the inability to control
production of non-members. Around 1896 Julius Kessler organized the Kentucky
Distillery and Warehouse Company as a holding company for the Kentucky
distilleries. In 1899 the Distilling Company of Americaa consolidated the
Kentucky Distillers and Warehouse Company, with the American Spirits
Manufacturing Company and the Standard Distilling and Distributing Company.
These firms also controlled a number of subsidiary and affiliated distillers and
whiskey brokers.
In January 1898 the whiskey trustb invited the distillers in Lexington - Jas. E.
Pepper & Company and Stoll, Vannatta & Company - to join the combined trust.
These two companies controlled all the operating distilleries in Lexington at the
time. This offer involved the trade of stock in the trust for the distiller. Charles H.
Stoll, a Lexington attorney and member of the prominent distilling family, directed
this campaign and was the prime mover in Kentucky for the trust. His brother,
James S. Stoll, was an advisory director of the trust.
Eventually the Stoll concerns operated in concert with the trust, but the Pepper
distillery stayed independent. In 1908 the Stoll distilleries were finally consolidated
with other trust distilleries, located outside of Fayette County.
It was quoted that the “object of the pool is to take care of the whiskey that,
either thorough failures or collateral, passed into the hands of banks. The banks
have placed these small lots on the market at low prices. The pool intends to
purchase these small lots to protect the market price.”9
a
In 1902 the Distillers’ Securities Corporation was formed as a successor to the Distilling
Company of America. In 1920 the name was changed to the U. S. Food Products Company. The
company failed in 1921 and was reorganized in 1924 as National Distillers Products Company.
b
The whiskey trust was not a single corporate entity, but a loose federation of distillers and
corporations, many with interlocking ownership and directorships.
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By the early 1900s, the Kentucky Distillers and Warehouse Company
controlled over ninety (90%) percent of the whiskey production in Kentucky, with
the capacity of sixteen million barrels annually. The trust was capitalized at thirty
two million dollars and had over one million barrels in bonded storage. The trust
shut down the smaller facilities and concentrated production at the larger, more
efficient distilleries. The trust was never a monopoly, but by shear size forced the
outside whiskey houses to act in accord with their wishes.
Bottled in Bond Act:
Distillers up until the late 1880s sold their products primarily in bulk barrels.
Wholesalers and brokers then resold the whiskey, sometimes in traditional brown
jugs for home use, but usually in barrels, half barrels or kegs to retailers. A
significant portion of whiskey was sold in bars, saloons and taverns. Distillers
supplied back bar decanters - quart decanters with the distiller’s name in gold leaf to bars and saloons. These decanters were filled from the barrels by the barkeep.
Some dishonest barkeeps would substitute cheaper whiskey or even dilute whiskey
with tea.
Prior to the 1880s, bottles were expensive and generally not used at the
distillery level. In 1870 Old Forrester Whiskey was the first bourbon sold
exclusively in bottles to guard the quality of the brand. This whiskey was marketed
to the doctors and druggist for medicinal purposes. It sold at a premium to cover the
cost of bottles.a In 1886 the Jas. E. Pepper & Company also began to bottle his “Old
Pepper” whiskey. The Pepper bottles contained embossing giving the distillers
name and location.
a
Old Forrester today is one of the flagship products of the Brown Forman Corporation.
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The Bottled in Bond Act of 1897 allow distillers to bottle whiskey and then
store the bottles in bond at the warehouse. Payment of excise taxes was postponed
until the bottles were removed for sale. To quality as bottled in bond the whiskey
must be bottled at 100 proof, at least four years of age and bottled at the distillery
where it was produced. Bottles were cased in multiples of six bottles, each case
containing more than two, but less than five gallons.
The act legally established standards for “bonded’ straight whiskey from lesser
grades of whiskies. When labeled as “Bottled in Bond” (and later sealed with a tax
stamp) the consumer was assured of the quality of the whiskey. Criminal penalties
were imposed on violators.
Tax Stamps (Half Pin Bottle), circa 1940s
Whiskey Boom:
By the late 1890s, the price of bonded whiskey began to recover as the
industry – thinned by the depression and controlled
Production
Annual Output
by the whiskey trust – allowed whiskey inventory to
Year
(Barrels)
be depleted. In 1899 there were only six hundred
1894
375,000
thousand barrels of whiskey in storage, compared to
1895
430,000
almost two million barrels ten years earlier.
1896
260,000
1897
125,000
1898
290,000
By the spring of 1899 a speculative boom
1899
375,000
began in whiskey receipts.
In March the
1900
410,000
newspaper reported, “the recent combination of
1901
575,000
whiskey manufacturers, especially that of the
1902
485,000
Kentucky manufacturers, has given such confidence
in future prices of whiskey as to keep up the boom in the sale of whiskey in bond.”10
The next week they reported “the sales for this week were over 200,000 barrels and
the market is stripped of all newer goods from the crops of 1896 to all of 1898’s.”11
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“Whiskies that were a drag on the market at twenty-five cents have within three
weeks run up to thirty-five cents, and in some cases, as high as forty cents” and “we
are convinced that the conditions will inevitability force prices considerably higher
in the near future.”12
Over the next twenty years, the price of new whiskey remained strong and
ranged from $.50 per gallon to $1.75 per gallon. In 1908 the entire inventory of the
Ashland Distillery was sold in bulk at $1.75 per gallon.
Pure Food and Drug Law:
In 1895 the distilling industry established the National Wholesale Liquor
Dealers Association to establish standards for the spirits industry. Due to the
questionable quality of many whiskies (especially compound whiskey from
rectifiers), the association members agreed to strict distilling regulations and rules
for “truth in labeling”.
Colonel Pepper and other Kentucky distillers of high-grade whiskies were
strongly in favor of stricter requirements and
labeling provisions. Those opposed (mainly
rectifiers) identified Colonel Pepper and
others as “bourbon aristocrats, identified with
horse farms, breeders of fancy cattle and
sartorial elegance”. This assessment was
correct in many ways.13
Joseph Wolf, President of the James E. Pepper Distribution Company (who
around 1900 assumed distribution of “Old Pepper Whiskey”) was an early
member and strong support of these regulations.
Ten years later, the Pure Food and Drug Law of 1906 was passed as the first
consumer protection legislation in the United States. This law was the result of a
number of food and drug products, which contained harmful or lethal ingredients
being sold to the unsuspecting consumer. The whiskey industry was targeted
because of the rectifiers were passing their products - made blended whiskies and
often with neutral spirits - off as the real product. The law took effect on January 1,
1907.
The Federal government began enforcing regulations aimed at “adulterated”
or “misbranded” whiskey. Federal regulations created three classes of whiskies;
these were 1) straight whiskey, 2) blended whiskey (made of two or more straight
18
whiskey) and 3) imitation whiskey (rectified or compound whiskey). From 1906 to
1909, following the passage of the Pure Food Act, rectifiers and distillers battled
over the definition of whiskey. This was period was known as the Whiskey War.
In 1909 these regulations were revised to two whiskey classes – straight and
blended. Both classes were called whiskey since they were made of grain mash.
Rectified whiskey made from grain neutral spirits was defined as “compound
whiskey.” Regional names, such as Kentucky Bourbon, were allowed. This
decision was known as the Taft Decision, after President William H. Taft.
Prohibition:
The roots of Prohibition can be traced to the 1890s, with the founding by a
group of businessmen of the Anti-Saloon League. After the United States entered
the First World War the temperance movement made major strides towards a
national prohibition. The Lever Food and Fuel Control Act of 1917 was passed as a
temporary wartime measure to conserve grains and foodstuffs for the troops in
Europe. The act authorized President Wilson to restrict the use of grains and barley
malt in distilling.14 The next year, the Food Conservative Act of 1918 provided
"that no grain, cereal, fruit or other foods products may be used in the production of
fermented liquors after May 1, 1919".15
During the months leading to the deadline, the Pepper Distillery increased its
output with the limited materials available before production was stopped.16 The last
batch distilled by the Pepper concern was on November 11, 1918 and Lexington
distilling went "dry".
The Eighteen Amendment was approved in 1917 by Congress to prohibit the
“manufacture, sale or transportation of intoxicating liquors within, the importation
thereof from the United States and all territory subject to the jurisdiction thereof
for beverage purposes.” On January 16, 1919 the amendment was ratified with
the approval by three fourths of the states. Kentucky was the third state to
approve the amendment. The amendment was to take effect one year later.
The National Prohibition Act was approved in October 1918 to enforce the
amendment. The act was also known as the Volstead Act after its sponsor
Andrew Volstead of Minnesota. President Wilson vetoed this legislation, but
Congress quickly overrode his veto. After January 16, 1920 it was against the law
to manufacture or sale of any beverage with more than one-half of one percent
alcohol. The first offense was punishable with a fine of up to $1,000 and a prison
term of up to six months.
19
In Lexington, ninety-six saloons, eighteen distributors, one brewery and one
distillery officially closed their doors. Lexington lost over $85,000 in tax revenues
and over a thousand workers were out of work.17
The First World War was over before this amendment became effective, but it
became law anyway. The "GREAT EXPERIMENT" had begun.
During the two months before Prohibition, distillers rushed to ship whiskey
supplies out of the country. Bourbon was shipped to Germany, Cuba and the
Bahamas. However, on January 17th the Pepper warehouse still held twenty six
hundred barrels and the Old Tarr warehouse fifty barrels. These barrels held thirty
five to forty five gallons each.18
Prescription Form, circa 1920s
Section 37 of the Volstead Act authorizes the sale of medicinal whiskey.
Medical doctors could prescribe whiskey, which was filled at the drug stores.
Prescriptions were limited to one quart at a time, later one pint every ten days.
Doctors were limited to one hundred prescriptions annually, but many turned a blind
eye and exceeded these limitations.19
Liquor Concentration Act of 1922:
With the lack of security, especially at rural distilleries, whiskey became the
target of gangsters. Several warehouses were allegedly burned after the whiskey
was replaced with water. The Concentration Act required that all whiskey stored in
bonded warehouses be concentrated into newly designated warehouse to safeguard
20
the remaining inventory. These warehouses were located in Lexington, Bardstown,
Frankfort and Louisville. In Lexington, the Pepper warehouse on Old Frankfort
Pike was licensed as a concentration warehouse. Their whiskey stocks, along with
those from a number of smaller distilleries, were bottled over the next twelve years
for medicinal sales.
Case Tax Stamp, Series of 1933
Twenty First Amendment:
Congress approved in February 1933 the Twenty First Amendment to repeal
the Eighteen Amendment. The amendment was quickly ratified by December
1933 and became effective immediately. Prohibition officially ended in 1934 and
only 34 of the 157 distilleries in Kentucky operating in 1919 reopened. In
Lexington, the James E. Pepper & Company reopened, but ownership passed to
the Schenley interests. This distillery operated until 1958 and the bonded
warehouses used until 1976.
In 1934 Kentucky distilleries began blending bourbon to extend short
inventory of aged bourbon remaining from Prohibition. In 1935 the Federal
government mandated that only new, charred oak barrels be used in bourbon
production. Only by the end of the 1930s were stocks of aged inventory built up.
21
War Production:
During the Second World War, the Federal government converted whiskey
distilling to industrial alcohol production for the war effort. Industrial alcohol (grain
neutral spirits or greater than 190 proof) was a critical ingredient in war production.
For example, every naval shell or jeep used three and twenty three gallons,
respectively, of industrial alcohol.20 At this point, the industry was consolidated
primarily into the “Big Four” – Schenley, National, Hiram-Walker and Seagram
Distilleries. In Lexington, the Pepper Distillery shifted produced to industrial
alcohol. In 1945 the industry returned to bourbon distilling.
At the start of the Korean War, the industry increased production anticipating
wartime restrictions. However, these restrictions never occurred and over
productions led to excessive inventory. The Federal government extended the
bonding period to twenty years to allow the excessive inventory to depleted.
In 1964 Bourbon Whiskey was designated a distinctive distilled spirits by
Congress. In 1990 the U. S. S. Kentucky, a Trident nuclear submarine, was
christened by a bottle of Kentucky Bourbon.
22
ASHLAND DISTILLERY (RD #1)
Turner, Clay & Company (1865 – 1871)
Wm. Tarr & Company (1871 – 1899)
Kentucky Distillers & Warehouse Company
(1899 – 1902, 1908 – 1923)
Stoll & Company (1902 – 1908)
Sanbourne Map, 1894
In 1865 Turner, Clay & Company established the Ashland Distillery on
Manchester Street (Old Frankfort Pike at Cox Street, at the city limits). This
distillery was the first to obtain a federal register distillery license in Lexington and
was assigned RD #1. The firm was comprised of Horace H. Turner, Samuel M.
Clay and Thomas Mitchell (which see). Messrs. Turner, Clay and Mitchell were
prominent merchants in Lexington. The property was purchased on November 12,
1866 for $10,000.21
They advertised “Manufacturers of Pure Copper Distilled Whiskey, at Ashland
Distillery, ns Manchester, west of Cox.”22 Their product was known as “Ashland”
whiskey. The firm produced twenty four hundred barrels from October 1868 to
January 1869. The firm was averaging thirty barrels per day, slightly less than the
23
thirty-seven barrel capacity. They also completed
their bonded warehouse in December 1868, which
was said to be “fire proof”.23
This firm operated the distillery for five
years, before liquidating after the death of Mr.
Turner in 1871. Mr. Turner’s estate included
$17,745 received from the distillery, less liabilities
of $11,364, for a net of $6,381.24
Wm. Tarr & Company:
In November 1871 William Tarr (which see) of Bourbon County and Thomas
J. Megibben (which see) of Harrison County acquired the distillery and restarted
whiskey production. Mr. Tarr was a prominent land speculator and Mr. Megibben
was a successful dry goods merchant. Both were also distillers, entering the
business before the Civil War. They continued to produce “Ashland” and
introduced “Wm. Tarr” whiskey. Both brands were distilled in a rye and bourbon
version.
In May 1879 a fire destroyed the distillery. Distilleries were always prone to
fires given their wooden construction and the volatile nature of their products. This
fire (and the Phoenix Hotel fire later in the month) forced the local business
community to establish a waterworks to lower insurance rates. The waterworks
provided a year round supply of water to fight fires.
The distillery was reorganized in September 1879 as Wm. Tarr & Company –
a partnership consisting of William T. Tarr (President), Thomas J. Megibben, Sam
Clay, Jr. (which see) and Joseph M. Kimbrough (which see). Mr. Clay was a broker
that distributed the company’s whiskey. Mr. Kimbrough was Mr. Megibben’s sonin-law and managed the plant. They owned forty, forty, ten and ten percent,
respectively. The plant was rebuilt at the cost of $75,000. The renovated facility
was valued at $115,000.
The firm’s property included eleven acres. The rebuilt distillery and
warehouses were made of brick construction. The company had two warehouses Warehouse #1 (two adjoining buildings) and Warehouse #2. The warehouses
covered an area of one and half acres. The firm had the annual capacity of six
thousand barrels.
24
The distillery’s floor space covered twenty five thousand square feet. The
plant has fourteen fermentation tubs, with the capacity of nine thousand five
hundred gallons each. The primary mash tub held ten thousand gallons, with four
hundred smaller mash tubs of one hundred and one gallons each. Before
refrigeration equipment, these smaller tubs allowed the product to cool faster than
a larger tank. The beer still’s daily capacity was five thousand gallons, while the
doubler had the capacity of twenty five hundred gallons.
The distillery operated three steam engines, with a total one hundred twenty
five horsepower. In 1882 the company had thirty-five employees, paid $1.75 per
day. The company’s production was approximately forty-five barrels per day. The
company daily mashed three hundred bushels of corn and one hundred twenty
bushels of rye and barley malt. The corn was purchased locally from Fayette
County and generated an estimated $30,000 in sales for the local farmers. The rye
and barley malt was purchased out west and shipped in on the railroad. The firm
had eighteen thousand barrels in bonded storage.25
The Louisville, Cincinnati &
Lexington
Railroad’s
yard
(later
Louisville & Nashville Railroad) was
adjacent to the plant, with a siding running
into the distillery.
Water was supplied to the distillery from the Ater Springa, two hundred yards
to the west of the plant. The spring was under lease to the company. The lease was
for twenty-five years, with an annual payment of $100. The distillery constructed “a
stone wall around the spring also to cover the spring with a small house the better
protection of the water”.26 Later Mr. Tarr purchased the spring property. Pumps
a
Ater Spring was located on the original land grant of Frances McConnell (and thus a possible
location for the founding of Lexington). Around 1800 the site was used by Alexander Turner as a
distillery. Mr. Turner was the great uncle of William Tarr. During the War of 1812 a hemp
bagging plant was located on the site. Later the Ashland and Lexington Distilleries both drew
water from this spring. After the fires of May 1879 it was considered for the city’s waterworks.
The spring was later covered in the 1910s when the L & N expanded its yard.
25
supplied two hundred thousand gallons of fresh limestone water daily through two
three-inch pipelines. The water was at a constant temperature of fifty-seven degrees.
“Ashland”, circa 1900s
“Old Tarr”, circa 1890s
“Old Tarr”, circa 1900s
The distillery maintained a cattle-feeding operation with the stillage on the
ground for five hundred head. During 1881 a cooper shop was built at the distillery
that produced fifty barrels per week, with twenty employees.
In 1882 the distillery produced the “Ashland”, a sweet mash, and “Wm.
Tarr”, a sour mash (later known as “Old Tarr”) brand of whiskey. The sweet mash
was held for ninety-two hours and the sour mash for ninety-six hours.27
The company had sixteen thousand ninety barrels in bonded storage in 1882.
Their annual production was six thousand barrels, valued at $150,000.28 In 1884
Sam Clay, Jr. left the partnership after a disagreement over the sale of the Kentucky
Union Railroad (see Kentucky Union Affair). Distributions of the distillery’s
products were assumed by J. A. Lail & Company (which see). From 1886 to 1890
26
the company leased the rear portion of their bonded Warehouse #1 to the firm of
Derby & Day, whiskey brokers of Louisville.
In November 1888 Wm. Tarr Company was incorporated, owned by William
Tarr (40%), Thompson Tarr (10%), Thomas J. Megibben (40%) and Joseph M.
Kimbrough (10%).29 The firm capitalized was $100,000. The officers were Mr.
Tarr - President, Mr. Megibben - Vice President and Mr. Kimbrough - Secretary.
Thompson Tarr was Mr. Tarr’s son.
After the deaths of Messrs. Megibben and Kimbrough in 1890, Mr. Tarr
purchased their interests. Mr. Tarr continued as President, while his son was elected
Vice President and J. B. Huffman was selected Secretary.30 Distribution was also
shifted to R. S. Strader & Company (which see).
In 1892 the distillery purchased the adjacent Lexington Distillery to acquire
ten thousand barrels of bourbon in storage. That distillery plant was demolished and
the whiskey relocated to the company’s warehouses.
Ashland Distillery, circa 1893
On January 1, 1897 the company issued $50,000 in first mortgage, gold bonds
to the Security Trust Company. These bonds were secured by the company assets.
At the time, directors were William Tarr and James S. Stoll (which see).
27
In May 1897 the company and Mr. Tarr were forced to assign their assets to
James S. Stoll and Richard P. Stoll (which see) as receivers. This receivership
resulted from Mr. Tarr’s endorsed of a number of notes for family and friends that
defaulted.31 The aftereffects of the Panic of 1893 and depression in the whiskey
industry also compounded these problems. He had judgments ranging from $200 to
$8,000 arising from these endorsements.
Thimble, circa 1900s
His personal assets included two thousand acres of farmland in Bourbon
County (fifteen hundred of which was prime bluegrass land), commercial real estate
in Paris, the Ater Springs in Lexington and a number of lots in Superior City,
Michigan.
The distillery assets included ten thousand barrels in bond of “Wm. Tarr”
bourbon. Liabilities included ordinary payables and the first mortgage bonds. The
first mortgage bonds would later become the subject of litigation (see Settlement of
Wm. Tarr & Company). The newspaper noted that except for these endorsements,
Mr. Tarr would not have become “financially involved”.32 Mr. Tarr was 72 years
old at the time.
On February 20, 1899 the distillery was auctioned at a Master Commissioner’s
sale to Leonard G. Cox, of Graves, Cox & Co., for $60,001. He was bidding against
G. G. White, distiller of Paris, Lewis LeBus, of Cincinnati, and Squire Basset, of the
Fayette National Bank of Lexington. These three were the larger creditors of the
company. Mr. Cox turned out to be a straw bidder for Charles H. Stoll (which see)
and the Kentucky Distillers and Warehouse Company (the whiskey trust).33
28
Stoll & Company:
After the sale of the Stoll family’s Commonwealth Distillery in 1899, James S.
Stoll operated his brokerage business as Stoll & Company (as successor to Stoll,
Vannatta & Company). “Old Elk” was the company’s proprietary brand of
whiskey. He also controlled the market in “Old Tarr” and “Bond & Lillard”
whiskies, owning large numbers of warehouse receipts for these two brands. This
whiskey was stored in the bonded warehouses at Ashland Distillery, owned by the
whiskey trust. Mr. Stoll marketed these brands.
