Material Type

Artifact

Other Name

LETHBRIDGE BEER 12 PACK BOX

Date

1959

Materials

CARDBOARD, INK

No. Pieces

1

Height

0.7

Length

55

Width

33.2

Description

FLATTENED CARDBOARD BOX. CAPACITY TO HOLD 12 BOTTLES OF LETHBRIDGE BEER. GOLD, GREEN, AND RED WRITING ON IVORY COLOURED BOX. PERFORATIONS FOR HANDLES AND FOLDING PARTS ON BOTTOM ARE UNUSED. UNFOLDED, EACH END SAYS, "LETHBRIDGE BEER, ONE DOZEN". EACH SIDE SAYS, "PREMIUM LAGER, LETHBRIDGE BEER, SICKS' LETHBRIDGE BREWERY LTD., LETHBRIDGE, ALBERTA". ONE TOP SIDE FLAP SAYS, "REFUND ON EMPTIES, PREMIUM LAGER, HOUSE OF LETHBRIDGE; OTHER TOP SIDE FLAP SAYS, "REFUND ON EMPTIES, PLEASE KEEP ALBERTA'S HIGHWAYS CLEAN AND SAFE, LETHBRIDGE BEER". ONE BOTTOM SIDE FLAP IS BLANK; OTHER BOTTOM SIDE FLAP HAS STAMP IN RED ON LEFT CORNER THAT SAYS, "CERTIFICATE OF BOX MAKER, THIS BOX CONFORMS TO ALL CONSTRUCTION REQUIREMENTS OF CANADIAN FREIGHT CLASSIFICATION, FOR PACKAGE NO. 77, BURSTING TEST LBS, PER SQ, IN, 125, HINDE AND DAUCH, A DIVISION OF DOMTAR PACKAGING LIMITED, CALGARY, ALBERTA". NEXT TO STAMP READS, "OVERSTRENGTH CARTON, NON-SKID APPLICATION". STAMP ON RIGHT SIDE OF FLAP READS, "INT'L UNION OF UNITED, UNION MADE, TRADE MARK REQ U.S. PAT OF 1959, BREWERY, FLOUR, CEREAL, SOFT DRINK AND DISTILLERY WORKERS OF AMERICA, UNION MADE".

Subjects

CONTAINER

Historical Association

BUSINESS

INDUSTRY

History

DONOR GÜNTER HORN CAME INTO POSSESSION OF THE DONATED OBJECTS WHEN THE LETHBRIDGE BREWERY SHUT DOWN IN 1990. AT THE TIME OF DONATION HORN SAID, “I WAS ONE OF TWO PEOPLE SELECTED BY MOLSON’S TO GET RID OF THE ASSETS, TO DEAL WITH CONTRACTORS AND COMMITTEES, YOU KNOW, DISPOSE OF THE