Invoice, 1900
<pre-pro.com>
In December 1902 Stoll & Company Inc. as incorporated, with capitalized of
$600,000 in common stock. James S. Stoll was President; George J. Stoll III (his
son) was Vice President and Samuel C. Stofer was Secretary / Treasurer. Mr. Stofer
was the firm’s office manager.34 The same month, the Ashland Distillery and the
Bond & Lillard Distillerya, located in Anderson County, were sold by the whiskey
a
Bond & Lillard Distillery – built in 1820 by John Bond on Cedar Run, Anderson County,
Kentucky, about two miles from Lawrenceburg, Kentucky. In 1869 W. F. Bond, his son, formed a
partnership with Christopher C. Lillard to distill “Bond & Lillard”. The brand became popular in
the North, especially in Chicago. In 1885 Mr. Lillard left the partnership. In 1899 the distillery
was purchased by the Kentucky Distillery and Warehouse Company (the Whiskey Trust).
29
trust to Stoll & Company.35 The company now controlled the “Bond & Lillard”,
“Old Tarr”, “Ashland” and “Old Elk” brands.36
In 1904 the Stoll & Company’s “Bond & Lillard” won a gold medal at the
Louisiana Purchase Exposition and World’s Fair in St. Louis.
“Old Tarr”, circa 1910s
“Old Elk”, 1926
“Belle of Nelson”, circa
1920s
In March 1905 the company purchased the Belle of Nelsona and E. L. Miles &
Co. Distilleries in Nelson County, Kentucky. The purchase price was $486,655.32
for both. They also obtained twenty five thousand barrels of bonded whiskey with
the deal. With these two additional distilleries, the Stoll & Company became the
largest distilling concern in Kentucky – with four operating distilleries. They also
b
a
Belle of Nelson Distillery – located at New Hope, on the South Fork of Pottinger Creek, near
Bardstown, Kentucky. The distillery was originally operated by Bartley – Johnson, who produced
the “Belle of Nelson” bourbon. In 1891 the company was reorganized by Robert J. Tilford. The
company was sold to the whiskey trust in 1900 and resold in 1905 to Stoll & Company.
b
E. L. Miles & Company - was founded in 1796 by Henry Miles as a small distillery at New
Hope, near Bardstown, Nelson County, Kentucky. In 1875 the plant was expanded to twenty
barrels by his son Edward L. Miles. The plant produced “E. L. Miles & Co”, a sweet mash
whiskey. The distillery was sold to the trust in 1900. In 1905 the distillery was sold to Stoll &
Company. The plant was also known as New Hope Distilling Company, which produced “New
Hope” whiskey.
.
30
picked up two additional brands – “Belle of Nelson” and “E. L. Miles” – for a total
of six brands of whiskies.37
“Old Elk” Promotional Item, circa 1900s
On July 1, 1907 the Stoll family consolidated their wholesaling whiskey
businesses – Stoll & Company and Stoll, Hamilton & Company (which see) into
Stoll & Company Inc. James S. Stoll was President, John G. Stoll and George J.
Stoll were Vice Presidents and Samuel C. Stofer was Secretary and Treasurer of
the new concern. John G. Stoll was the son of Richard P. Stoll (who died in
1903).
The new firm distilled and marketed seven brands; which were “Ashland”,
“Old Tarr”, “Old Elk”, “Bond & Lillard”, “Belle of Nelson”, “E. L. Miles & Co.”
and “New Hope”. They engaged sales representatives to cover the entire United
States. Their main office and warehouse was retained in Lexington, while the firm
had six other warehouses around the state. They employed over one hundred
workers.38
31
Letterhead, 1909
In 1908, after the deaths of Richard P. Stoll (in 1903) and James S. Stoll (in
1908), the Stoll distilling interests were consolidated into the Kentucky Distillers
and Warehouse Company (the whiskey trust). The Ashland distillery plant was
dismantled. After 1908 Mr. Stofer continued as a whiskey and wine merchant
under the name Stoll & Company until Prohibition in 1919. Mr. Stofer in 1910
reintroduced “Old Buckhorn Whiskey” (an old Commonwealth Distillery brand)
and “Sam Clay Bourbon”.
32
In March 1909 Maurice Greenbaum, of the S. J. Greenbaum Company of
Louisville, purchased the entire whiskey inventory in the Ashland warehouses.
Mr. Greenbaum was associated with the whiskey trust and owned a distillery in
Midway (destroyed by fire the prior year). The bonded warehouses held a total of
eighteen thousand barrels of whiskey produced from 1902 to 1907. Mr.
Greenbaum paid the distillery $375,000 and assumed $600,000 in warehouse
receipts. He paid roughly $1.75 per gallon.
Letterhead, 1913
33
Mr. Greenbaum also purchased a plot of land, consisting of three-quarters of
an acre, adjacent to Warehouse #1 and immediately began the construction of a
bottling house. The fast pace construction was completed in less than three week. A
bottling plant at the distillery was required to bottle in bond. Over the next ten years,
Mr. Greenbaum bottled whiskey from this stock. The plant had the capacity of
forty barrels per day and employed thirty-five workers.
In 1913 the rear portion of the property (where the distillery was located) was
sold to the L & N Railroad to expand its yard at the rear of the distillery. The Ater
Spring was included in this purchase.
Whiskey Bandits:
On the night of March 20, 1920 a
band of masked whiskey bandits
raided the warehouses at the distillery.
After overpowering the two guards, the
thieves took ninety-six cases of bonded
whiskey from the government
storeroom. This whiskey was valued
at $20,000. The police believed that
the band was from Ohio.
In April 1920 the remaining
seventy-six barrels of “Old Tarr”
bourbon was removed to the
concentration warehouses in Louisville
(controlled by the whiskey trust). The
newspaper indicated that the value of
this bourbon was $266,000 or $3,500
per barrel (or $4.50 per pint
“Prohibition” prices).
This move
eliminated the cost of the guards at the
warehouse.39
Bonded Warehouse Number One
remains at the site today, but a fire
destroyed the bottling plant was
destroyed in 1986.
34
“A Call in Arizona”, “Belle of Nelson”, circa 1895
“A Bluff in Chicago”, “Belle of Nelson”, circa 1895
xxxx“A Good Story By A Good Fellow”
35
Kentucky Union Affair:
The Kentucky Union Railroad Company was chartered in 1872 to build a
railroad into the rich timber and coal fields of Eastern Kentucky. The investors
included Thomas J. Megibben, William Tarr and Sam Clay, Jr.
In 1884 Sam Clay, Jr. arranged a deal with outside investors to acquire the
railroad. Meanwhile Messrs. Tarr and Megibben (his partners in the distillery)
arranged a counter offer by a group of local investors. When Mr. Clay’s investors
arrived in Lexington with the tender amount in gold the railroad was already sold.
The local investors turned out to be Henry Clay McDowell (grandson of the
statesman), Richard P. Stoll and Charles H. Stoll. Mr. Clay was outraged and
filed suit against Messrs. Tarr and Megibben for interfering with the closing. Mr.
Clay left the distillery partnership.
In June 1891 Mr. Clay won a judgment for $10,000 against his former
partners. This judgment was one factor in Mr. Tarr’s bankruptcy.
Tin Sign, circa 1902 – 08
36
“Old Elk”, circa 1900s
“Old Tarr”, circa 1890s
Settlement of Wm. Tarr & Company:
In 1897 Richard P. and James S. Stoll were appointed joint receivers of the
company. After both of their deaths, J. Will Stoll (which see), President of the
Lexington City National Bank, was appointed interim receiver. The Stolls had
collected $130,402.35 and paid out $127,192.02 for a balance of $3,110.35. Mr.
Tarr’s creditors were paid in full, with interest.
The Stoll brothers liquidated the distillery in 1899. At the same time, they
were involved with the formation of the whiskey trust. The distillery sold at auction
for a fire sale price of $60,001 to the trust. Within the next few years the distillery
was easily worth three or four times that amount. The company’s bonded whiskey
was sold for as little as $5 to $10 per barrel. Within a year it was worth four times
that amount and within the next few years at least eight times that amount.
The receivership was kept open for an unusually long twelve years. Finally, in
1910 Lewis E. Pearce was appointed replacement receiver for the Stolls. He was
37
ordered to settle the affairs of the Wm. Tarr & Company. He immediately began to
question the Stolls’ actions.
In August 1911 Receiver Pearce filed suit against the estates of the Stoll
brothers to recover $60,399.55 paid from the company. He claimed that the gold
mortgage bonds were issued for the benefits of the Stolls, not business purposed.
He claimed that these bonds were delivered without consideration and in
anticipation of insolvency. He additionally claimed that the receivers had charged
excessive fees and paid excessive interest on the repaid loans to their related entities.
Richard P. Stoll was the closing attorney for the bonds while he was President
of the Lexington City National Bank (the largest creditor and primary beneficiary of
the bond issue). His brothers – Charles H. and James S. Stoll – were involved with
the whiskey trust. James S. Stoll was also a director of the Tarr distillery.
At closing, the bonds were divided among the Lexington City National Bank
which received thirty-three bonds; James S. Stoll received five bonds; First National
Bank received five bonds, William Tarr received five bonds; Lexington City
National Bank received one additional bond as a fee and Fayette National Bank
received one bond to secure a loan of Mr. Tarr. Each bond had the face value of
$1,000. Mr. Tarr’s bonds were payment for the sale of the Ater Spring property to
the distillery. After the receivership, he was forced to surrender these bonds back to
the receivers.
The Stolls charged a receiver fee of $10,000 for their services. The company
also had additional loans with the Lexington City National Bank for $32,000,
Fayette National Bank for $4,300 and Stoll, Vannatta & Company for $3,200.40
These loans were paid in full with interest.
After Mr. Tarr’s death in 1911, the suit was settled out of court. Many
observers thought the Mr. Tarr had turned to his friends the Stolls for help and the
Stolls helped themselves. It is interesting to note that the Lexington Herald, a paper
friendly with the Stolls, ran a short obituary stating “he used to be very wealthy”.
Other papers from around the state ran lengthy obituaries, fitting his position and
many accomplishments.
38
“Bond & Lillard”, circa 1920s
“Old Elk”, circa 1920s
“Old Tarr”, circa 1920s
“Old Elk”, 1938
39
HENRY CLAY DISTILLERY (RD #5)
Headley & Farra (1869 – 1872)
Jas. E. Pepper & Co. (1879 – 1907)
James E. Pepper Distillers Company (1907 – 1933)
Schenley Products (1933 – 1976)
Sanbourne Map, 1894
The Henry Clay Distillery was built in 1869 by the partnership of Headley &
Farra (which see). This partnership consisted of John A. Headley and James A.
Farra.41 The firm purchased four acres for $2,000, from Judge George Robertson in
January 1869.42 The plant was located a mile outside of the city limits on Old
Frankfort Pike. This was the location of the Royal Spring and old Royal Mill. The
distillery operated for about three years until it was destroyed by fire in 1871. The
loss was set at $15,000.43
After the fire, the property was sold by the Federal government in August
1872 for unpaid taxes. Mr. Headley later founded the Woodland Distillery on
Harrodsburg Pike. Between 1875 and 1879 the property was used as the Blue Grass
Pork House. The property was sold to George C. Buchanana, a Louisville distiller
and land speculator, and sold on 7 April 1880 to George A. Starkweather, Jr., a wine
importer of New York City. The purchase price was $7,429.12 (cash of $4,096.12
and assumption of notes of $3,333.33).44
a
George C. Buchanan operated Newcomb, Buchanan & Company, whiskey brokers of Louisville,
Kentucky. In 1872 he was the largest distiller in Kentucky, with the Anderson, Nelson, Buchanan
and Greystone (later Elk Run) Distilleries. He was connected with Parris, Allen & Company, an
English investment bank. He sold out to the trust in 1905.
40
Jas. E. Pepper & Company:
In 1879 George A. Starkweather, Jr. established a partnership with James. E.
Pepper (which see) and reconverted the old plant to whiskey production.45 Colonel
Pepper came from a family of distinguished distillers.
Colonel James Edward Pepper
<M. Veach>
Colonel Pepper designed the distillery and the layout of equipment. He hired
John McMurty, noted local architect, to translate these ideas into plans and
specifications. The grounds contained forty-eight and half acres. The distillery was
constructed of brick with floor space of forty thousand square feet. The plant had
twenty fermentation tubs of six thousand five hundred gallons and seven hundred
mash tubs of seventy-two gallons. The company had a three chambered beer still of
twenty five hundred gallons and a doubler of twelve hundred gallons. Both were
made of copper.46
He installed four steam boilers to provide heat to the mash tubs and stills.
Many distilleries still used open flames for heat. In addition, he installed two steam
engines of one hundred twenty five horsepower each to supply power. The steam
engines drove a series of shafts throughout the plant. These shafts were attached to
pulleys and belts to provide power to the machinery. He purchased a six roller mill,
41
also powered by belts, to grind his grains into uniform consistency. He designed
rows of windows on two sides of his plant to allow ventilation and lighting.
These designs, while not revolutionary, allowed the distillery to operate with
higher efficient, improved yields and uniform quality. Moreover, it allowed him to
distill a consistent, higher-grade whiskey that was his hallmark.
The distillery plant was finished in April 1880, with the capacity of twentyeight barrels (roughly three hundred bushels) per day.47
In September 1880 the company let bids for the construction of two bonded
warehouses. Both warehouses were roughly nine thousand square feet, four stories
high and projected to hold ten thousand barrels of whiskey in storage. The
foundations were of stone, walls of brick and roof of iron clad. The first warehouse
was finished in late 1880 and the second finished in early 1881.48
Over the next twenty years, Colonel Pepper constructed four additional
warehouses – giving the distillery bonded storage of sixty thousand barrels. The
average distillery in Kentucky had storage for five to ten thousand barrels. These
warehouses were:
Warehouse “A”
Warehouse “B”
Warehouse “C”
Warehouse “D”
Warehouse “E”
Warehouse “F”
Capacity
10,000 barrels
8,500 barrels
6,000 barrels
5,000 barrels
8,500 barrels
11,000 barrels
42
Year Built
1880
1881
1890
1897
1897
1901
The distillery was supplied water from the farm of Colonel Wilsona – with a
basin of seventy-five feet square – and conveyed to the plant by a five-inch pipeline.
The spring was considered in the 1880s for the water works for the city. Two pumps
supplied one million gallons per day to the distillery. The water supply seemed
inexhaustible and never ran dry. The company maintained five hundred head of
cattle on the property, feed from the stillage.
The Louisville, Cincinnati and Lexington Railroad (later Louisville &
Nashville Railroad) had tracks on both sides of the distillery, with a siding into the
distillery on the Frankfort Pike side.
1893
By 1882 the plant’s capacity had been increased to fifty barrels per day and
ten thousand barrels per year. The distillery was valued $125,000. The plant
operated for ten months each year, with forty employees at an average of $1.75
per day. They purchased oak barrels from the Bauer Cooperage Company for
$2.50 each. At the time this plant was the largest distillery in the world.
In February 1882 a fire of unknown origins destroyed the cattle sheds and pens
at the Pepper Distillery. The fire occurred at three in the morning and caused the
damages of $4,000 to $5,000. The loss was fully covered by the Western Insurance
Company.49
a
Now known as McConnell Springs, a historical park credited as the founding site of Lexington.
43
“Old Pepper” Brand Name:
In May 1880 Colonel Pepper began distilling “Old Pepper Whiskey”. This
was a century after his grandfather established the first Pepper distillery. “Old
Pepper” was distilled to his grandfather’s proprietary formula – developed in 1780,
improved by Dr. James Crow and pasted down three generations. The whiskey was
a sour mash, fermented for seventy-two hours. This name “Old Pepper Whiskey”
derives from his family name and reflects the heritage and tradition established by
his family over the past one hundred years. The distillery also produced a rye
whiskey called “Old Henry Clay”, a brand inherited from the prior distillery.
He reinforced this image by constantly stressing the quality of his whiskey
by promoting its longevity (thus experience) and imitation by competitors. He used
the slogans - “Established 1780” and “Purest and Best in the World”. These slogans
also tapped into the patriotism following the Civil War. He placed the warning - BE
AWARE OF REFILLED BOTTLES – on his labels. This created the impression
that his whiskey was so good that others wanted to imitate it. In addition, he sealed
his bottles with a stamp bearing the script signature of “Jas. E. Pepper & Co.”
Signatures were protected under the forgery laws, which were faster to enforce that a
trademark.
He was also one of the first distillers to invest huge sums for advertising
and promotion. His success can be measured by that he was able to charge
significantly more that his contemporaries.
George A. Starkweather marketed the distillery’s products on the East Coast,
while Colonel Pepper managed the production at the distillery. During 1882 the
company produced ten thousand barrels, valued at $300,000. After Mr. Starkweather
death, in December 1883, his interest was conveyed to James E. Pepper for the sum
of $70,000.50
In 1884 Colonel Pepper sold half interest in his company to Colonel William S
Barnes (which see) of Lexington, Kentucky.51 Both Colonels Pepper and Barnes
traveled around the United States promoting “Old Pepper” whiskey. Colonel
Pepper concentrated on the East Coast, especially New York, and Colonel Barnes
promoted in the North and West, especially in the Chicago area. They supplied the
whiskey that made the old west wild.
44
Bottling Trade:
Initially, Colonel Pepper sold whiskey in barrels for the “bulk trade”.
Distributors from around the country purchased barrels for sale to saloons and bars.
The distributors resold the whiskey in barrels, half barrels and jugs. The distiller
also supplied “bulk decanters”, with their name in gold leaf, and the retailer filled
and refilled the decanters from the barrels.
“Old Pepper”, circa 1880s
“Old Jas. E. Pepper” circa 1900
In 1886 the company began bottling “Old Pepper” whiskey in quarts and pint
flasks. The company entered the bottling business to counter rectifiers that blended
his whiskey with cheaper substitutes. The company supplied distributors, if they
wanted, with gold “Old Pepper Whiskey” labels. These labels had a white blank on
the bottom where the distributor listed their name.
In 1887 the company filed suit to stop the Labrot & Graham Distillery in
Versailles from using the “Old Pepper” name. That firm purchased the Old Oscar
Pepper Distillery in 1878. The court enjoined them from using the “Pepper” brand
name.
The “Old Pepper Whiskey” brand at this time had established strong name
recognition across the United States. In the late 1880s Prince Henry of Prussia was
served “Old Pepper Whiskey” while traveling on the Pennsylvania Railroad.52
45
Many experts considered it as the best bourbon produced in Kentucky. With its
success, the “Old Pepper” trade name was constantly being “adopted” by others.
In the late 1880s Colonel Pepper invented the “Old Fashioned” cocktail at the
Pendennis Club in Louisville. His formula called for two ounces of bourbon (“Old
Pepper” of course), a splash of sugar syrup, bitters and soda water.53 He also
originated “Bourbon and Branch”, for a bourbon and water. The “Branch” was
referring to water taken from the Town Branch of the Elkhorn Creek (where the
distillery drew its water supply). Both of these cocktails became famous in New
York, where Colonel Pepper personally promoted his whiskey.
By 1889 the bottling trade expanded to a level that the company faced a
shortage of aged whiskey. They purchased one thousand barrels from the Wm. Tarr
& Company’s Ashland Distillery and five hundred barrels from other distilleries.
This whiskey was blended under Colonel Pepper’s supervision with the existing
stock of “Old Pepper” whiskey.
In 1890 the company advertised that “Old Pepper Whiskey” was a “grand
medicine for Consumption, Malaria, etc.” This was prior to federal regulations, such
as the Pure Food and Drug Act of 1906.
In January 1891 Colonel Pepper advertised that he used “rye, barley and corn
in a 100 year old formula” and the he mashed” by hand one bushel at a time in 1,000
small tubs with NO yeast added and single and double distilled over an open fire”.54
During April the distillery sold out of all its aged whiskey from 1887, 1888 and
1889. Colonel Pepper indicated the inventory was sold to over ninety brokerage
houses around the United States and he had set aside fifteen hundred barrels for
himself.55
In 1891 the trade paper stated that the “reputation established by this brand
(“Old Pepper”) throughout the eastern States, and especially in New York City,
has been the wonder of the entire trade and competitors of the house”.
In July 1891 Colonel Pepper brought out Colonel Barnes for $100,000 (cash of
$60,000 and broodmares valued at $40,000). Over the ten years, Colonel Barnes had
taken out an estimate of $250,000 in profits; receiving $25,000 to $30,000 annually
from his interest.56
46
1898
1890
1891
1908
47
1909
1908
1909
1909
48
1910
1909
1909
1910
49
1912
In July 1891 the distillery again took the Labrot & Graham to court to force
them to stop using the brand name. That company had interpreted the court ruling to
allow them to use the name as the designation of the place of the distillery.
Consequently they advertised “Pepper Whiskey” as a geographic location. The
judge ruled against them.57
In January 1893 the distillery was also granted an injunction against Thomas
E. Pepper (Colonel Pepper’s brother) and Thompson Tarr, of the Ashland Distillery,
for their “Old Tom Pepper” brand. The judge ruled that this infringed on the
trademarks of the Pepper brands.58
New York Agency:
During 1891 Colonel Pepper became a silent partner in the firm of Krauss,
Hart, Felbel & Company, of New York. This firm operated as a whiskey broker and
was managed by Otto Krauss. In January 1892 Colonel Pepper closed out all of the
bottling contracts with independent brokers, effectively in one year. In 1893 Krauss,
Hart, Felbel & Company became the exclusive dealer in bottled “Old Pepper
50
Whiskey” nationwide, except for Californiaa. The contract specified that they would
purchase thirty thousand cases of bourbon, one thousand barrels of bourbon and five
hundred barrels of rye whiskey each year.
In July 1893 the Krauss firm sued Joseph R. Peebles & Son, of Cincinnati, for
bottling “Old Pepper” whiskey. During the 1880s the Peebles concern had
purchased a number of barrels of whiskey manufactured by the Jas. E. Pepper &
Company. Peebles & Son had also for years bottled, with distillery supplied labels.
At the time of the Krauss contract, the distillery attempted to repurchase the bonded
bourbon back, but the Peebles’ firm demanded too high a price. The distillery
owned the trademarks to the “Old Pepper” brand and the right to bottle.
Instead of purchasing from the Krauss firm and paying a higher price, Peebles
& Sons continued bottling their “Old Pepper” bourbon in similar labeled bottles.
This was in violation of the trademark laws. Having no defense against the
trademark violations, the attorneys for the Peebles concern began claiming that “Old
Pepper was not genuine”, that the Pepper distillery did not produce all of the “Old
Pepper” whiskey and was “palming off other whiskey as its own”. Colonel Pepper’s
legal team included Senator William Lindsay of Kentucky, Charles J. Bronston and
a
A San Francisco broker handled the market for California and the Far East.
51
John R. Allen of Lexington and Joseph B. Foraker, the Governor of Ohio. He
apparently believed in being well represented.59 The court enforced the trademark.
“Old Pepper” Private Car:
In February 1892 the company purchased a private railcar, named the “Old
Pepper”, from the Arms Palace Car Company for $10,000. The car was painted
bright orange, with hand painted scenes on its sides of “Old Pepper” barrels, cases
and bottles, with thoroughbred horses and jockeys. The end of the car was lettered
“Private Car – Old Pepper – Property of James E. Pepper, Distiller of the Famous
Old Pepper Whisky”. Colonel Pepper was always the showman and promoter.60
On September 12, 1892 the cattle pens at the end of the distillery property
were again destroyed in a fire. The distillery had ceased production at the end of
August. Arson was suspected because of several small fires around the distillery
over the past few months. Damages were limited to several thousand dollars.61
In February 1893 Colonel Pepper purchased a total of $350,000 in life
insurance policies and paid the $8,000 premium by check. The local paper
commented “by no means an everyday occurrence even by our wealthiest men” and
“largest life policy south of the Ohio River”.62 Colonel Pepper - always the
promoter.
Employee Pin, circa 1890s
Whiskey Depression:
In 1893 an economic depression began that lasted five years. This recession
caused Colonel Pepper’s thoroughbred investments to drop significantly, while he
still had the financial drain of the feed and board bills. In addition, the over supply of
whiskey caused the value of whiskey stocks to fall dramatically.
In the middle of the recession, Colonel Pepper purchased the Silver Springs
Distillery in 1895. He paid $20,000 - $15,000 in cash and $5,000 in notes. He
52
apparently did not take advantage of the slump and paid a fair price for the distillery
(it was valued at the same price ten years later in a strong market).
In October 1895 Colonel Pepper contracted with Henry Krogers & Company,
of New York, to market his whiskies. The agreement required the Kroger firm to
purchase two hundred fifty cases per week and was for the term of two years
(renewal by both parties). At the same time, he closed the Krauss agency. Over the
past four years the agency was a financial drain, with Mr. Krauss taking out of
$100,000 in salary and $300,000 in other expenses.63
Corkscrew, circa 1890s
Colonel Pepper paid Mr. Krauss the last $5,000 due in salary in the form of a
promissory note, due in six months and secured by fifty-three barrels of whiskey
(made in 1892 and valued at $10,000). Mr. Krauss agreed to renew the note if
needed. However, Mr. Krauss discounted the note with Hatch & Company of New
York. In late March 1896, Hatch & Company sent the note to the Phoenix National
Bank for collection. Colonel Pepper was unable to payoff the note and requested its
renewal. Instead, Hatch & Company filed an attachment of the Krogers’ contract.
Due to these financial problems, on April 15, 1896, Colonel Pepper assigned
his assets to the Security Trust and Safety Vault Company of Lexington.64 This
receivership also covered his company, Jas. E. Pepper & Co., which was a sole
proprietorship. Security Trust retained Colonel Pepper as manager of the distillery,
at an “ample” salary. Colonel Pepper projected that he would be able to payback
his creditors from whiskey sales over the next eighteen months.
53
His problems were attributed to “due to extreme dullness in whiskey market –
scarcity of money – no demand for whiskey the past three months.”
Avery S.
Winston, William S. Barnes and Louis Straus were appointed as appraisers of his
assets. Mr. Winston was President of the First National Bank and Mr. Straus was
President of the Central Bank.
Colonel Pepper’s assets were appraised at:
Assets:
Liabilities:
Net Worth:
$497,114
$280,286
$216,828
Prior to the panic, Colonel Pepper had refused an offered of one million dollars for
his distillery.65 He also endorsed $134,110 in company notes and $10,575 for
friends.
His principal assets included the distillery (valued at $125,000), the Little
Pepper distillery (valued at $18,000), his farm (valued at $55,000), thoroughbreds
(valued at $17,545) and whiskey (barrels valued at $227,182 and case goods valued
at $9,015). His stallions, which Colonel Pepper paid over $100,000, were valued
at only $500, an indication of their decline in value.
His major creditors were the First National Bank ($39,346), Second National
Bank ($6,300), National Exchange Bank ($37,550), Northern Bank ($12,825),
Central Bank ($9,000), Fayette National Bank ($6,500), Nat Harris ($5,000),
William S. Barnes ($41,604) and L. Welschoff (whiskey broker – Cincinnati
$3,000).66
The company had bourbon in storage valued at $80,000 ($10 per barrel or
$.185 per gallon wholesale price), with warehouse liens of $20,000 to $30,000. The
retail price for a barrel was $90 at this time.
The Pepper Distillery assets also included the “Old Pepper” and “Jas. E.
Pepper” trademarks and established sales contracts. No value was assigned for
these intangible assets. The most valuable intangible asset was the contract with
Henry Krogers & Company. At this time, any contract to sell whiskey (especially
this size) was worth its weight in gold. In addition, the distillery had normal sales,
such as supplying the Khedive of Egypt twice every year.
In August 1896 the distillery was scheduled to be sold at public auction on
September 19, 1896. At the auction, Mrs. James E. Pepper purchased the distillery
for $43,142.69. This price was payable in thirds – at one year, two years and three
54
years, with seven percent interest.67 However, Mrs. Pepper paid cash – from the
prize purses of her thoroughbred stable.
Case, circa 1890s
Reorganization:
In December 1896 the Jas. E. Pepper & Company was organized as a
corporation, with $150,000 in capital. The distillery has previously been a sole
proprietorship. Colonel Pepper owned two thousand nine hundred ninety four
shares of the total three thousand shares. John G. Offutt (his bother-in-law) and
Charles O. Johnson (bookkeeper) owned three shares each. These shares allowed
them to quality as a director under the laws of the time.68 The company was
authorized to “engage in the manufacturing, handling, selling and dealing in distilled
spirits at the old distillery, formerly run by James E. Pepper, and in buying, feeding
and selling of cattle and hogs”.69
55
On February 9, 1897 Mrs. Pepper transferred the plant, equipment, stock and
other assets purchased at auction to the new concern.70 In February 1897 the Jas. E.
Pepper & Company issued $150,000 in gold bonds to the Harrisburg Trust
Company. Charles J. Bronston and Charles H. Stoll represented the company at the
closing. These bonds were for five years, with interest at six percent, payable in gold
coins and secured with a first mortgage on the company assets. These assets
included the Old Pepper Distillery and the trademarks of “Genuine Old Pepper”,
“Henry Clay” and script signature Jas. E. Pepper & Co. The Little Pepper Distillery
was not included.
This financing allowed the resumption of operations
immediately.71
Invoice, 1897
The next day the company resumed distilling bourbon. Colonel Pepper had
several months earlier placed drummers (sales representatives) on the road to book
orders for the soon to be reopened distillery. The officers at this time were James E.
56
Pepper (President), A. G. Kinsley (Vice President) and James G. Hubbella (General
Manager and Secretary & Treasurer). Mr. Kinsley represented the Harrisburg Trust
and the bank placed Mr. Hubbell at the distillery to oversee the financial side of the
operations.72
In 1897 the company introduced a coupon rebate program to promote their
products. The distillery offered a $1.00 refund for every twelve coupons returned.
These coupons were located under the label and pulled off by the customer. Each
coupon carried a serial number stamped in red. In addition, the three customers that
returned the greatest number of coupons received $500, $300 and $200,
respectively. In 1898 the program was increased to include the top four with awards
of $2,500, $1,500, $1,000 and $500. The coupon rebate promotion was successful
and continued until at lease 1902. The distillery had preprinted checks for this
program.
1898
a
James G. Hubbell was born in Cincinnati and relocated to Lexington in the 1880s, after marrying
the sister of J. Hull Davidson. He was city bookkeeper in the late 1880s and manager of the
Phoenix Hotel in the early 1890s. He was also a National Bank Examiner.
57
Rebate Check, 1902
Envelope, 1901
In September 1897 the whiskey brokerage firm of R. S. Strader & Son
(which see) became the exclusive agents in Kentucky for the company’s whiskey
58
in bulk and bottles. This firm controlled two proprietary brands, “Old Pugh” and
“Old Barton”, which the distillery began producing.73
In November 1897 J. Hull Davidsona (Mr. Hubbell’s brother-in-law) was
hired to be the eastern representative of the distillery. He set up office in New
York, at 1881 Broadway (near Wall Street).74
Over the next year, Colonel Pepper had constant disagreements with his
“overseers” from the trust company. In October 1898 Mr. Hubbell attempted to take
control of the distillery from Mr. Pepper (who owned the stock). Supported by his
friends at the Harrisburg Trust, Mr. Hubbell announced the financial backing to
secure all the bonds (which held a first mortgage) and that it was “only question of
time” before he controlled the distillery. He was described as a “hustling”
businessman.75
However, in November 1898, Colonel Pepper finally assumed full control of
the distillery, after Mrs. Pepper purchased a majority of the bonds issued by
a
J. Hull Davidson operated a number of businesses in Lexington during the 1880s and 1890s. He
operated the Kentucky Race Track from 1880 to 1897. In the late 1880s he operated the Phoenix
Hotel and in 1891 purchased the hotel for $175,000. He was the city’s tax collector from 1886 to
1892 and Democratic Mayor from 1893 to 1895. During his term as mayor, the depression of the
1890s forced the cut back of all roadwork and other expenditures. He kept the city solvent. In
addition, he order the cleaning of all private privies (enforced by the police) to prevent cholera and
turned the workhouse into the Davidson School for children. He relocated to New York in the late
1890s as a thoroughbred agent. In 1900 he operated the American Restaurant at the World’s Fair
in Paris, France.
59
Harrisburg Trust. She held one hundred forty five of the one hundred fifty bonds
issued. Mrs. Pepper again used the winning purses from her thoroughbred stable to
purchase the bonds.76 Colonel Pepper not only had a beautiful wife, but she was
also his major creditor (smart enough to have a first mortgage).
Mr. Hubbell made one more attempt to secure control of the distillery, by
having the Harrisburg Trust declare the bonds in default and have a receiver (Mr.
Hubbell) appointed. In February 1899 the court refused to appoint a receiver and
sided with Mrs. Pepper in replacing the Harrisburg Trust as Trustee.77
In February 1899 Warner S. Kinkead was hired as the distillery’s Vice
President. Mr. Kinkead was an attorney and assumed the business affairs of the
company. He was from 1894 to 1898 the U. S. Consul for England, appointed by
President Grover Cleveland. He was also married to Mrs. Pepper’s sister.
Eventually he would become the General Manager of the distillery.78
Jas. E. Pepper & Company Distillers – 1898
UK 2002AV #071
60
Enlargement of Distillery
Enlargement of Bonded Warehouses
61
Enlargement of Front Gate
In the late 1890s the whiskey trust acquired control of the bourbon industry in
Kentucky. With their control, the inventory of bonded bourbon in warehouses was
allowed to decline. By the spring of 1899 the price of whiskey had recovered and
Colonel Pepper finally operated at a profit.79
In 1901 Colonel Pepper rebuilt the “Little Pepper” Distillery and leased it to
the Jas. E. Pepper & Co. to operate. They produced the “Old Henry Clay” brand
at this location.
In December 1901 the coopers at J. B. McCoy’s Shop walked off with their
tools, after being refused a raise of ten cents per barrels. Mr. McCoy had a
contract to supply ten thousand barrels, and had roughly seven thousand finished.
Each cooper made about $20.00 per week, making roughly two hundred barrels at
ten cents each.80
62
Serving Tray, circa 1900s
Watch Fob, circa 1900
63
Letterhead, 1903
In July 1904 the distillery was featured in a Selma newspaper, as “It’s no use
trying to drink up all the whisky in the country”. R. E. Niel, a reporter from
Alabama, visited the plant and wrote of the “famous Pepper whiskey, a brand well
know in Selma”.81
64
Colonel Pepper continued to operate the distillery until his death in December
1906. The company had agencies in Cincinnati, Chicago, Cleveland, San Francisco,
Pittsburgh, Buffalo, Boston and New York at the time of his death. Colonel Pepper
had been described as “one of the best-known distillers of fine whiskies in the world,
whose brands have probably been more universally advertised that any other of the
Kentucky distilleries”.82
Letterhead, 1904
In January 1907 Christopher D. Chenault and Warner S. Kinkead were elected
President and Secretary / Treasurer of both the Jas. E. Pepper & Company and the
65
Henry Clay Pure Rye Distilling Company (which owned the “Little Pepper”
Distillery). Mr. Chenault was Cashier of the Lexington Banking and Trust
Company (executors of Colonel Pepper’s estate). Mrs. Pepper, Mr. Chenault, Mr.
Kinkead and Charles J. Bronston were elected directors of both firms. It was noted
that Mrs. Pepper was the largest stockholder and bondholder of both concerns.
Calendar, 1906
66
Prior to Colonel Pepper’s death, he had hidden a reserve of three hundred
barrels of whisky at the distillery for his personal usage. This whiskey produced in
the spring of 1899 was maintained at its original “barrel” strength. Colonel Pepper
considered this the best whiskey ever produced. During his lifetime, Colonel Pepper
had refused to sell these barrels – retaining them for his personnel use. In March
1907, after Colonel Pepper’s death, a half-barrel of this whiskey was sold by
accident to the Reed Hotel. It was soon recognized as Colonel Pepper’s reserve and
orders pour into the distillery.83
Letterhead, 1911
67
On May 15, 1907 a group of Chicago investors, headed by Joseph Wolf,
acquired the distillery from Mr. Pepper’s estate for $400,000. The local newspaper
noted “Widow of late Distiller Is Now Richest Woman In Central Kentucky”. It
also noted that she had inherited at least another $100,000 from insurance and other
assets.84
The newspaper reported the distillery was a “mammoth concern, which had
agencies and branches in every part of the civilized globe.”85
Postcard, circa 1900s
James E. Pepper Distillery Company:
Joseph Wolf was President of the James E. Pepper Distributing Company of
Chicago. For the past seven years, Mr. Wolf’s firm managed the distribution of
“Old Pepper”. Mr. Wolf was a prominent member of the National Wholesale
Liquor Dealers’ Association.86
Mr. Wolf reincorporated the distillery as the James E. Pepper Distillery
Company. The company selected new officers, including Mr. Wolf (President), Mr.
Kinkead (Vice President), Mr. Chenault (Treasurer), William E. Self (Secretary) and
Mr. Bronston (General Counsel). All were also elected to the company’s board of
directors. Mr. Self was Colonel Pepper’s bookkeeper.
68
The new company began making improvements to the distillery and bottling
operations. These improvements were budgeted at $200,000. They immediately
placed a fifty thousand dollar order for twenty thousand new oak charred barrels and
stepped up production. The company had sixty thousand barrels of Pepper whiskey
stored in bond at its warehouses.87
In June 1907 three hundred fifty five barrels of “Old Pepper” was seized by
federal agents under the Pure Food and Drug Act of 1906 at the Louisville Public
Warehouse. The agents claimed that the whiskey was improperly colored, with
burnt sugar added to give it a richer color. This was a violation of the law because a
rectifier’s tax was not paid. The whiskey was traced to the Pepper Warehouse #5
and was manufactured in 1899. The distillery claimed that it was not a violation of
the law because the “sugar was put in at the distillery”. John W. Yerkes, former
Commissioner of Internal Revenue, represented the distillery.88 In August the
whiskey was released, after Mr. Wolf agreed to pay $2,500 in fines. The whiskey
was valued at $10,000.89
In July 1907 the company acquired six acres adjacent to the Tarr Distillery
(across Old Frankfort Pike) for $4,500. They build an additional warehouse,
bottling house and cooperage plant on the site.90
“The Fight of the Century”, Reno, Nevada, 1910
69
On July 4, 1910 “The Fight of the Century” was held at the Golden Hotel in
Reno, Nevada, between heavy weights Jack Johnson and Jim Jeffries. This was
the first prizefight with this designation. Johnson was the first black man to hold
the world heavyweight title, while Jeffries - "The Great White Hope" - came out
of retirement for the event. The fight was stopped in the 15th round; after an out
of shape Jeffries was knocked down three times. Johnson took home the purse of
$120,000. The fight was sponsored by “James E. Pepper Whiskey”.91
In 1910 the distillery ran ads to promote medicinal sales with drug stores.
This is the Fine Old Liquor That You Should Dispense
Old James E. Pepper Whiskey
Bottled in Bond
Every progressive druggist knows the importance of dispensing
GOOD whiskey. The BEST liquor is none too good for MEDICINAL
USE. For one hundred and twenty nine years this famous old whiskey
has been distilled from the same formula. In uniformity, mellowness,
fragrant bouquet and sparkling goodness no other whiskey compares
with Old James E. Pepper Whiskey.
BEWARE OF REFILLED BOTTLES
In July 1910 the company started installation of new distilling equipment that
doubled its capacity, increasing its daily mashing capacity to one hundred barrels of
whiskey or approximately one thousand bushels of grain. The improvements cost
$25,000. Their annual capacity was between twenty to thirty thousand barrels.92
In 1910 the company filed suit against five retail stores in Cleveland for
trademark infringement for selling “Old Pepper Spring”. The whiskey was
produced by S. J. Greenbaum Company, of Midway, who had purchased a spring
and renamed it Old Pepper Spring. The courts again protected the “Pepper” and
“Old Pepper” trademarks.
During this period the company introduced “Old Jas. E. Pepper” brand name
and continued to sale “Old Pepper” until the end of Prohibition. Eventually “James
E. Pepper Bourbon” replaced both trade names. The slogan “Born With The
Republic” was introduced around this time.
In July 1911 the Phoenix Hotel purchased twenty-seven barrels of twelveyear-old whiskey at public auction. The auction was conducted by the distillery
after the whiskey went unclaimed at the end of the bond period.93 In 1914 J. F.
70
Conrad Grocers, of St. Louis, advertised “Jas. E. Pepper” for $1.04 per quart or
$12.00 per case (of twelve quarts).94
1913
Promissory Note, 1913
Pepper Advertisement on Building, Location Unknown, circa 1910
71
Prohibition:
It is interesting to note that during the First World War, the Army trained
many of its recruits at the old Civil War battlefield at Chickamauga in Georgia.
Northern recruits were transported by the railroads south, a number shipped
through Lexington on the way. The first thing they noticed upon entering
Lexington was the Pepper Distillery and its boxcar sized billboard for “James E.
Pepper Whiskey” – “Born with the Republic”. This war was “to make the world
safe for democracy”. Less than two years later, these returning battlefield
veterans passed the shuttered Pepper distillery on the way home, with whiskey
now illegal. Some suggested that the sign should be updated with “Born with the
Republic, Died with Democracy”.95
Warehouses at Pepper Distiller, circa 1901
<M. Veach>
After the United States entered the First World War, the Federal government
rationed barley grains to produce food for the troops. The Pepper plant distilled for
the last time on November 11, 1918, when the wartime restrictions on grains forced
production to stop.
On December 8, 1919 the company shipped six hundred barrels to its
bonded warehouses in Chicago. This was transferred “in bond” from one
warehouse to another. The company’s headquarters were in Chicago.96 For the
72
last four months of 1919 the company paid $8,516 in state and local excise taxes,
state and county road taxes and local school taxes.97
On January 4, 1920 the final shipment of Pepper whiskey was sent to New
York, for export to Hamburg, Germany. The shipment included ten thousand five
hundred cases (valued at $47 per case) and sixteen hundred barrels. The L & N
Railroad transported the load, with four armed guards on the train for protection.
The company still had twenty thousand cases and twenty six hundred barrels stored
in the bonded warehouses. Before legislation allowing medicinal sales, this whiskey
in storage was considered worthless because the law did not authorized its
removal.98
1914
73
During Prohibition (1920 – 1934) the distilling plant was mothballed and the
warehouses used as concentration house for whiskey. Due to the lack of security at
a number of rural distilleries, the Federal government ordered the concentrated all
whiskey stocks in warehouses in Lexington, Bardstown, Frankfort and Louisville.
The Pepper plant received shipments from a number of independent distillers. The
whiskey trust operated warehouses in Louisville and Bardstown.
Letterhead, 1923
Whiskey Bandits:
On the winter night of December 2, 1920 whiskey bandits stuck at the bonded
warehouses at the Pepper distillery. That night William Anderson, revenue agent,
and William Nix, distillery guard, were making their rounds as usual checking on
74
the warehouses. At the time, eleven thousand barrels and eighteen thousand cases of
bottled bourbon were still stored in the warehouses.
About one thirty in the morning the guards were rushed by a band of ten to
twelve bandits hiding on the bank of the Town Branch, near the last warehouse.
Agent Anderson ordered the thieves to stop and fired a shot from his revolver. The
band of thieves immediately returned fire and killed Agent Anderson. Guard Nix
was chased towards the office, but escaped and raised the alarm. The thieves left the
area before the police arrived from Lexington.
Witnesses stated that two touring cars and a truck, running without lights,
raced out Old Frankfort Pike at about two o’clock. The next morning the warehouse
wall was “peppered” with holes from the battle.
The distillery increased the security to nine guards and the revenue service sent
two more agents. These guards patrolled the grounds for the next several months,
with loaded shotguns and revolvers at the ready.
The Governor offered a reward of $300 for the capture of the thieves. Rumors
stated that organized crime from Chicago was behind this raid. The bandits were
never found. This is the first attempt to steal whiskey from the facility. However,
several weeks before one of the guards was questioned about the whiskey stored in
the warehouses and offered “how would $6,000 look to you”. The guard refused.
“James E. Pepper” Pint, 1916
75
Medicinal Sales:
In 1920 the Federal government legalized “medicinal” sales of whiskey. With
a prescription, the local drug store would dispense whiskey. The bottling plant was
used to bottle medicinal whiskey.99
In 1923 the company marketed to pharmacist and stated “James E. Pepper
whiskey is endorsed by over forty thousand physicians throughout the United States
owing to its AGE – STRENGTH – PURITY and we can assure you that your trade
will be pleased with the superior qualities of this whiskey.” A case of twenty-four
pints sold for $31.00 wholesale. For a point of reference – this is a roughly six times
pre prohibition price. This whiskey was made in the spring of 1913 and bottled in
the spring of 1923.
In 1924 the Wigglesworth Distillery, in Harrison County, shipped its
remaining inventory of “Old G. W. Taylor” to the concentration warehouses at the
Pepper plant. Later, the whiskey inventory from the D. L. Moore Distillery, Mercer
County, was also shipped in bond to Lexington. This whiskey was bottled as ”D. L.
Moore Whiskey” for medicinal purposes.
Government Label, 1933
In April 1929 Joseph Wolf of Chicago died. He was the leader of the
syndicate that owned the distillery.100 At the time the firm had offices in Chicago
(headquarters), New York (sales) and Lexington (production).
In October 1929 the company was awarded a share of the allocation to distill
medicinal spirits for pharmacists. This was the first time that the Federal
government allowed production to restocked whiskey for medical purposes. The
company estimated that it would cost $35,000 to put the plant back in commission,
so they shifted distilling to the Stilzel & Weller Distillery in Louisville.101
76
Schenley Products:
With repeal in the wind, in 1933 the Schenley Productsa of New York
purchased the company for $1,000,000. They readopted the Jas. E. Pepper & Co.
name and bottled “James E. Pepper Whiskey”. The company in 1933 published a
booklet on cocktails named The Merry Mixer. The forward contained “during the
dark decade just past . . . . to revive the pleasures of the past . . . . to recall those
simple days when drinking was an honored social custom”. It continued “Jas. E.
Pepper & Co. products are your guaranty of quality, they are standards for integrity
and excellence”.
After fourteen years, the distillery plant was in serious disrepair - with the
boilers shot, machinery rusted, pumps frozen and piping corroded. In January 1934
Schenley began rebuilding, modernizing the distilling, and boiler plants. Capacity
was expanded to three hundred barrels or approximately four thousand bushels per
day. The improvements were budget for $400,000. Production was scheduled to
restart in the first week of May 1934.
During Prohibition, the company acquired the following additional brands
- “Mayflower”, “Buckeye”, “Old Fireside”, “Old Hillside”, “Old Chelsea”,
“VanArsdell”, “D. L. Moore”, “Geo. A. Dickel’s Cascade”, “Golden Premium”
a
Schenley Products Corporation was controlled by Lewis S. Rosenstiel. Mr. Rosenstiel was born in
1891 and worked before Prohibition at the Susquemac Distillery Company (which control the
“Susquemac Rye Whiskey”). During Prohibition, Mr. Rosenstiel smuggled whiskey from Bermuda
into Cincinnati and then began acquiring distilleries for their inventory of whiskey. In 1923 he
purchased the Schenley Products Company of Schenley, Pennsylvania. In 1929 he purchased the
Leestown Distilling Company (the original OFC and Carlisle plants of Edward H. Taylor). Its brands
included “OFC”, “Carlisle”, “Ancient Age” and “Old Stagg” whiskies.
In 1933, just before repeal, he established Schenley as a holding company for his whiskey
interests. The same year he acquired the Pepper Distillery in Lexington. Over the next few years
he also acquired the Jos. S. Finch & Co. (“Golden Wedding” and “Old Log Cabin”); the Stilzel –
Weller Distillery (“Old Fitzgerald” and “Rebel Yell”); the Glenmore Distillery (“Yellowstone”);
Bernheim Brothers (“I W Harper” and “Old Charter”) and Geo. Dickel Company (“George
Dickel”).
Between 1933 and 1937 Schenley was the largest distillery in the United States. By the
1940s the company had expanded into Canadian whiskies and by the 1950s into Scottish
distilleries. The company became overextended during the Korea War, when he increased
distilling anticipating wartime restrictions. This inventory last for the next ten years. Eventually it
became United Distillers, a subsidiary of the Irish beer giant Guinness of London.
77
and “Genuine Kentucky” whiskies. In addition, they distilled “V O Brandy” and
“Lord Elston Gin”.a
UK 96PA101 #1835
25 January 1934
UK 96PA101 #1856
21 February 1934
a
"Seal of Kentucky" and “Kentucky Seal” was sold by Pepper & Adams of Frankfort, Kentucky.
78
UK 96PA101 #908b
22 April 1934
UK 96PA101 #1891
4 April 1934
79
On March 18, 1934 Governor Ruby Laffon signed an act finally repealing the
state’s prohibition laws to allow the production and sale of liquor in Kentucky.
Unloading Grain
UK 96PA101 #1905
13 April 1934
During the night of April 28, 1934 a massive fire destroyed the gauging house,
office, bottling plant and six warehouses. This night was exceptionally cold and
Stanley Travis, night watchman, started the fire in the guardhouse for warmth.
However, he mistook gasoline for kerosene and the stove exploded. Mr. Travis was
overcome before he could raise the alarm and died later in the morning.
By the time the fire department arrived, the fire had spread to the first
warehouse. Fueled by the burning bourbon, the fire quickly consumed the other five
warehouses. The blue flames of burning alcohol overflowed into the Town Branch
Creek. The fire was observed as far as Frankfort and Richmond.
The police had trouble controlling the crowd of onlookers. A number of
which ran into the burning warehouses and “saved” cases of bourbon.
Damages were estimated at over five million dollars. Until the 1980s, this was
the largest monetary loss due to a fire in Lexington’s history. In equivalent dollars it
is still the largest fire loss every experience in Lexington. These losses included
fifteen thousand barrels, valued at $300 per barrel wholesale for a total of
$4,500,000; eleven thousand cases, valued at $60 per case wholesale for a total of
80
$600,000 and warehouses valued at $100,000. The new distilling plant escaped
damage. The bourbon destroyed included “Republic”, “Old Pepper” and “Golden
Bantam”. The loss was covered by insurance.102
UK 96PA101 #1914
28 April 1934
In May the company began rebuilding the warehouses and production was
finally restarted in September 1934. At the time, Fred Pauly was the General
Manager and G. C. Cooper was the Master Distiller. Mr. Cooper remained the
distiller for two years, before moving to other Schenley plants.
Schenley filed a claim for four million five hundred thousand dollars with their
insurance companies. In June 1934 Schenley settled two million, six hundred fifty
five thousand, four hundred and sixty seven dollars because of missing
paperwork.103
81
Loading L & N Boxcar at Distillery Siding
UK 96PA101 #1334
Enlargement of Cases
On December 1, 1934 one of the new twelve thousand barrel warehouses
collapsed, dumping five thousand barrels of new whiskey into the Town Branch.
Lubrecht Construction of Covington built the new warehouse for $200,000. This
warehouse was finished on October 1, 1934 and partially filled with new whiskey.
The warehouse was four stories, with twelve tiers of racks.
82
Collapsed Warehouse
UK 96PA101 #3367b
The Lexington Fire Department rushed to the site, as a precaution that the
whiskey might catch fire, and the Lexington Utility Company shut off power to a
section of the city, to prevent sparks from hanging wires. The distillery placed
guards around the “whiskey soaked mass” to prevent “samples” from being
borrowed from the crushed, partially filled barrels.104
Barrels in the Collapsed Warehouse
83
These warehouses were later replaced by a five-story warehouse of
reinforced concrete. In August 1936 the distillery reported that during the past
two years ninety seven thousand barrels of whiskey were produced. The distillery
employed one hundred workers at this time.
In 1938 the distilling plant was shut down for the season due to an
oversupply of whiskey. Production was consolidated at the Leestown Distillery in
Frankfort, Kentucky. At the time, some of their prices were:
“James E. Pepper” (16 year old) $37.50 per case
“James E. Pepper” (14 year old) $35.00 per case
“Henry Clay” (14 year old) $30.00 per case
Blotter, circa 1937
In 1940 the company introduced a new advertising campaign based upon the
painting “The Marching Three” by Archibald McNeal Willard. The painting
featured two drummers and a wounded fife player marching during the American
Revolution. The “James E. Pepper” label was redesigned around this image and the
artist Norman Price commissioned to create a series of six paintings along this
theme. They were the “The Marching Three”, “The Declaration is Signed”, “The
Midnight Ride”, “Give Me Liberty”, “Taxation Without Representation” and “Birth
of Our Navy”. These paintings were used for full page ads in Life Magazine in
1940. The distiller reprinted these paintings without the advertisement for schools at
$.25 each.105
84
“The Marching Three”, 1940
85
“The Declaration Is Signed”, 1940
“Give Me Liberty”, 1940
“The Midnight Ride”, 1940
“Taxation Without Representation’, 1940
86
“Birth of Our Navy”, 1941
1945
1947
1945
87
1947
1949
1948
1950
88
1950
1951
1950
1952
89
1954
1953
1954
1953
90
During the Second World War production of bourbon stopped and the plant
converted to industrial alcohol production for the war effort. The Federal
government limited the supplies of grains for distilling whiskey until after the war.
After the Korean War the “James E. Pepper” logo was again redesigned
around the “Born with the Republic” slogan and using the profile of a minuteman.
The James E. Pepper brands were available in Bond (green label 100 proof), Straight
(blue label 86 proof) and Blend (red label 65% neutral spirits) versions. During the
1950s, Schenley offered James E. Pepper Mint Stirring Sticks as a marketing
gimmick. These sticks dissolved when stirred in bourbon making a Mint Julep.106
At the start of the Korean War the plant was operated a full capacity,
anticipating the Federal government would again limit grain supplies. This
restriction did not happen and the company was stuck with an oversupply of
bourbon inventory. Production was limited during the 1950s to draw down the
existing inventory in the warehouses.
Overhead View, circa late 1940s
91
Enlargement of Distillery
Enlargement of Bonded Warehouses
92
Interior of Bonded Warehouse – circa 1930s
Malcolm Mason, Jr. was hired as the plant manager at the end of the war,
serving until the late 1950s. In 1949 the company began producing a series of
crystal decanters annually for Christmas presents.
Night View of Distillery – circa 1950s
93
Pepper Warehouse, circa 1950s
In 1958 the distillery closed and Schenley switched production to other
plants. The company continued to bottle “James E. Pepper” whiskey from the
warehouses until the late 1970s. They continued to use the warehouses for
bonded bourbon until 1976.
In 1976 the property was sold to Land Development Company for
warehouse space. In December 1981 a warehouses collapsed, after a gust of wind,
while it was being demolished. Debris forced the closing of Frankfort Pike for a
day. Less than two weeks later, another warehouse was destroyed by fire. Both
warehouses were five stories, twenty thousand square feet.107
The distillery (and some of the equipment) and one bonded warehouse
remains today. In 1994 United Distillers, successor to Schenley, re-established the
“James E. Pepper” brand for export outside the United States. They operated as
the Jas. E. Pepper Distillery, with production at the Bernheim Distillery,
Louisville, Kentucky.
94
Overview of Pepper Distillery, circa 1950s
95
Pepper Labels
“James E. Pepper”, 1880 to 1990s
96
Pepper Bottles
“Old Pepper”, 1890s to 1920s
97
“James E. Pepper”, circa 1910s to 1940s
”Jas. E. Pepper”, circa 1910s
98
“James E. Pepper”, circa 1930s
“James E. Pepper” circa 1940s and 1950s
99
“James E. Pepper” Miniatures, circa 1940s and 1950s
Associated Brands 1920s to 1930s
100
Serving Tray, circa 1940s
Bar Token, circa 1940s
101
Case, 1917
Bar Light, circa 1950s
102
Mirror, circa 1910s
Stamp. circa 1950s
103
Back Bar Light, circa 1950s
Bottle Opener, circa 1950s
104
Sign, circa 1950s
Printer Block, circa 1950s
Backbar Display, circa late 1950s
105
Gift Decanters (1949)
Gift Decanters (1953)
106
COMMONWEALTH DISTILLERY (RD #12)
Stoll, Clay & Co. (1880 – 1885)
Commonwealth Distilling Company (1885 – 1899)
Kentucky Distillers and Warehouse Company (1899 – 1915)
Sanbourne Map, 1894
Sanbourne Map, 1907
In 1880 Stoll, Clay & Company converted the old cotton milla in Sandersville
into a whiskey distillery. The plant was located three miles northwest of Lexington.
The firm was comprised of James S. Stoll, Richard P. Stoll and Henry C. Clay
(which see). The company had $60,000 in invested capital.108
a
Colonel Lewis Sanders built a cotton mill at this site around 1810. He sold the plant to Warfield,
Brand Company and eventually it was sold in 1828 to Oldham–Todd and Company. This
partnership included Robert Todd, the father-in-law of Abraham Lincoln. Lincoln often visited
his father-in-law in his mill office.
107
Commonwealth Distillery, circa 1899
The distillery had twenty five thousand square feet of floor space. Daily
production totaled forty-five barrels of whiskey. The grain bill included three
hundred bushels of corn and one hundred fifty bushels of rye and barley. An eightyfive horsepower Lane & Dodley engine supplied power. Annual capacity was five
thousand barrels. The basement of the distillery contained twelve fermentation tubs
of nine thousand gallons each. The doubler still had the capacity of fifteen hundred
gallons. The doubler was purchased for $1,800.
The company had three warehouses, adjoining to each other, totaling thirty
thousand square feet. Combined storage capacity was thirteen thousand five
hundred barrels - Warehouse “A” held three thousand barrels in racks of eleven tiers,
Warehouse “B” held six thousand barrels in six tiers and Warehouse “C” held four
thousand five hundred barrels in seven tiers. Warehouse “C” was built in 1895 at
the cost of $12,000.
The distillery was supplied from a spring of twenty feet diameter on the
grounds. The plant used one hundred fifty thousand gallons of water daily. The
distillery was connected with a siding to the Elizabethtown, Lexington & Big Sandy
(later Cincinnati Southern) Railroad. They employed forty-five at a daily cost of
$1.75 each. Distilling was conducted for eight months of the year. They purchased
barrels for $2.50 each from coopers in Lexington.109
During their first year of production, the company produced five thousand
three hundred seventy barrels, valued at $125,000. The production schedule was
108
from February 12 to October 1, 1881. As of October 24, 1881 the company had five
thousand two hundred barrels in bond.110
In 1881 Richard P. Stoll and Robert B. Hamilton (which see) established
Stoll, Hamilton & Company to wholesale whiskey produced at the distillery. The
distillery produced their proprietary brand “Owl Club Whiskey” and “Elkhorn
Whiskey” as a “tenant lessee”a. This firm also traded in bulk whiskies.
In August 1885 the relationship between the Stoll brothers and Mr. Clay
deteriorated and the partnership was dissolved. On August 12th the assets of the
partnership was sold at public auction. George J. Stoll, Jr. (which see) purchased the
distillery and grounds for $10,090. Richard P. Stoll purchased two hundred ninety
one barrels from the 1881 season for $.35 per gallon. These barrels had been
exported earlier to Bremen, Germany. Mr. Stoll also purchased nineteen barrels of
“free whiskey” for $1.40 per gallon and another three hundred barrels for $.20 to
$.40 per gallon. This whiskey was store in the Sandersville warehouses.111
1893
a
A “tenant lessee” would lease the distillery for a few days, which allowed the broker to be
named as distiller. This was also known as “doing business as.”
109
Commonwealth Distilling Company:
In January 1883 the Commonwealth Distillery Company was formed with
Richard P. Stoll (President) and Isaac Strauss (Vice President). In addition, Charles
H. Stoll, James S. Stoll, Solomon Pritz and Benjamin Pritz were also appointed
directors. Richard P. Stoll was the primary stockholder. The firm was capitalized at
$100,000.112 In 1885 the firm assumed the operations of the Stoll, Clay &
Company. The firm produced “Commonwealth” hand made copper whiskey.
“Old Elk”, circa 1895
During the 1880s the brokerage firm of Ireland & Vannatta distilled “Owl
Club” old fashioned, hand made whiskey at the distillery as a “tenant lessee”.
James S. Stoll and Sanford K. Vannatta, to market whiskey in the northeast,
formed Stoll, Vannatta & Company (which see) in 1891. The company distilled
110
“Old Elk Rye Whiskey” as a “tenant lessee” at the Commonwealth Distillery, which
was sold primarily in Chicago. Mr. Vannatta was from Bloomington, Illinois.
During the whiskey depression of the 1890s, the price of bourbon was often at
or below the cost of production and taxation. Between 1895 and 1898 the Stolls
shutdown production and allowed the inventory in their bonded warehouses to be
depleted.
In the 1890s, the distillery operated under a number of “tenant lessee” – these
including Stoll, Hamilton & Company; Stoll, Vannatta & Company; R. P. Stoll dba
Cream of Anderson Distillery; Durham Distillery; Edgecliff Distillery; Edgewood
Distillery; Lynwood Distillery; Oakwood Distillery; Owl Club Distillery; Small
Grain Distilling Company; Ben Baer Distiller; Rocky Fork Distillery; Forest Mill
Distillery; Old Buckhorn Distillery; Evan, Gallagher & Company; Fechheimer
Brothers Distillers and W. W. Johnson & Company.a
In December 1899 the Commonwealth Distillery was deeded to the Kentucky
Distillers and Warehouse Company.113 Production was shifted to other plants of the
whiskey trust and the distillery at Sandersville was demolished in 1905. The
warehouses were used for storage until 1908 as the Lexington Public Warehouse
(bonded storage). In 1915 Hillenmeyer & Sons purchased the property for a
nursery. The Hillenmeyer’s farm was adjacent to the plant and for years their
cattle was fed the spent grains. The original brick warehouse remains today and
is used for storage
a
Edgewood Distilling Company of Cincinnati, Ohio controlled the brand “Edgewood Whiskey”.
The company was owned by the Paxton Brothers. Kaufmann, Bear & Company of Cincinnati,
Ohio controlled the brand “Rocky Fork”. S. B. Hume of Richmond, Virginia controlled the brand
“Lynwood”. Strauss, Pritz & Company of Cincinnati, Ohio controlled “Edge Cliff”. “Durham”
and “Cream of Anderson Whiskies”. They also for a period sold “Small Grain Whiskey”. The
Mayers Brothers & Company of Cincinnati, Ohio controlled “Oakwood Whiskey”. Fechheimer
Brothers of Detroit, Michigan controlled “Elk’s Choice Whiskey”. W. W. Johnson & Company
was located in Cincinnati, Ohio.
111
“Old Elk”, 1917
112
SILVER SPRINGS DISTILLERY (RD #46)
G. W. West & Brothers (1867 – 1871)
Nat Harris (1880 – 1895)
James E. Pepper (1895 – 1900)
Henry Clay Pure Rye Distillery Co. (1900 – 1913)
Henry Clay Distilling Company (1913 – 1918)
Sanbourne Map, 1897
The Silver Spring Distillery was located six miles from Lexington, on the
Leestown Pike, at the Yarnall Depot on the Lexington, Cincinnati & Louisville
Railroad (later Louisville & Nashville). The property contained forty acres,
including the famed Silver Spring. This spring supplied pure limestone water at the
daily rate of two hundred thousand gallons.
G. W. West & Brothers founded the distillery in 1867. They operated the
plant for four years. In 1871 Younger Stone purchased the distillery and relocated
the plant outside of Fayette County.
Nat Harris:
In 1880 the property was sold and the distillery rebuilt by Nathaniel Harris of
Versailles, Kentucky. The distillery was constructed on top of the spring. The cost
of rebuilding was $15,000. The distillery was half stone and half frame, with twelve
thousand square feet. The plant had one hundred seventy mash tubs of eighty
gallons each and four fermentation tubs of five thousand gallons each. The doubler
had the capacity of six hundred gallons.114
113
The company produced the “N. Harris” brand of “pure hand-made sour mash
whiskey”. Production was started in January 1881. The grain bill included one
hundred bushels, divided between eighty-six bushels of corn and fourteen bushels of
rye and barley. The sour mash was allowed to ferment for seventy-two hours. The
firm produced ten barrels of whiskey per day.
In 1881 the company produced a total of two thousand barrels. The company
had three warehouses – built of stone and ironclad. After the first year, the
warehouses held fourteen hundred thirty five barrels of bonded bourbon. This
output was valued at $45,000.
Six hands were employed at the cost of $1 daily. The company produced for
nine months and seven hundred hogs were fed from the stillage.
“Old Henry Clay”, circa 1920s
“Old Henry Clay”, circa 1930s
Henry Clay Pure Rye Distilling Company:
During the whiskey recession of the 1890s, the distillery was sold to Colonel
James E. Pepper in 1895. He mothballed the plant for the next five years. The
distillery became known as the “Little Pepper” Distillery. He distilled “Old Henry
Clay”, a rye whiskey, at this plant.
In July 1900 Colonel Pepper organized the Henry Clay Pure Rye Distilling
Company of New Jersey and transferred to the new corporation the Little Pepper
114
Distillery for $20,000. This included the plant and the “Henry Clay Pure Rye”
brand. The company issued $300,000 in gold bonds with the North American Trust
Company of New York. Colonel Pepper was listed as President and Frank Dutson
as Secretary.115
With these funds the distillery plant was rebuilt and two new warehouses were
constructed. These two warehouses had the capacity of five thousand barrels each.
On February 25, 1901 the renovated distillery was placed in commission and
operated at full capacity for the season. The new plant could mash four hundred
sixty bushels or roughly forty-six barrels of rye whiskey per day. The plant was
leased to the Jas. E. Pepper & Company, which operated the facility.116
After his death, the plant was sold with Mr. Pepper’s other holdings to Joseph
Wolf of Chicago.
The Henry Clay Distilling Company was incorporated in January 1913 by
Matt S. Walton, Trustee (nine hundred ninety four shares), John L. Boor (three
shares) and George C. Roberts (three shares). Mr. Walton Mr. Walton was a local
attorney that represented Joseph Wolf and the James E. Pepper Distributing
Company. Capital was set at $100,000.117 The distillery operated until Prohibition
(1918). The distillery was dismantled during Prohibition. .
Following Prohibition, Schenley produced the brand for regional consumption
until the 1960s. Today the site is the Silver Springs Farm. The spring still flows, but
nothing remains of the distillery or warehouses (last warehouse torn down in 1962).
The distiller’s house built in 1880 is now a bed and breakfast.
115
WOODLAND DISTILLERY (RD #54)
Headley & Peck (1872 – 1894)
Sanbourne Map, 1898
The Woodland Distillery was built in 1872 by the partnership of Headley &
Peck. The partnership consisted of John A. Headley and Charles Y. Peck (his
brother-in-law)118 Mr. Headley had previously been associated with the Henry Clay
Distillery. The distillery was located on Harrodsburg Pike, at the first tollgate, about
one-mile south of Lexington. The plant was on the one hundred-acre farm owned
by Robert L. Criglera of Covington, Kentucky. The partnership had invested capital
of $30,000.
The distillery was built of brick, with the capacity of three hundred bushels or
thirty barrels per day. The grain bill was seventy-five (75%) percent corn and
a
Robert L. Crigler (1834 – 19__), a prominent wholesale whiskey dealer and rectifier of
Covington, Kentucky. Mr. Crigler was reared in Boone County, where he remained until sixteen
years of age, and then moved to Cincinnati (where he clerked in a dry goods store until he was
twenty-one) He then formed a partnership with his brother and operated dry goods business in
Paris and Lexington. His firm, Crigler & Crigler, extended into whiskey and traded extensively
with the western frontier after the Civil War. In 1868 they purchased the Buffalo Springs
Distillery, Stamping Ground, Kentucky. They distilled “Buffalo Springs” sour mash and “Old
Stamping Ground” rye whiskey. In 1880 Mr. Crigler entered the wholesale whiskey business in
Cincinnati. In 1885 they acquired the New England Distilling Company, Covington, Kentucky
(where they relocated their offices).
116
twenty-five (25%) percent rye and barley. The firm had twenty-five workers, paid
$1.75 per day. The annual capacity was four thousand barrels, with a ten-month
production schedule.119
The distillery had nine thousand square feet of space. They employed twelve
fermentation tubs of six thousand gallons and three hundred mash tubs of eighty
gallons. The doubler’s capacity was one thousand gallons.
The company had four bonded warehouses with the storage capacity of
fourteen thousand, seven hundred barrels. Three of these warehouses were frame
and ironclad construction (Warehouse “A”, “C”, and “D” capacity was four
thousand, four thousand and thirty five hundred barrels, respectively). Warehouse
“B” was of brick construction, with the capacity of thirty two hundred barrels on two
floors. In 1882 the company had six thousand five hundred barrels in bond.
The plant was supplied water from a cave spring on site. The cave was
rumored to be the site of an old Indian campground. Two hundred fifty thousand
gallons of water was drawn daily. The plant had a fifty horsepower steam engine.
Postcard, circa 1889
The company produced the “Woodland” brand of bourbon in barrels only.
The broker firm of Crigler & Crigler of Covington bottled and handled the sales of
the distillery’s products. They also distilled “John Robb Whiskey”.
117
Envelope, circa 1880s
After the death of Mr. Headley in the late 1880, his son, William (“Will”)
H. Headley, assumed his position.
Headley & Peck Distilling Company:
In 1891 the Headley & Peck Distilling Company was incorporated and
assumed the operations of the old partnership. This was done because of Mr. Peck’s
poor health (he died later that year).120 T. Logan Hocker was appointed President,
Garland R. Bullocka appointed Secretary and Will H. Headley appointed Treasurer.
Mr. Hocker was the son of James M. Hocker, a banking partner of John A. Headley.
In addition, William Webber was the distiller, Charles Bates the yeastman and
Armstead Mitchell the engineer. The company last distilled during the 1892 season.
On January 1, 1894 Mr. Hocker resigned as President, since the company was
unable to pay his salary. Major Bullock replaced him as President. This was
following the Panic of 1893. At the time, the company had stored in its warehouses
five thousand three hundred and nineteen barrels of whiskey. Another nineteen
hundred and eight barrels remained from the partnership. Warehouse receipts had
been issued on all of these barrels.
a
Garland R. Bullock was a Major in the Union Army during the Civil War. In the late 1890s
Major Bullock became the Commissioner for the Internal Revenue Service for Eastern Kentucky.
118
Roughly half of these receipts had been issued to Crigler & Crigler. Other
were issued to L. Welschoff & Company, Henry W. Smith & Company and Joseph
Silverman. These three were whiskey brokers from Cincinnati. In addition, a
number of receipts were issued locally to saloon and bar owners.
Crigler & Crigler Embossed Bottle, circa 1890s
On February 14, 1894 a storm, with high winds, took the roofs of the
company’s bonded warehouses.121 The next week, Mr. Headley left town, with his
three year old daughter, for a business trip. He left behind his four other children,
ages ranging from fourteen months to eighteen years. Before leaving, he had gone
to the D. A. Sayre & Company, a private bank, and withdrawn $900 in company
funds.
Several days later, his eldest daughter received a letter from him indicating that
he had fled to Mexico and admitted to issuing fraudulent warehouse receipts for
$50,000 over the past few years.
119
The distillery had been in financial difficulties for several years due to the
depression in the whiskey market. He was not known to be a gambler or heavy
drinker. However, Mr. Headley had lost his wife the prior year. His admission
shocked most of the people who knew him. Ephraim D. Sayre, his banker, indicated
that he had “done business with Will Headley for twenty-five years and that he was
always straight in his dealings”.
Corkscrew, circa 1900
Major Bullock, the President of the company, immediately summoned Robert
L. Crigler, owner of the property and large holder of warehouse receipts, to
Lexington.
Mr. Crigler assumed control and ordered that no whiskey be removed from the
warehouses until an inventory was taken and more information was discovered. A
locksmith had to drill the lock to open the safe and gain access to the company
records. The Warehouse Receipt Book, with the stubs indicating whom the receipts
were issued to, was located inside.
The inventory of the warehouses showed seven thousand seventy nine barrels
(five thousand two hundred sixty five belonging to the company and eighteen
hundred fourteen belonging to the partnership). There appeared to be no missing
barrels of bonded whiskey. Had there been missing barrels, the Internal Revenue
Service would have demanded payment for the excise taxes due on the missing
barrels. Mr. Crigler has signed the bond for the distillery for the excise taxes.
Apparently, Mr. Headley was the only one to issued warehouse receipts.
Major Bullock was completely cleared and was left to manage the company’s
120
affairs. Fred Peck, son of Charles Peck, was also left in charge of the distillery’s
office.122
Mr. Headley was discovered to have issued receipts for at total of eighteen
hundred barrels of bourbon, allegedly produced in 1892 and stored in its
warehouses. However, the company had only produced six hundred barrels during
1892. The losses to these fraudulent receipts total over $30,000. The firm of Crigler
& Crigler accounted for half of the loss.123
In March 1899 the distillery (and surrounding one hundred acres) was sold at
public auction for $31,000 to Major Bullock, bidding for Mr. Crigler. The Saving
Loan & Building Associations of Louisville held a lien for $17,000. Mr. Bullock
was bidding against John T. Shelby, bidder for the whiskey trust.124 The
“Woodland” brand was included in the sale.
Price List, circa 1909
In 1899 “Woodland Whiskey” became the official whiskey of the U. S.
Government Hospitals, which managed the veteran homes for Civil War solders.
121
The brand also became the whiskey of the Wabash Railroad and the
Pennsylvanian State Insane Asylum.
Pricelist Enlargement
In dry areas “Woodland” was distributed by drummers (sales
representatives) door to door – who took orders for the whiskey, which was then
shipped from the distillery to the customers. Since the deliveries were COD no
laws were violated. These sales representatives made a commission $.50 cents
per case.
Shot Glasses, circa 1905
The distillery also supplied these sales representatives with “Agents
Complete Outfits” – which consisted of corkscrews, jigger glasses, order forms,
122
flyers, sample miniatures and a free quart. The distillery also provided incentives
ranging from revolvers, derby hats, gramophones and wool suits.125
In 1901 the closed distillery, and adjoining one hundred acres, was sold again
at public auction for $21,900 to the Security Trust & Safety Vault Company
(bidding for Mrs. J. Will Sayre).126 Mrs. Sayre converted the property into a farm,
demolished the distillery and used the brick warehouse as a tobacco barn. In 1928
the farm was converted into the Picadome Golf Course. Some of the bricks from the
bonded warehouses were salvaged to build the Picadome Golf Course Clubhouse.
“Woodland”, circa 1900
“Woodland”, circa 1900
The “Woodland” brand was retained by the Criglers and the remaining
inventory was bottled in Covington until the 1910s.
123
Serving Tray, circa 1900
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124
LEXINGTON DISTILLERY (RD #93)
John D. Hinde (1869 – 1870)
D. A. Aiken (1874 – 1882)
William Tarr & Company (1892 – 1902)
The Lexington Distillery was established in 1869 by John D. Hinde. The
distillery was located on two acres on Manchester Street (Old Frankfort Pike), at the
Elizabethtown, Lexington & Big Sandy Railroad (later Cincinnati Southern
Railroad).a The site was adjacent to the Ashland Distillery. He purchased the site
on January 4, 1869 for $1,000. He may have leased the old distillery plant prior to
its purchase.b The distillery was mortgaged on February 19, 1869 for $20,000 to
Grotenkemper and Company, whiskey brokers of Cincinnati (Henry Grotenkemper
and Henry Schultze). The mortgage funded the construction of the distillery.127
The distillery had three floors of seventy two hundred square feet each. Three
warehouses had the storage capacity of thirteen thousand barrels. Water was drawn
from the Ater Spring (which also supplied the adjacent Ashland distillery). One
sixty horsepower steam engine supplied power.
A whiskey recession forced the distillery to close in 1870. In 1872 the
distillery was sold by the Internal Revenue Bureau for non-payment of excise taxes.
He was assessed $3,010 “for barrel and capacity tax, due to United States, also for
store keeper’s reimbursement” for 1870. In 1876 the property (described as “the
distillery built by John D. Hinde, known as Lexington Distillery”) was sold to John
H. Temmen, of Cincinnati, Ohio for $10,000.128
In 1874 the plant was leased to Dwight A. Aiken (which see), of Lexington for
three years (the lease was renewed several times).129 He operated the plant as D. A.
Aiken & Company and produced six thousand five hundred barrels annually. He
used the brand name “D. A. Aiken”. The market value of this production was
$130,000. The company had capital of $50,000.
a
The Lexington Manufacturing Company site was purchased in 1829 by William W. Ater and
Thomas E. Boswell. Mr. Boswell converted their stone building into a distillery. Later it was
operated by the brothers, Daniel and Henry McCourt.
b
The distillery was leased to A. Keller & Company of Cincinnati in January 1869 to produce
“doing business as” whiskey.
125
The company’s production schedule lasted ten months, with fifteen hands
employed. Workers were paid $1.50 per day. The company distilled exclusively
sweet mash whiskey. The plant could produce fifty barrels per day. The mash bill
included five hundred bushels, comprising seventy-six (76%) percent corn and
twenty-four (24%) percent rye and barley. The sweet mash was allowed to ferment
for seventy-two hours. The company maintained a cattle-feeding operation with the
stillage for six hundred head.
In March 1882 the distillery was destroyed by fire. The fire was caused by an
explosion of a coal-oil lamp in the distillery’s office. The distillery was a total loss,
estimated at $25,000, but the warehouse was saved. The company had insurance
coverage of $7,500.130 The same year, during a short-lived recession in the whiskey
market, T. N. Allen was appointed receiver of the company. The primary creditor
was the private bank of D. A. Sayre & Company, with a loan of $7,500.
On April 14, 1883 half of the bonded warehouse collapsed and the remaining
portion slumped two feet. The warehouse was full with two thousand barrels of
whiskey, stored in seven tiers. The ground was soaked and puddles of bourbon were
everywhere. Whiskey spilled into the Town Branch Creek. The company hired
twelve men and a derrick to salvage as much whiskey as possible. Roughly half of
the bourbon was lost. The cause was determined to be a faulty foundation, which
had locust pile driven in the ground during the winter. With the ground frozen the
piles were not driven to bedrock.131
The plant set idle for several years, until 1892 when it was sold to the William
Tarr. The distillery was demolished. Nothing remains today.
132
126
SMALL DISTILLERIES
H. D. OWINGS DISTILLERY (RD #8) - in 1879 Robert F. Johnson built a
distillery on his farm on Russell Cave Pike, three miles from Lexington. In 1882
H. D. Owings leased the plant and began producing the “H. D. Owings” brand of
“Old Fashioned Hand-Made Sour Mash Fire Copper Whiskey”.
He produced roughly eight hundred barrels annually, valued at $20,000. He
employed five workers, at an average weekly salary of $5. The distillery was
supplied from a two and half acre lake on the farm. The plant was powered by an
eighteen horsepower engine. The distillery was of brick and stone construction, with
floor space of five thousand four hundred square feet. The company had a total of
one hundred seventy mash tubs of seventy-two gallons each. The mash bill included
one hundred twenty bushels of corn and forty bushels of rye and barley. The plant
had four fermentation tanks of eight thousand gallons each and four of three
thousand gallons each. The whiskey was fermented for ninety-six hours. The beer
still had the capacity of three thousand six hundred gallons and the doubler had the
capacity of four hundred gallons.
The two warehouses had floor space of six thousand eight hundred square feet,
with storage capacity of twenty six hundred barrels. In 1882 the company had
twelve hundred twenty eight barrels in storage. The distillery closed in 1883.133
I. H. DAVIDSON DISTILLERY (RD# 148) - in 1882 I. H. Davidson operated a
small distillery one-mile north of Athens, Kentucky. The distillery and warehouse
were of frame construction. Apparently, he operated until the early 1890s.
GRIMES DISTILLERY (RD #150)134 – during the 1850s, Charles W. Grimes
constructed a distillery on Boone Creek, at Grimes Mill Road. The distillery was
located upstream from his mill. He distilled “Old Grimes Copper Whiskey”.
After the Civil War, he rebuilt the distillery and constructed a bonded warehouse.
His investment was valued at $8,000. Annual production was three hundred
twenty five barrels, valued at $21,000. The plant generated profit of $8,500.a
a
Three hundred twenty five barrels contained fourteen thousand gallons of whiskey, valued at $65
per barrel or $1.50 per gallon. Costs included:
Corn (5,000 bushels)
Rye (700 bushels)
$ 2,000
$ 525
127
16%
4%
In 1872, Richard P. Stoll, Deputy Collector of the Internal Revenue Bureau,
sold the distillery at public auction. The distillery was accessed $551 for unpaid
“excise and capacity taxes”. Henry C. Clay, Charles Grimes’ nephew, purchased
the property. Later, William W. Grimes, Charles Grimes’ son, operated the
distillery for a period.
In 1880 Henry C. Clay & Company operated the distillery, until the middle
of the 1890s.135 The distillery was dismantled and the mill later converted into
the Iroquois Hunt Clubhouse.
ATKINS & SHAWBRUN DISTILLERY – established a distillery in 1868 in
the Dog Fennel Precinct, opposite Roger’s Mill. The distillery operated until the
early 1880s.136
ADAMS & DRUERS DISTILLERY – erected a distillery in 1868 near Athens.
In 1876 Poindexter & Pettit assumed operations. This partnership consisted of
Richard Poindexter and B. F. Pettit. Operations were discontinued shortly
afterwards.137
CARTER & McDONALD DISTILLERY – build a distillery and mill around
1873 on Combs Ferry Pike. They operated for five years.138
JAMES O. PETTIT DISTILLERY – constructed a mill on Boone’s Creek
around 1850 and operated a distillery adjacent to the mill. Purchased by Stephen
D. Reed in 1877, and operated until al least 1883.139
Barley (150 bushels)
Wood (40 cords)
Coal (2,800 bushels)
Distillery Wages
Excise Taxes
Miscellaneous
TOTAL
$ 190
$ 120
$ 556
$ 620
$ 8,400
$ 89
$12,500
2%
1%
4%
5%
67%
1%
100%
Costs per barrel was $38.50 per barrel or $.90 per gallon. Profit was $26.50 per barrel or $.60 per
gallon.
128
JOHN ROBB DISTILLERY – located next to his residence at Waveland. He
operated from 1877 to at least 1883. In the 1890s, Head & Peck at the Woodland
Distillery produced “John Robb Whiskey”.140
REID DISTILLERY – operated by J. G. Reid of Athens from 1882 to 1885.141
FOLEY DISTILLERY – distillery operated by J. S. Foley, located adjacent to his
residence at South Elkhorn, on the Lexington, Harrodsburg & Perryville
Turnpike.142
129
Shot Glasses
“James E. Pepper”
“James E. Pepper”
“Old Lexington Club”
“Old Lexington Club”
“Old Barton Rye”
“Old Barton Rye”
“Old Barton Rye”
“Rocky Fork”
“Belle of Nelson”
“Seal of Kentucky”
“Old Lexington Club”
130
“Billy Burke” &
“Zenda”
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WHISKEY BROKERS
After the Civil War, a number of whiskey brokers were established in
Louisville, Covington and Cincinnati to purchase bulk bourbon whiskey from
distillers and resell the whiskey around the United States. These brokers
developed the distribution system for Kentucky bourbon across the United States.
A number of whiskey brokers and rectifiers also operated from Lexington,
including:
Sam Clay, Jr.:
Around 1875 Sam Clay, Jr. established a whiskey brokerage in Lexington,
with offices located at 11 West Water Street. Mr. Clay was from Paris, Bourbon
County and associated with Thomas J. Megibben. In 1879 he
became a partner in the Wm. Tarr & Company, which
operated the Ashland Distillery. He marketed the firm’s
“Ashland” and “Wm. Tarr” whiskies.
In 1880 he purchased the Paris Distillery in Paris,
Kentucky, and produced a sour mash whiskey called “Sam
Clay Bourbon”. In 1882 the plant produced forty barrels per
day and had over fifteen thousand barrels in bonded storage.
Mr. Megibben operated the distillery from 1884 to 1890. In
1901 Mr. Clay sold the distillery to the whiskey trust.
Around 1884 Mr. Clay left the Tarr partnership over the
disputed sale of the Kentucky Union Railroad. The J. A. Lail
& Company assumed the distribution for the Ashland
Distillery.
W. B. Corbin:
Just prior to Prohibition, William
B. Corbin sold “Old Mock Whiskey” for
“Family and Club Use”. His offices
were located at 111 South Mill Street.143
Corkscrew, circa 1910s
131
W. Q. Emison & Company:
W. Q. Emison & Company was a wholesale whiskey broker during 1887 and
1888, located at 62 East Main Street.144 He advertised:
Have in stock the largest lot of OLD WHISKEY
of various brands, distilled in 1866, 1867 and 1869.
AGENTS FOR: Sachs, Pruden & Co’s
Famous Ginger Ale and agaric.
Straight Kentucky Whiskies
Distillers and Wholesale Liquor Dealers
Foushee & Brothers:
In 1876 the firm of Foushee & Brothers was founded as a wholesale liquor
dealer. The firm consisted of Charles W. Foushee, Jr. and E. F. Foushee, his
brother. The Foushees were the sons of Lexington’s Mayor Charles W. Foushee, Sr.
(from 1888 to 1892). Their office was located at 25 West Short Street. By the mid
1880s the firm had become Foushee, Bond & Company, operating at 57 East Short
Street. This firm at this point consisted of Charles W. Foushee, Jr. and John B.
Bond. Mr. Bond left the partnership and formed Overly & Bond (which see),
another whiskey broker in the 1890s.
Price List for D. H. Foushee & Company, early 1900s
132
In May 1888 Mr. Foushee shot Alexander O’Lee, proprietor of the European
Hotel on Limestone (at Water Street). Mr. Foushee had signed the bond for Mr.
O’Lee’s liquor license, with the understanding that he would buy all of this liquor
and beer from his firm. However, Mr. O’Lee changed his mind and purchased
supplies from other distributors. He also refused to pay his bill of $34. After an
argument - Mr. O’Lee pulled a hatchet and then Mr. Foushee pulled a revolver - Mr.
Foushee won. Mr. O’Lee’s wound was not seriously.145 During the 1890s the firm
was successors to Ed. Murphy & Company (which see). The firm continued as D.
H. Foushee & Company, distributing “Belle of Anderson County Whiskey” until
after 1900.146
Products of The Gutzeit Company, circa 1900
The Gutzeit Company:
From 1893 to shortly before Prohibition, the Gutzeit Company was operated
by August C. Gutzeit, proprietor, as a wholesale liquor broker, located at 410 West
Short Street. He also was the General Manager and part owned the E. J. Curley &
133
Company, a Jessamine County distiller, located on the Hickman Creek at the
Kentucky River. This firm sold “Old Lexington Club”, “Old Boone’s Knoll”,
“Zenda”, Old Billy Burke”, “Royal Bourbon” and “Blue Grass Bourbon”. He was
the distillery's sole sales agent. In 1912 he purchased the old Strader warehouse at
112 West Main Street.147
Hagan Distillery:
Hagan Distillery was an operating name for Andrew J. Hagan, a saloonkeeper
and liquor dealer. He sold “Hagan Whiskey”. He operated around 1902 from 131
North Broadway.148
Frank Hudson & Company:
Frank Hudson operated from around 1916 to 1919 from 122 West Main Street.
The company produced “Hudson Whiskey”. They advertised “Wholesale and Mail
Order Liquor, Tobacco, Cigar and Pipes”. He succeeded The Gutzeit Company.149
J. A. Lail & Company:
J. A. Lail & Company operated from 1884 to 1890 as a broker of “Ashland”
and “Wm. Tarr” whiskey from the Ashland Distillery. The partnership consisted of
Jeptha H. Lail and Joseph M. Kimbrough. Mr. Kimbrough was the manager of the
Ashland Distillery and Thomas J. Megibben’s son-in-law. Their offices were
located at 74 East Main Street. They also manufactured the “New Blue Stocking
Cigars”. After Mr. Kimbrough’s death in 1890, the firm dissolved and operations
assumed by R. S. Strader & Son.150
Ed. Murphy & Company:
Ed. Murphy & Company, Distillers operated a whiskey brokerage at
Cheapside and Mill Street for “Belle of Anderson County Whiskey” during the
1880s. Edward Murphy was a distiller, who purchased the Belle of Anderson
County Distillery in Lawrenceburg in 1883. He operated the plant until 1912, when
it closed.151 During the 1890s the firm was succeeded by D. H. Foushee &
Company.
134
Calling Card, circa 1880s
“Lexington Club”, circa
1890s
“Old Lexington Club”,
circa 1890s
135
“Old Boone’s Knoll”,
circa 1900
“Old Billy Burke”,
circa 1900s
“Fayette”, circa
1910s
“Belle of Fayette”,
circa 1910s
“White Fox”, circa
1910s
“Old Mock”, circa
1916
“Bell of Lexington”,
circa 1906
“High Tide”, circa
1910s
“Zeno”, circa 1910s
136
Overly – Bond Company:
Overly – Bond Company was a partnership operated by Charles H. Overly
and John B. Bond in the 1890s as a wholesale liquor dealer at 123 East Main
Street. The brand "Nancy Hanks" was registered with the US Patent Office
around 1893 by John Bond of Lexington, Kentucky.152
Letterhead, 1877
137
Reed, Tyler & Company:
During the 1870s J. H. Reed operated Jackson & Reed and Reed, Tyler &
Company as a wholesale whiskey brokers at 25 South Broadway. The company
sold “Old Lexington Club Whiskey”. Around 1876 Mr. Reed relocated to Pittsburgh,
Pennsylvania and continued to broker whiskey.153
NOTE: J. H. Reed of Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania registered the brand “Old
Lexington Club Hand Made Sour Mash” in 1876. G & B Gerdes of Lexington
and Edwin Gerdes & Co. of Newport, Kentucky later assumed the brand. The
brand "Old Lexington" was registered in 1891 by James E. Pepper & Company,
from 1892 to 1906 by Wm. Bergenthal Co. of Milwaukee, Wisconsin and in
1906 by the Old Lexington Distillery of Newport, Kentucky. In 1913 “Old
Lexington Club” was distilled by Harry E. Wilken (who continued into
Prohibition).
Advertising Postcard, circa 1890s
A. Schwabacher:
The brand "Coaching Club Rye Whiskey" was registered in 1907 by A.
Schwabacher of Lexington, KY.
138
Shannon & Fieber:
Before Prohibition (1911 – 1917) the firm of Shannon & Fieber – James J.
Shannon and Lewis S. Fieber - marketed “Fayette Whiskey” from 353 West Main
Street.154
W. J. Smith & Company:
William J. Smith operated as a retail and wholesale whiskey dealer from the
1890s to Prohibition. He operated from his saloon at the corner of Vine and
Limestone. His brand names included “High Top Whiskey”, “Old Brook Bourbon
Whiskey”, “True Heart Whiskey”, “Old Brookie Whiskey” and “Zeno Whiskey”.155
Whiskey Jugs, circa 1900s
Stoll, Hamilton & Company:
In 1881 Richard P. Stoll and Robert B. Hamilton established a partnership to
wholesale whiskey. The firm’s offices and warehouse were located on Vine and
Spring Streets.
This firm traded in bulk whiskies from several distilleries around Lexington.
Their primary distillery was the Stoll’s Commonwealth Distillery in Sandersville.
They advertised, “these whiskies are distilled near Lexington, the center of the great
Blue Grass Region of Kentucky, from the choices grains, grown on limestone soil,
139
and the purest limestone spring water” and “Pure Malt Barley Whiskey A
Specialty”.
The firm purchased bulk whiskey in barrels and then bottled the whiskey
under “Elkhorn Whiskey”, a proprietary trade name. They used glass bottles and
jugs. They also distributed “Owl Club” as Ireland & Vannatta Distillers and Owl
Club Distillery in the 1880s. In the 1890s the firm produced “Small Grain
Whiskey”. A large portion of their trade was with Cincinnati dealers.
Letterhead, 1889
Mr. Hamilton died in 1888 and Mr. Stoll purchased his interest. Mr. Stoll
died in 1903. In 1907 the firm was consolidated into Stoll & Company and in
1908 was purchased by Samuel C. Stofer, who operated until Prohibition as a
140
wholesale wine and liquor merchant. Mr. Stofer was a long time employee of the
company. 156
Invoice, 1906
Whiskey Jugs, circa 1890s
Stoll, Vannatta & Company:
James S. Stoll and Sanford K. Vannatta formed Stoll, Vannatta & Company in
1891. The company’s proprietary brand was “Old Elk” Rye, bottled from whiskey
produced under lease at the Commonwealth Distillery. This whiskey was sold
primarily in Chicago. Mr. Vannatta was from Bloomington, Illinois.
141
The firm’s offices were located at 43 / 45 West Main Street. They also
distributed “Owl Club” as Ireland & Vannatta Distillers and Owl Club Distillery in
the 1890s. The company also distilled “Elk Whiskey”, “Acme Whiskey”, “Old Buck
Horn Whiskey”, and “Commonwealth Whiskey”. In January 1895 Messrs. Stoll and
Vannatta incorporated Stoll, Vannatta & Company. Each contributed half of the
$50,000 capital.157 By 1899 Mr. Stoll was the sold owner and operated as Stoll &
Company.158
Letterhead, 1899
142
Whiskey Jugs, circa 1890s to 1900s
Back Bar Bottle, circa 1890s
143
1892
144
R. S. Strader & Son:
R. S. Strader & Son was founded in October 1890 by Robert S. Stradera and
Wilson P. Strader (his son). After his father’s death in 1891, Mr. Strader became the
sole owner. The firm’s offices and four story warehouse was located at 74 East
Main Street, near Limestone.
1895
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a
Colonel Robert S. Strader (1836 – 1891) was a successful trotting horse breeder and manager of
the Kentucky Trotting Horse Association (the Red Mile). He maintained a large farm on
Versailles Pike, at the city limits, where he bred and trained horses. He was a friend and agent for
the Palo Alto Farm of Leland Stanford (California Railroad Tycoon, founder of Stanford
University).
145
Letterhead, 1894
Each year the firm supplied the liquor for the “Great Trots Meet” held in the
fall at the Red Mile track. They were wholesale brokers of “high grade Kentucky
whiskies, imported cigars and tobacco, fine wines and famous mineral waters.”
Their proprietary brands included “Old Pugh” and “Old Barton” brands of bourbon
and rye whiskey.
146
Advertising Card – Battleship Maine, circa 1898
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147
From 1891 to 1897 their whiskies were distilled at the Ashland distillery,
owned by William Tarr (a family friend). They also handled the famed “Palo Alto”
wines, from Leland Stanford of California, and the “Vina” brandies from Europe.159
In September 1897 they became the exclusive agent in Kentucky for the Jas. E.
Pepper & Company and their brands of “Old Pepper” and “Old Henry Clay”
whiskies. The Pepper distillery also began producing their proprietary brands.160
1902
In May 1902 the firm expanded into a two-story warehouse, down the street
from their main office, which was used for the wholesale and shipping departments.
This was the former office of J. A. Lail & Company. The
company also produced “Red Heart”, “Kentucky Belle”
and “Old Kentucky Home”. At this time, it was legal to
ship whiskey in the mail to individuals around the United
States.161 The purchase of this warehouse led to legal
problems for Mr. Strader (see below).
The firm established a
retail location in the lobby
OLD PUGH
of the Phoenix Hotel and
supplied the hotel a private
120 Proof
label “Old Pugh Whiskey”
Whiskey was never owned by
for their excusive use. In This
anyone but the Distiller and ourOctober 1902, the firm
selves
established a branch liquor
Phoenix Hotel Company
house in Cincinnati, at 137
Incorporated
East Pearl Street.
This
warehouse was located near the railroad depot and
managed by Joseph N. Strader.162
148
Order Form, 1905
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In 1911 the firm established another branch house in Louisville, at 234 East
Main Street (on Whiskey Row). The company established a warehouse there, and
relocated it bottling and shipping (both bulk and mail order) departments. With the
railroad connections at Louisville, freight rates were significantly lower than from
Lexington. The company stated:
149
“Connoisseurs recognize Old Pugh as the Purest and Best
Whiskey in existence and commands the highest price of any
whiskey in the world.
We are the only Dealers in the Genuine Old Pugh, Sole Owners
of the formula by which it is made, and residue of the Product of
the Founder of this famous Brand.
The only way to procure this genuine Old Pugh Whisky is to
order direct from us.
R. S. Strader & Son
(Incorporated)”163
By 1914 the company entered the insurance business. The market control by
the whiskey trust eliminated the need for brokers.164
Whiskey Jugs, circa 1900
Legal Problems:
On February 8, 1902 Wilson P. Strader was trying to purchase a warehouse
near his offices. For the payment Mr. Strader needed $4,000 in gold coins. He had
$4,000 in currency and bank notes – so he checked with the Fayette National Bank
(his bank) to see if they had enough gold coins. Not having that sum in their vault,
his bankers sent him to the Lexington City National Bank. Mr. Strader obtained the
needed gold coins and purchased the warehouse.
150
Later after closing, the Lexington City National Bank came up $500 short after
recounting the bank notes. George H. Harting (the teller) and J. Will Stoll (President
of the bank) called on Mr. Strader believing that he had shortchanged the bank.
After words were exchanged, Mr. Strader knocked down Mr. Stoll. Mr. Stoll ended
up with a broken leg and cut forehead. Mr. Strader was arrested for assault and
battery.165
Letterhead, 1911
151
On February 18, 1902 the Lexington City National Bank sued Mr. Strader for
the $500 shortage. Mr. Strader stated that he had given the bank the full amount,
including the $500. The case was eventually dismissed.166
At a preliminary hearing in March, Mr. Strader testified that Mr. Stoll threaten
him with a gun, while Mr. Stoll denied having a gun with him. Mr. Strader was
released on $300 bond. His attorney was Charles J. Bronston (Colonel James E.
Pepper’s attorney). Mr. Stoll was represented by his brother, Charles H. Stoll
(attorney for the whiskey trust). In July 1902 all charges were dropped.167
Meanwhile, on March 2, 1902, Mr. Strader was sitting in his parked delivery
wagon on Main Street, when a streetcar crashed into his wagon. Mr. Strader was
thrown from the wagon and ended up with a broken kneecap.168 The Lexington
Street Railway, controlled by the Stoll family, owned the streetcar. After these
events, both Mr. Stoll and Mr. Strader avoided each other.
J. H. Traynor & Company:
J. H. Traynor & Company operated a wholesale whiskey brokerage from
around 1911 to Prohibition, operating from 105 North Broadway. This company
produced “Belle of Fayette Whiskey”, “White Fox Whiskey” and “High Tide
Bourbon Whiskey”. John H. Traynor owned the company.169
Corkscrew, circa 1910s
152
Wood – Pollard Company:
Wood – Pollard Company of Boston, Massachusetts produced “Lexington A
Rye” and “Lexington AAA” before Prohibition.
NOTE: The brand “Rocky Fork Hand Made Sour Mash” was distilled in
Lexington during the 1890s by the Commonwealth Distillery and in 1906
registered to Kaufmann – Bear & Company (1898 – 1918) of Cincinnati, Ohio.
NOTE: The brand "Bell of Lexington" was registered in 1906 to Woodford
Distilling Co. of Chicago, IL. The brand "Belle of Lexington" was also registered in
1906 to Henry Freiberg of Cincinnati, Ohio and "Lexington Belle" by Lexington
Belle Distillery of Cincinnati, Ohio. In addition, the “Heart of Lexington Whiskey”
brand was produced by an unknown distiller.
NOTE: The brand “Old Commodore” was distilled by the Hoffman Distillery
Company and bottled by the Lexington Distillery Company of Lawrenceburg,
Kentucky. The brand was for made exclusively for Admiral Gene Markey of
Calumet Farm.
NOTE: The brand “Old Spendthrift” was distilled by Dowling Distillery and
bottled by Old Joe Distillery in Lawrenceburg, Kentucky. The brand was made
exclusively for Leslie Combs II of Spendthrift Farm.
153
“Old Commodore”,
circa 1950s
“Heart of Lexington”,
circa Pre Prohibition
“Old Spendthrift”,
circa 1950s
“Lexington A Rye” circa
Pre Prohibition
154
“Lexington AA”, circa
Pre Prohibition
WHISKEY MEN
Dwight A. Aiken170
Distiller
1832 –
Dwight A. Aiken was born in Oswego, New York during 1832 and moved
with his parents to Ypsilanti, Michigan in 1848. From 1852 to 1861 he was a
bookkeeper with a grocery store in Detroit. At the start of the Civil War, he became
a captain in the Commissary Department of the Federal army and was stationed at
Camp Nelson, Jessamine County, Kentucky in 1863 to 1864.
After the war, he worked for the Campbell, Curley & Company, distillers at
Camp Nelson. In 1874 leased the Lexington Distillery and operated as the D. A.
Aiken & Company until 1882. After a fire and other financial problems forced him
into a receivership, Mr. Aiken left Lexington.
Colonel William S. Barnes171
Turfman and Distillery Investor
18__ - 1917
Colonel Bill Barnes was a noted breeder of thoroughbred horses. In 1881 he
purchased half interest, with Colonel James E. Pepper in the Melbourne Stud Farm.
Melbourne was located on Georgetown Pike, one mile from the city limits on the
interurban tracks. Between 1881 and 1891 the stable owned the noted Blue Wing,
Lioness, Gallifet, The Bourbon, Pure Rye and Once Again. Lioness was sold to
Captain Samuel S. Brown, of Pittsburgh, for a record $10,000.
In 1891 he acquired sole ownership of the farm. In the late 1890s, the farm
was home to the stallions Prince of Monaco, Rainbow, Jim Gore and St. Julien. His
farm was also noted for its fine band of broodmares. In 1903 he began dispersing
his stock and retired due to ill heath.
Between 1881 and 1891 he was also part owner of the Jas. E. Pepper &
Company. He was a noted distiller and after one sip of whiskey could tell the
distiller, the type of mash and its age. He died in 1917. In the 1970s the farm was
subdivided into the Melbourne Industrial Park.
155
Henry C. Clay
Distiller
1839 -
Henry C. Clay, known as H. C. Clay, was born in 1839, a nephew of the
Statesman Henry Clay. He was also related the Grimes family of Grimes Mill (and
later married one of the Grimes’ cousins). In 1880 he became one of the principals
in the distilling partnership of Stoll, Clay & Company (that built the Commonwealth
Distillery). During 1885 the partnership was dissolved because of his financial
problems. He also secured a note to C. W. Foushee, whiskey broker, with the
gristmill. The mill was later sold to cover the debt.172 He continued in the distilling
business owning the Grimes Distillery.
Robert B. Hamilton
Distiller and Banker173
1806 – 1888
Robert B. Hamilton was born on October 5, 1806. From 1881 to 1888 he was
a partner in the whiskey and liquor brokerage firm of Stoll, Hamilton & Company
(with Richard P. Stoll). In 1872 Mr. Hamilton became President of the Lexington
City National Bank and led the bank through the Panic of 1873. He resigned in
October 1883 due to ill health and died on August 6, 1888.
Headley & Farra174
The partnership of Headley & Farra operated the Henry Clay Distillery (RD
#5) from 1858 to 1873. The partnership consisted of John A. Headley and James A.
Farra.
The partners were involved with the establishing in 1870 of the private bank of
Headley, Anderson & Company. Messrs. Headley and Farra, along with Hamilton
A. Headley and Richard T. Anderson founded the bank. In January 1870 the firm
acquired the old Bank of Kentucky Branch Bank for $9,000 from the First National
Bank. During 1872 the bank was renamed Headley, Farra & Company.
In 1873 the bank was reorganized as the Farmers & Traders Bank, when James
M. Hocker and T. Logan Hocker, his son, assumed the management of the bank.
The bank closed in 1883.
156
In 1873 Messrs. Headley and Farra sold sixty acres on South Broadway to the
city for a fairground for $20,000. The Federal government supplied the funds to
replace the fairground burned during the Civil War.
Mr. Headley died in 1880. Mr. Farra died in August 1887 on his farm on
Versailles Pike, five miles from Lexington. He was 58 years old.
Joseph M. Kimbrough
Distillery Manager175
1851 – 1890
Joe Kimbrough was born in Harrison County, Kentucky on June 10, 1851.
Around 1870 he became a bookkeeper for the firm of Cussen, Megibben &
Kimbrough, dry good merchant of Cynthiana, Kentucky. His father was a partner in
the firm. In 1876 he was married to Mattie Megibben, daughter of Thomas J.
Megibben.
In January 1879 he came to Lexington to manage the Ashland Distillery, part
owned by his father-in-law. The same year the distillery was incorporated as Wm.
Tarr & Company and Mr. Kimbrough acquired ten percent interest. He remained
manager of the distillery until his death.
He was one of the organizers of the Lexington Chamber of Commerce in 1884
(and President in 1885). In 1884 he was also appointed by the Governor as a
director the Eastern Kentucky Lunatic Asylum in Lexington. In 1886 he was elected
to the City Council and in April 1888 was elected its President. He was a staunch
Democrat and slated by the party for higher offices.
He died unexpectedly in July 1890 of typhoid fever. He was also a member of
the firm of J. A. Lail & Company, whiskey merchants. He was a partner in the
racing stable Megibben & Kimbrough, with his brother-in-law, James K. Megibben.
Their stable ran Sportman in the 1889 Kentucky Derby, where it placed sixth.
Thomas Jefferson Megibben
Distiller and Turfman.
1831 - 1890
Thomas J. Megibben was born in Clermont County, Neville, Ohio and at
an early age relocated to Cynthiana, Harrison County, Kentucky. He was the
largest landowner in the county, with twenty eight hundred acres of land. He built
“Monticello”, a mansion overlooking the Licking River in Cynthiana, with three
157
floors and twenty-seven rooms. He raised shorthorn cattle and thoroughbred
horses on his farms. He horses competed twice in the Kentucky Derby (1882
with Newsbury and 1884 with Audrain – third place) Mr. Megibben founded the
Latonia Race Track and Jockey Club and was president of the Shorthorn Cattle
Breeders Association of Chicago. He was also the President of the Kentucky
Trotting Horse Breeders Association from 1873 to 1882.
Around 1850 he established the Megibben & Bramble Distillery on the
Licking River at Lair, Harrison County, Kentucky and produced “Excelsior”.
He sold the distillery in 1868 to his nephew.
In 1857 he purchased the
Edgewater Distillery, also near Lair, and established a large cattle farm. By 1882
he increased capacity to 50 barrels per day. Their brands were “Edgewater
Bourbon” and “Edgewater Rye”.
1890
In 1879 he became a partner in the Ashland Distillery, with William Tarr,
In Lexington. In 1880 he also purchased the Van Hook Distillery in Harrison
County and sold it in 1888 to one of his son-in-laws. In 1880 he became a
millionaire overnight when excise taxes were raised and he had several
warehouses full of whiskey on which a lower tax had already been paid. He was
elected the first President of the Kentucky Distillers Association. In 1884 he
assumed the operations of the Paris Distillery. After his death in 1890, he had
interest in six distilleries.
In 1873 he became one of the principal partners in the Kentucky Union
Railroad and related companies. He personally guaranteed the bonds in 1883 to
start construction of the rail line. Financial problems forced him to sell the
railroad in 1886 at a large loss.
158
Thomas D. Mitchell
Banker & Dry Goods Merchant.176
1836 - 1909
Thomas D. Mitchell was born around 1836 in Bourbon County, Kentucky.
He settled in Lexington during 1865 (at the end of the Civil War) to become the
first Cashier of the First National Bank of Lexington. He held that position from
1865 to 1887. He served as a director of the bank from 1876 to 1906. He was
also a director of the Security Trust & Safety Vault Company from 1902 to 1906.
In 1865 he also operated a grocery store on Cheapside, then later the dry
goods firms of Mitchell & Cannon and Mitchell, Cassell & Banker. In 1866 he
was the junior partner in the distilling firm of Turner, Clay & Company, which
operated the Ashland Distillery. He died in Lexington in 1909.
Colonel Jas. E. Pepper
Master Distiller and Turfman.
1850 – 1906
Colonel James Edward Pepper, Master Distiller, was a bigger than life,
flamboyant promoter, who was very proud of his distilling heritage – the third
generation to produce “Old Pepper” whiskey. He claimed the oldest distillery –
founded in 1780 – in the United States, the largest distillery in the world and the
“best’ whiskey in the United States.
He was the original prototype of the “Kentucky Colonel”a. He was a
gentleman who lived life to the fullest, traveled in a private railcar, visited all the
fashionable resorts in the United States and Europe. He bred and raced
thoroughbreds on both sides of the Atlantic. He dreamed of building a stone castle
on his farm outside of Lexington to rival the castles of Europe.
He was born on May 18, 1850 at the family’s distillery on Glassy Spring
Branch of Glenn’s Creek, Woodford County, Kentucky. His father and grandfather
were Oscarb and Elijaha Pepper, respectively. He was educated in Frankfort at the
Sayre Institute.
a
The title was honorary, being bestowed by the Governor of Kentucky.
b
His father, Oscar Pepper, inherited the distillery from his father. In 1833 he hired Dr. James
Christopher Crow as Master Distiller. Dr. Crow was a physician trained in Edinbrough, Scotland. Dr.
Crow brought a scientific approach to distilling – using the saccharimeter thermometer to study
fermentation. He was the first to perfect the sour mash process – where a portion of the “sour” stillage
from the prior day was mashed in the next day. This created consistency between batches.
159
He was tutored by his father in whiskey distilling and by the age of fifteen
was placed in charge of the Old Crow Distillery. His plans for college were
disrupted when his father died in 1865.
In 1865 he inherited a portion of his father’s distilleries on Glenn’s Creek.
At the time he was a minor and Colonel Edmund H. Taylorb was appointed his
guardian. In 1867 he sold the Old Crow Distillery to Gaines, Berry & Company
(established by Colonel E. H. Taylor, Jr.).
In 1870 Colonel Pepper relocated to New York and entered the wholesale
whiskey trade, brokering the “Old Pepper” and “Old Crow” brands. In New York,
he was a colorful figure and like notoriety, which he used to promote his whiskey.
One of his tricks was to place empty bottles on the tables of saloons so that patrons
would then order more.
In 1838 he established the “Old Oscar Pepper” brand. Henry Clay, noted Kentucky
Senator, would annually ship a barrel of Pepper’s whiskey to Washington “to lubricate the wheels
of government.” Other famous customers included Andrew Jackson, John C. Calhoun, Ulysses S.
Grant, Henry Harrison and Daniel Webster.
Dr. Crow died 1856, at the age of sixty-eight. In 1860 Mr. Pepper built the Old Crow
Distillery, a few miles further down Glenn’s Creek. “Old Crow” whiskey was made at this plant.
He was also a prominent Democrat and a “general” in the state militia. He was also an extensive
landowner and cattle breeder. He left a sizable estate at his death in 1865. An estate ad in 1865
noted “a few barrels of CROW WHISKEY, the last chance for a good drink.”
a
His grandfather, Elijah Pepper, was born around 1764 in Culpepper County, Virginia. In 1780 he is
said to have built his first distillery in Culpepper, Virginia. He relocated to Kentucky in 1797 and
established another distillery in Versailles (with his bother-in-law, John O’Bannon). This plant was
located behind Woodford County Courthouse (using a spring for water).
In 1812 Elijah Pepper built a new distillery on Glenn’s Creek, between Versailles and
Frankfort. This site had a more reliable water supply. Mr. Pepper was a large landowner, with several
farms around Versailles. Mr. Pepper died in 1831.
b
Colonel Edward H. Taylor (1830 – 1922) was orphaned at an early age and raised by his uncles –
Zachary Taylor (12th US President) in New Orleans and later by E. H. Taylor, Sr. in Frankfort. He
became the cashier of the Commercial Bank in Versailles, Kentucky in the 1860s. He was also a
member of the private bank of Taylor, Turner & Company in Lexington during the Civil War. He
was a speculator in cotton and whiskey during the Civil War.
During the war learned the art of distilling from Oscar Pepper. He organized the O. F. C.
and Carlisle Distilleries in Frankfort (later Ancient Age) and the E. H. Taylor Distillery on Glenn
Creek (later Jim Beam). He made a number of innovations to the distilling industry. He is best
known today for the “Old Taylor” brand.
160
In 1877 Colonel Pepper became overextended financially and was forced to
sell the Old Oscar Pepper distillery to Colonel Taylor, Shortly after, in 1878
Colonel Taylor sold the plant to Labrot & Graham.177
In 1879 he returned to Kentucky, settling in Lexington, and established the
Jas. E. Pepper & Company, at the old Henry Clay Distillery. In 1895 he also
acquired the Silver Spring Distillery. He operated both plants until his death.
From 1881 to 1891 he owned half interest, with Colonel William S. Barnes
in the Melbourne Racing Stable and Stud Farm. The stable owned the noted Blue
Wing, Lioness, Gallifet, The Bourbon, Pure Rye and Once Again. Their stable had
two Kentucky Derby contenders (in 1886 with Blue Wing (second place) and in
1888 with Alexandria (forth place) and in 1886 won the Kentucky Oaks with Pure
Rye). Lioness was sold to Captain Samuel S. Brown, of Pittsburgh, for a record
$10,000.
In 1884 he sold half interest in his distillery to Colonel William S. Barnes.
In 1891 their partnerships in the distillery and stables were dissolved - with Colonel
Barnes keeping the stables and Colonel Pepper the distillery.
In 1890 he married Mrs. Ella Offutt Kean, of Shelby County, Kentucky. She
was born on May 18, 1850. The local papers stated “Mrs. Pepper has long been
considered one of the most beautiful women in Kentucky – Mrs. Pepper is tall,
slender and graceful; her figure is girlish in its outline and she carries herself with
dignity.”178
The bridal couple left on their two-month honeymoon to Europe in late July.
While in London Colonel Pepper because infamous for thrashing a rude clerk.
While staying at the Hotel Metropole, the Peppers returned from the theater and
requested their room key. The clerk ignored his request. After the forth try, Colonel
Pepper raised his voice and the clerk finally gave him the room key. As Colonel
Pepper turned too walked away, the clerk made a rude comment about Americans.
Colonel Pepper then reached behind the counter and picked up the clerk by his
collar. He requested and received an apology.
By the time he returned to Lexington in October 1890, the hotel story had
taken on mythical portions – with a six-foot porter and guns – that received
favorable coverage across the United States. Colonel Pepper had upheld the honor
of Americans.179
161
In 1891 he established the Meadowthrope Stable – which owned stakes
winner Queen’s Messenger, LaJoya, Black Venus, Prince Pepper, Roxanna and
Kilmannock. He stable won stakes races in both the United States and England. In
1891 he also purchased Meadowthrope Stud Farm on Leestown Pike, Lexington,
Kentucky for $60,000. This was a record price of $275 per acres; the highest ever
paid for bluegrass farmland. The farm had two hundred thirty eighteen acres. The
farm was less than a half mile from his distillery. He established a breeding
operation, with the stud Kantaka, and a string of quality broodmares. His barns
were some of the first to have electric light and telephone connections.
Colonel Pepper planned to build a stone castle on his farm that would be the
“wonder of the bluegrass”. He established a quarry at the distillery and stockpiled
limestone blocks for his castle. This quarry would later become the Central Rock
Company. However, he was beginning to have financial problems and renovated
the existing farmhouse instead. His remodeling cost $40,000 (almost the purchase
price of the farm). He converted an old farmhouse into a thirty-room mansion, with
hot and cold running water, gas heating and electrical lighting (all novelties at the
time). He never was able to build his dream castle.180
Colonel Pepper and his wife were well known for their Southern hospitality
– hosting the cream of society at Meadowthrope during the race meets and horse
sales. He would entertain lavishly at his farm – always serving burgoo (traditional
Kentucky stew). The Peppers were truly “bourbon” aristocrats.
Meadowthrope - 1898
UK 2002AV #052
162
In February 1892 the distillery purchased a private railcar, named the “Old
Pepper”, for Colonel Pepper’s use. In May 1893 he imported a “London Trap” a coach drawn by six horses and carried sixteen passengers on four rows of seats.
This coach was the talk of the town. That summer Colonel Pepper shipped the
coach to Chicago and used it to ferry friends to the Columbia Exposition and
World’s Fair. That fall he shipped the coach to Saratoga for the races.181
Colonel Pepper won the Kentucky Oaks in May 1892 with Miss Dixie.
The winning prize was $3,850. The horse was named after his sister, Dixie
Pepper. He also named another horse Miss Belle, after his other sister, Belle
Pepper. He had two horses that ran fifth in the Kentucky Derby (in 1893 with
Mirage (ridden by Issac Murphy) and in 1896 with The Dragon).
In December 1895 Colonel Pepper was selected to prepare the chapter on the
distilling industry for the centennial of the Jay Treaty (which prevent war in 1795
with England). This was at the height of his financial problems, but his reputation
remained intact. He was invited to spend Christmas in New York, and to attend a
banquet at Delmonico’s for the centennial. Among the other guests were John Jacob
Astor (real estate), John D. Rockefeller (Standard Oil), Theodore Roosevelt
(Governor, later President), C. V. Vanderbilt (New York Central Railroad), Charles
A. Pillsbury (baking), Fred Pabst (brewing), Charles L. Tiffany (jewelry), William
Steinway (pianos), Francis G. duPont (gunpowder), Levi P. Morton (banking),
Pierre Lorillard (tobacco) Thomas L. Eckert (Western Union) and Phillip D. Armour
(meat packing).182
In the fall of 1899 Colonel Pepper shipped King’s Courier to England for the
racing season. King’s Courier was owned by Mrs. Pepper and considered by many
to be one of the finest thoroughbreds that every lived. The Peppers sent the spring
and summer of 1900 in England attending the races. King’s Courier won the
Doncaster Cup, defeating the entry owned by King Edward VII.183 That fall the
Peppers traveled to Paris for the World’s Fair and stayed at the Hotel Continental.
While in the American Bar at the hotel, Colonel Pepper requested, “have you
Pepper’s whiskey here”. The young lady behind the bar said “yes, monsieur” and
handed him a glass and the pepper jar – thinking that this must be some American
drink.184 He returned to Lexington for Christmas.
In 1900 Mrs. Pepper purchased the Ephraim D. Sayre farm on Leestown
Pike (adjacent to Meadowthrope). The farm was purchased for $17,000 - one
hundred thirty four acres at $127.50 per acre.185
163
In May 1900 he was featured in the magazine Successful Americans. The
article stated “Col. James E. Pepper, from an old Kentucky family, horseman of
International fame.” The article stated that the “Pepper distillery, know to the entire
world as the markers of one of the best brands of whiskey known.”186
He died on December 24, 1906 at the Waldorf-Astoria, New York. He and
his wife had gone to New York for Christmas. He died of heart and lung problems,
following a broker leg received several days earlier.
He left a sizeable estate to his wife. His widow auctioned Meadowthrope
Farm and his horses in February 1907 for a total of $81,050. The farm was sold for
$55,580 to Dr. Samuel H. Halleya for $250 per acre. His sixty-three thoroughbreds
sold for $25,470 or $404 per head. Lady Pepper was sold to Joseph E. Madden for
$4,000. Mrs. Pepper kept Prince Pepper. The Imperial Stud of Japan had once
offered any sum of money for Prince Pepper.187 His wife died on April 2, 1939.
Both are buried in the Lexington Cemetery.188
1907
STOLL FAMILY
George J. Stoll, Sr. 189
1819 – 1893
George J. Stoll was born in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania in 1819 and moved
to Lexington in 1840. Mr. Stoll entered the cabinet and furniture making business in
a
The farm was the site of the first airport in Lexington (known as Halley Field).
164
1845 with John L. Patterson. At the start of the Civil War President Lincoln
appointed him Internal Revenue Service Assessor. His salary was $1,400 per year.
He held that position until 1877. While assessor, he hired his sons as assistants –
Richard P. (Salary $1,400), George J. Jr. (salary $1,400), Charles H. (salary $1,200)
and James S. Stoll (salary $1,200).
Afterwards, he entered the insurance business. He was also a Commissioner
to the United States Court from 1863 to his death. George J. Stoll, Sr. had five sons
who were active in the business affairs of Lexington until well after the turn of the
century. They were all involved in the family’s banking and distilling business to
varying degrees.
His sons were founders, directors and investors in a number of other
businesses in Lexington, a partial list is:
Belt Electric Line Company (now New Circle Road),
Central Electric Company (now Kentucky Utilities Company),
Keeneland Association,
Kentucky Coach Company (now Greyhound Corp.),
Kentucky Trotting Horse Association (now Red Mile),
Lexington Brick Company,
Lexington Herald – Leader,
Lexington Ice Company,
Lexington Water Works (now Kentucky American Water),
Lexington City National Bank (later First Security, now Bank One),
Lexington Gas Company (now Columbia Gas),
Lexington Street Railway Company (now LexTran),
Lexington & Eastern Railway (later L & N Railroad),
His sons were:
George J. Stoll, Jr. 190
Banker and Revenue Agent
1841 – 1914
George J. Stoll, Jr. was born in Lexington on December 22, 1841, the first
son of George J. Stoll, Sr. After graduating from Transylvania with high honors;
he spent a year in Cincinnati studying business before returning to Lexington in
1858. He became a bookkeeper with the Agricultural Deposit Bank and in 1861
was elected City Clerk (serving for four years).
165
Because of his political connections, after the Civil War he was appointed
the Chief Clerk to the Internal Revenue Service in Central Kentucky. His primary
responsibility was the collection of Federal excise taxes from the distilleries
around Lexington. This tax was established in 1862 to fund the Civil War.
He also served at the same time in the family’s distillery business as a
Vice President. In 1872 Mr. Stoll was elected Cashier of the Lexington City
National Bank, serving in that position until 1882. In 1882 he relocated to
Chicago, where he died during 1914.
Richard Pindell Stoll 191
Distiller and Attorney
1851 – 1903
Richard P. Stoll was born in Lexington on January 21, 1851, the second
son of George J. Stoll, Sr. He attended the Kentucky University, graduating in
1868 and in 1875 Mr. Stoll was elected to the Kentucky Legislature (serving one
term). In 1877 he became the Deputy Director of the Internal Revenue Service in
Lexington and succeeded one year later as Commissioner for Kentucky. He
oversaw the collection of the Federal excise taxes.
In 1881 he formed the Stoll, Clay & Company, which rebuilt the old
cotton mill at Sandersville into a distillery. Also in 1891 he formed Stoll,
Vannatta & Company, which brokered the whiskey produced by the distillery.
These firms would later become Stoll & Company. This interest would past to his
sons and by Prohibition were disposed of.
In the 1890s he was a director of the Kentucky Distillers Association. In
1883 Mr. Stoll became the President of the Lexington City National Bank, serving
until his death in 1903. He was prominent in Republican politics, being
nominated in 1900 for the U. S. Congress.
He died in March 1903. At the time of his death he was President of the
Lexington City National Bank, Kentucky Trotting Horse Breeders Association
(the Red Mile), Lexington Gas Company, Stoll, Vannatta & Company, Stoll,
Hamilton & Company and Stoll & Company. He was the Treasurer of the
Lexington Street Railway Company. He was also a director of the Security Trust
Company, Eastern State Lunatic Asylum, Lexington & Eastern Railway, Belt
Electric Line Company, Central Electric Company, Lexington Brick Company,
Hercules Ice Company and the Passenger & Belt Railway Company. He was
stated to be the wealthiest individual in Lexington at the time of his death.
166
James Scrugham Stoll192
Distiller and Banker
1855- 1908
James S. Stoll was born in Lexington in 1855, the third son of George J.
Stoll, Sr. In 1881 he invested, along with his brother, in Stoll, Clay & Company.
At the time of his death in 1908 he was President of the Stoll & Company
(distillers) and Vice President of Stoll, Hamilton & Company (whiskey brokers).
He was also a real estate investor. He was the owner of the “Meadows”, a
two hundred seventy three acre farm, on the Bryan Station Pike outside the city
limits. Mr. Stoll was one of the largest stockholders in the Lexington City
National Bank, serving as a director (from 1890s to 1908) and as President (1903
– 1908). He died in Lexington during 1908.
Charles H. Stoll193
Attorney
1858 – 1948
Charles H. Stoll was born in Lexington in 1858, the forth son of George
H. Stoll, Sr. He graduated from Transylvania College and in 1886 entered the
practice of law. Mr. Stoll was one of the founders of the Electric Street Railway
Company, George Stoll & Sons (with his father – traded in bonded whiskey). In
1886 he became associated with the Kentucky Union Railroad and negotiated its
sale to the Carley interests. After the sale he became its principal attorney in
Lexington and oversaw a large portion of the lines extension into Eastern
Kentucky. In 1888 he became one of the organizers of the Belt Line Companies,
which organized the electric streetcar lines in Lexington. As their attorney, he
was one of the “Generals” in the Railroad War with his former client, the
Kentucky Union Railroad Company. In the late 1890s he was the principal
organizer of the Kentucky Distillers and Warehouse Company (the whiskey trust).
He continued as legal counsel for the whiskey trust until 1907.
He also developed the Hampton Court subdivision in Lexington. Mr. Stoll
served s a director of the Lexington City National Bank from the late 1880s until
the late 1890s.
At the turn of the century, he relocated to New York City to represent the
whiskey trust, but returned to Lexington in 1904. After returning he became the
President of the Lexington Hydraulic and Manufacturing Company (the
forerunner of the Lexington Water Works). He was reelected to the board of the
167
Lexington City National Bank. In 1907 he moved to Mississippi and later to
Bristol, Tennessee, where he died in 1948.
John William Stoll194
Banker
1864 – 1929
J. Will Stoll was born in Lexington on September 11, 1864, the fifth son
of George J. Stoll. After graduating from Transylvania University in 1882, he
enters the employment of the Lexington City National Bank as a messenger.
During the 1890s Mr. Stoll became the Cashier and in 1908, after his brother’s
death, he became President of the Lexington City National Bank. After the
merger in 1913, with the First National Bank, he became the President of the First
& City National Bank, until his death in 1929.
Mr. Stoll also operated an insurance agency, under the name J. Will Stoll
and served as a director of the Lafayette Hotel Company, Lexington Water
Company, Kentucky Traction and Terminal Company, Lexington Utilities
Company, Lexington Ice Company and Kentucky Coach Company (later
Greyhound Corp.). He died on January 14, 1929 in Lexington.
William Tarr195
Land Speculator and Distiller
1825 – 1911
William Tarr was born on June 22, 1825 in Paris, Kentucky. His first
business venture was cultivation of a watermelon patch on the family farm. With
these funds, he became a mule trader and farmer. Before the Civil War be entered
the distilling business and in 1871 established Wm. Tarr & Company – which
acquired the Ashland Distillery in Lexington, Kentucky. He produced the
“Ashland” and “Wm. Tarr” brands of whiskey. During his distilling career he
produced over 60,000 barrels of whiskey and paid over $3,000,000 in excise taxes
to the Federal government.
In 1873 he became one of the principals of Kentucky Union Railroad and
related companies. He personally guaranteed the bonds in 1883 to start
construction of the rail line. Financial problems forced him to sell the railroad in
1886 at a large loss. During the depression of the 1890s, he suffered financial
reversals connected to the endorsements of notes for family and friends. In 1897
he was forced to assign the distillery and his assets over to receivers. This
receivership lasted until 1911.
168
In 1898 he retired to his farm. His owned large tracts of farmland in
Bourbon County, Kentucky and in Eastern Kentucky. His farm was known as
Park Place, five miles from Paris on the Maysville Pike. He maintained a large
park for deer on this farm open to the public. The Kentucky Union Railroad built
it right-of-way through his property in the mountains.
Joseph Wolf
- 1929
Joseph Wolf was born in Darmstadt, Germany and immigrated to Chicago in
his early teens. Arriving in steerage, he worked at odd jobs until he landed a job of
liquidating a stock of whiskey on commission. He became a successful whiskey
broker. He was a founder of the National Wholesale Liquor Dealers’ Association in
1895. Mr. Wolf began distributing “Old Pepper” when he purchased his first
shipment by sight draft. When the barrels were delivered, he used the bill of lading
to borrow an additional $5.00 per barrel from Chicago banks. He successfully sold
this shipment. Then using the profit from this first shipment, he paid for the second
shipment in cash.196 By 1899 he was the sold distributor of the whiskey in the
United States.
In May 1907 he acquired the James E. Pepper & Company from Mr. Pepper’s
estate for $400,000. Mr. Wolf reincorporated the distillery as the James E. Pepper
Distillery Company. He created the slogan “Born With The Republic”. He
operated the distillery until Prohibition (1920) and thereafter the warehouses used as
concentration house for whiskey. In 1920 the company began bottling medicinal
whiskey.
In December 1921, the Dearborn Independent newspaper attacked the
“Jewish Control” of the distilled spirits industry. The article noted that “James E.
Pepper” was owned by James (Joseph) Wolf. The newspaper was owned by
Henry Ford.
In April 1929 Joseph Wolf of Chicago died. He was the leader of the
syndicate that owned the distillery.197 In 1933 his estate sold the distillery to
Schenley for $1,000,000. He owned significant real estate in Chicago and
Kentucky.198
169
OTHER PEPPER BRANDS
“OLD OSCAR PEPPER”
The “Old Oscar Pepper” brand of whiskey was established in 1838 by Oscar
Pepper (father of James E. Pepper) at the Old Oscar Pepper Distillery, Glenn’s
Creek, Versailles, Kentucky. The whiskey was distilled to the formula developed by
Elijah Pepper (grandfather of James E. Pepper) in 1780 and improved by Dr. James
C. Crow in the 1840s. In 1878 the brand name was transferred to Labrot & Graham,
when the distillery was sold by Colonel E. H. Taylor, Jr. Production continued until
1918, when stopped by Prohibition. The remaining whiskey was removed to the
concentration warehouse at the Frankfort Distillery, Louisville, Kentucky, where it
was bottled for medicinal sales.
Today Brown Forman Corporation has restored the distillery and produces
“Woodford Reserve Bourbon” at the plant.
“OLD ROSS PEPPER”
The R. L Pepper Company was founded in 1870 on Benison Creek, Benison
(west of Frankfort), Kentucky. Ross L. Pepper was a cousin of James E. Pepper.
The company produced the “R. L. Pepper” brand. In 1880 the company was sold to
Paris, Allen & Company, an English investment company, who change the name to
“Old Ross Pepper”. In 1885 the distillery was closed and remaining stocks of
whiskey was relocated to Louisville (and bottled).
“OLD TOM PEPPER”
“Old Tom Pepper” was distilled by the Glenmore Distillery, Owensboro,
Kentucky in the 1920s. Apparently, the brand was created after the death of James.
E. Pepper. They advertised as “the last of the Peppers”. After Thomas Pepper’s
death, his sons operated a distillery in Ashland, Pennsylvania and produced “Old
Rap” whiskey until Prohibition.
170
FOOTNOTES
1
Kleber, John E., The Kentucky Encyclopedia, University Press of Kentucky, Lexington, 1992,
page 103 and page 266.
2
Jillson, Willard Rouse, Early Kentucky Distillers, Standard Printing, Louisville, 1940 and
Kentucky Gazette, Lexington, Kentucky, June 27, 1789.
3
Cowdery, Charles K., Bourbon Straight, Self Published, Chicago, 2004, page 5; Getz, Oscar,
Whiskey: An American Pictorial History, David McKay Company, New York, 1978;
Downard, William L., Dictionary of the History of the American Brewing and Distilling
Industries, Greenwood Press, Westport / London, 1980.
4
Taylor, Richard, The Great Crossing: A Historic Journey to Buffalo Trace Distillery, Buffalo
Trace Distillery, Frankfort, 2002, page 51 and 46.
5
Kleber, page 104.
6
Lexington Leader, February 8, 1950, section 2, page 24, column 1 – 8.
7
Cecil, page 10 and “Circular”, Newcomb, Buchanan & Company, Louisville Kentucky, July 1,
1872, Lexington Press, July 6, 1872, page 4, column 6.
8
Ambrose, William M., First Security Corporation of Kentucky 1835 – 1992, Lexington, 1992,
page 18.
9
Lexington Herald, January 27, 1898, page 1, column 5.
10
Lexington Herald, February 5, 1899, page 1, column 3.
11
Lexington Herald, February 12, 1899, page 1, column 5.
12
Lexington Herald, March 15, 1899, page 8, column 3.
13
Taylor, page 92.
14
Ambrose, William M., A Pint of History – Lexington Brewing Company, Lexington, Kentucky,
Lexington 2002, pages 60 – 2.
15.
Lexington Herald, April 25, 1919, page 1, column 5.
16.
Lexington Herald, April 25, 1919, page 1, column 5.
17.
Lexington Herald, May 25, 1919, page 1, column 5.
18
Lexington Herald, Lexington, Kentucky, January 16, 1920, page 1, column 5.
171
19
Cecil, Sam K., The Evolution of the Bourbon Whiskey Industry In Kentucky, Turner Publishing
Company, Paducah, 2000, pages 23 – 5.
20
Campbell, Sally Van Winkle, But Always Fine Bourbon, Old Van Winkle Distillery, Frankfort,
page 85 – 87.
21
Deed Book 44, page 246 – 47, Fayette County Clerk Office.
22
Lexington City Directory, 1867, page 123.
23
Lexington Observer & Reporter, January 13, 1869, page 2, column 2.
24
Deed Book 45, page 545, Will Book 2, page 505 and Will Book 3, page 345, Fayette County
Clerk Office.
25
Lexington Transcript, January 3, 182, page 4, column 1.
26
Deed Book 43, page 346 – 47, Fayette County Clerk Office.
27
Perrin, William H., History of Fayette County, Kentucky, O. L. Baskins & Company, Chicago,
1882, page 205 – 6 and Cecil, page 70.
28
Perrin, page 205 – 6.
29
Incorporation Book 1, page 232, Fayette County Clerk Office.
30
Kentucky Distiller Bureau, Kentucky Distilling Interests, Lexington, 1893, page 82 – 3 (a
booklet prepared for the Columbia Exposition in Chicago).
31
Lexington Morning Transcript, June 10, 1891, page 1, column 6.
32
Lexington Herald, May 23, 1897, page 1, column 3.
33
Lexington Leader, February 25, 1899, page 1, column 5, Deed Book 116, pages 52 – 3 and
Deed Book 127, page 58, Fayette County Clerk Office.
34
Lexington Leader, December 21, 1902, page 1, column 6-7 and Incorporation Book 6, page 134,
Fayette County Clerk Office..
35
Deed Book 130, page 15, Fayette County Clerk Office.
36
Lexington Leader, December 21, 1902, page 1, column 6-7.
37
Lexington Herald, March 23, 1905, page 1, column 5.
38
Lexington Herald, June 6, 1907, page 1, column 2.
39
Lexington Herald, April 6, 1920, page 10, column 2.
172
40
Lexington Herald, December 16, 1910, page 5, column 7 and August 20, 1911, page 6, column
3.
41
Deed Book 49, page 583, Fayette County Clerk Office.
42
Lexington Observer & Report, January 9, 1869, page 2, column 2 and January 13, 1869, page 2,
column 2 and Deed Book 32, page 24 and Deed Book 46, page 106, Fayette County
Clerk Office,
43
Lexington Morning Transcript, February 23, 1872, page 1, column 5.
44
Deed Book 52, page 629 – 30, Fayette County Clerk Office.
45
Deed Book 69, page 143, Fayette County Clerk Office.
46
Perrin, page 206 – 7 and Cecil, page 70.
47
Lexington Morning Transcript, May 19, 1880, page 1, column 3 and September 22, 1880,
page 1, column 3.
48
Lexington Transcript, September 22, 1880, page 1, column 3.
49
Lexington Morning Transcript, February 22, 1882, page 1, column 4.
50
Deed Book 52, pp. 629-630; Deed Book 60, pp. 189-190; Deed Book 60, pp. 195-197; Deed
Book 61, pp. 22-21; Deed Book 69, pp. 143-146, Fayette County Clerk Office.
51
Deed Book 69, page 149, Fayette County Clerk Office.
52
Gerald Carson, The Social History of Bourbon, Dodd, Mead & Company, New York, 1963,
page 33
53
Old Waldorf-Astoria Bar Book, New York, 1931.
54
Wine and Spirit Bulletin, January 1, 1891, page 75.
55
Wine and Spirit Bulletin, April 1, 1891, page 25.
56
Lexington Leader, July 5, 1891, page 2, column 5 and Deed Book 92, page 374, Fayette County
Clerk Office.
57
Lexington Leader, July 1, 1891, page 1, column 4.
58
Lexington Leader, January 1, 1893, page 7, column 3.
59
Lexington Morning Transcript, July 15, 1893, page 1, column 3.
60
Lexington Leader, February 24, 1892, page 4, column 4.
173
61
Lexington Leader, September 12, 1892, page 4, column 4.
62
Lexington Leader, February 15, 1893, page 5, column 4.
63
Lexington Leader, April 1, 1896, page 1, column 3.
64
Deed Book 108, page 126, Fayette County Clerk Office.
65
Lexington Herald, April 15, 1896, page 1, column 6.
66
Lexington Leader, April 27, 1896, page 1, column 3 and Lexington Herald, April 28, 1896, page
7, column 5.
67
Lexington Leader, September 19, 1896, page 8, column 4.
68
Incorporation Book 2, page 267, Fayette County Clerk Office.
69
Lexington Leader, December 19, 1896, page 1, column 3.
70
Lexington Leader, February 9, 1897, page 5, column 4; Lexington Herald, February 10, 1897,
page 5, column 2, Deed Book 110, page 63, and Deed Book 113, page 142, Fayette
County Clerk Office.
71
Lexington Herald, February 10, 1897, page 5, column 2.
72
Lexington Leader, February 10, 1897, page 2, column 3.
73
Lexington Leader, September 19, 1897, page 5, column 4.
74
Lexington Leader, November 11, 1897, page 5, column 4.
75
Lexington Leader, October 4, 1898, page 1, column 6.
76
Lexington Leader, October 31, 1898, page 1, column 3.
77
Lexington Leader, February 13, 1899, page 1, column 1 and Lexington Herald, February 14,
1899, page 5, column 1.
78
Lexington Leader, February 22, 1899, page 8, column 2.
79
Lexington Herald, February 4, 1899, page 1, column 3.
80
Lexington Leader, December 31, 1901, page 1, column 1.
81
Lexington Leader, July 17, 1904, section 2, page 4, column 3.
82
Biographical Cyclopedia of the Commonwealth of Kentucky, Southern Historical Society, page
200.
174
83
Lexington Herald, March 10, 1907, page 5, column 4.
84
Lexington Herald, May 22, 1907, page 1, column 5.
85
Lexington Leader, December 27, 1906, page 2, column 3.
86
Lexington Leader, May 17, 1907, page 1, column 4 – 5 and May 20, 1907, page 1, column 4.
87
Lexington Herald, May 22, 1907, page 1, column 5.
88
Lexington Herald, June 15, 1907, page 1, column 6 and June 16, 1907, page 2, column 4.
89
Lexington Herald, August 24, 1907, page 2, column 4.
90
Lexington Leader, July 14, 1907, page 11, column 4.
91
Carson, page 208.
92
Lexington Herald, July 3, 1910, page 6, column 2.
93
Lexington Herald, July 18, 1911, page 10, column 2.
94
Cecil, page 25.
95
Carson, page 33 – 4.
96
Lexington Herald, December 8, 1919, page 12, column 4.
97
Lexington Herald, Lexington, Kentucky, January 18, 190, page 1, column 4.
98
Lexington Leader, January 4, 1920, page 9, column 4.
99
Lexington Leader, December 2, 1920, page 1, column 8; December 3, 1920, page 1, column 8
and December 4, 1920, page 1, column 2 and the Lexington Herald, December 2, 1920,
page 1, column 8.
100
101
Lexington Herald, April 7, 1929, page 12, column 5.
Lexington Herald, October 20, 1929, page 1, column 8.
102
Lexington Herald, April 28, 1934, page 1, column 8; Lexington Leader, April 28, 1934, page 1,
column 8 and Lexington Herald – Leader, May 19, 1963, page A-62.
103
Lexington Herald, June 22, 1934, page 1, column 3 –4.
104
Sketches, page 82, Lexington Herald, December 2, 1934, page 1, column 8, and the Lexington
Leader, December 2, 1934, page 1, column 8 and December 3, 1934, page 1, column 3 –
4..
175
105
D’Arcy Collection, University of Illinois at Urban Champaign, Reel #21.
106
Michael Veach, Filson Historical Society, Louisville, Kentucky.
107
Lexington Herald, December 24, 1981, page A-3, Column 1 –4 and Lexington Herald –
Leader, January 1, 1882, page A3, columns 1 –4.
108
Deed Book 61, page 437 – 39, Fayette County Clerk Office.
109
Perrin, page 210 and Cecil, page 69.
110
Perrin, page 210.
111
Lexington Morning Transcript, August 12, 1885, page 1, column 2.
112
Incorporation Book 1, page 161, Fayette County Clerk Office.
113
Deed Book 125, page 118, Fayette County Clerk Office.
114
Perrin, page 210 –11 and Cecil, page 69.
115
Lexington Herald, July 13, 1900, page 7, column 3.
116
Lexington Leader, February 17, 1901, page 5, column 1.
117
Incorporation Book 5, page 648, Fayette County Clerk Office.
118
Deed Book 51, page 116 and 231 and Deed Book 78, page 14, Fayette County Clerk Office.
119
Perrin, page 211 – 12 & Cecil, page 69.
120
Lexington Leader, May 24, 1891, page 2, column 4.
121
Lexington Transcript, February 14, 1894, page 5, column 3.
122
Lexington Leader, February 27, 1894, page 1, column 4 –5, February 28, 1894, page 1, column
1-3 and March 13, 1894, page 1, column 6; Lexington Morning Transcript, March 18,
1894, page 1, column 5 and March 21, 1894, page 1, column 5 and the Lexington Herald,
September 25, 1900, page 1, column 3.
123
Lexington Morning Transcript, March 24, 1894, page __, column ___.
124
Lexington Leader, March 13, 1899, page 1, column 6.
125
Carson, page 160.
126
Lexington Leader, September 10, 1901, page 8, column 6.
127
Deed Book 46, page 109,204 and 205, Fayette County Clerk Office.
176
128
Deed Book 50, page 524 / 25 and 537 / 38 and Deed Book 56, page 398, Fayette County Clerk
Office.
129
Deed Book 60, page 287, Deed Book 65, page 381 and Deed Book 66, page 58, Fayette County
Clerk Office.
130
Lexington Transcript, March 20, 1882.
131
Lexington Morning Transcript, April 17, 1883, page 1, column 4.
132
Deed Book 96, page 332, Fayette County Clerk Office.
133
Perrin, page 209 and Cecil, page 71.
134
Harry G. Enoch, Grimes Mill, Heritage Books, Bowie, Maryland, 2002, page 77 – 87.
135
Perrin, page 212 and Cecil, page 71.
136
Perrin, page 212.
137
Perrin, page 212.
138
Perrin, page 212.
139
Perrin, page 212.
140
1877 Atlas of Fayette County, Kentucky.
141
1877 Atlas of Fayette County, Kentucky.
142
1877 Atlas of Fayette County, Kentucky.
143
Lexington City Directory for 1916-17 and 1919.
144
Lexington City Directory for 1887 and 1888.
145
Lexington Leader, May 10, 1888, page 1, column 3.
146
Lexington City Directory for 1881-82, 1883-84, 1887, 1888, 1890, 1893 and 1895.
147
Lexington City Directory for 1887, 1888, 1890, 1893, 1895, 1902, 1906-07, 1908, 1911, 1912-13,
1914-15, and 1916-17.
148
Lexington City Directory for 1902.
149
Lexington City Directory for 1916-17 and 1919.
150
Lexington City Directory for 1887 and 1888.
177
151
Cecil, page 51.
152
Lexington City Directory for 1893.
153
Lexington City Directory for 1881-82 and 1883-84.
154
Lexington City Directory for 1911, 1912-13, 1914-15, 1916-17 and 1919.
155
Lexington City Directory for 1893, 1895, 1902, 1906-07, 1908, 1911, 1912-13, 1914-15, 1916-17
and 1919.
156
Lexington City Directory for 1881-82, 1883-84, 1887, 1888, 1890, 1893, 1895, 1902 and 190607.
157
Incorporation Book 2, page 196, Fayette County Clerk Office.
158
Lexington City Directory for 1893 and 1895.
159
Lexington Leader, March 29, 1896, page 3, column 4.
160
Lexington Leader, September 19, 1897, page 5, column 4.
161
Lexington Leader, May 10, 1902, page 6, column 5.
162
Lexington Leader, October 5, 1902, page 2, column 4.
163
Lexington Leader, August 6, 1911, page 15.
164
Lexington City Directory for 1890, 1893, 1895, 1902 and 1906-07.
165
Lexington Leader, March 21, 1902, page 1, column 1 –2, March 22, 1902, page 1, column 1 –2
and March 25, 1902, page 8, column 4.
166
Lexington Leader, February 19, 1902, page 1, column 5.
167
Lexington Herald, July 2, 1902, page 5, column 4 and Lexington Leader, July 8, 1902, page
5, column 4.
168
Lexington Leader, December 8, 1902, page 4, column 2.
169
Lexington City Directory for 1911, 1912-13, 1914-15, 1916-17 and 1919.
170
Perrin, page 662.
171
Lexington Herald, April 28, 1901, Supplement and July 28, 1901, page 1, column 4.
172
Enoch, page 89 – 90.
178
173
Lexington Transcript, October 8, 1881, page 4, column 2.
174
Lexington Observer & Reporter, January 1, 1869, page 2, column 2; Lexington Press, July 12,
1872, page 4, column 3, March 11, 1877, page 4, column 4 and March 29, 1877, page 4,
column 2; Lexington Transcript, August 10, 1887, page 4, column 4 and the Lexington
Leader, February 16, 1904, page 3, column 4.
175
Lexington Leader, March 24, 1889, page 1, column 4 and July 13, 1890, page 1, column 3.
176
Lexington Herald, August 4, 1909, page 1, column 5.
177
Veach, Michael R., James E. Pepper Timeline.
178
Lexington Leader, August 26, 1891, page 2, column 2.
179
Lexington Leader, October 6, 1890, page 1, column 4.
180
Lexington Morning Transcript, April 26, 1892, page 8, column 2, Lexington Leader, April 26,
1892, page 1, column 8 and Lexington Herald – Leader, September 22, 1974, section E,
page 14.
181
Lexington Leader, May 3, 1893, page 1, column 3.
182
Lexington Leader, January 15, 1898, page 1, column 1 –3.
183
Lexington Leader, January 5, 1900, page 2, column 6 and April 5, 1939, section 2, page 3,
column 2.
184
Lexington Leader, October 29, 1900, page 7, column 4.
185
Lexington Herald, November 24, 1899, page 4, column 3.
186
Lexington Leader, May 18, 1900, page 7, column 3.
187
Lexington Herald, February 10, 1907, page 5, column 1.
188
Lexington Herald, December 25, 1906, page 1, column 1; December 26, 1906, page 1, column
2; December 27, 1906, page 1, column 2; December 28, 1906, page 1, column 4; and
Lexington Leader, December 27, 1906, page 2, column 3.
189
Lexington Leader, April 18, 1893, page 8, column 1 and Lexington Morning Transcript, April
19, 1893, page 8, column 3.
190
Lexington Transcript, April 19, 1893, page 1.
191
Lexington Herald, March 2, 1903, page 1, column 1.
192
Lexington Herald, March 6, 1909, page 8, column 1.
179
193
Lexington Herald, September 24, 1948, page 1, column 2.
194
Lexington Herald, January 15, 1929, page 1, column 1.
195
Lexington Herald, January 20, page 2, column 3; Lexington Leader, January 19, 1911, page 8,
column 3 and The Bourbon News, December 20, 1911, page 1, column 4.
196
Lexington Leader, May 17, 1907, page 1, column 4 – 5 and May 20, 1907, page 1, column 4.
197
Lexington Herald, April 7, 1929, page 12, column 5.
198
Townsend, William H., Hundred Proof, University of Kentucky, Lexington, 1964, page 98 –
101.
180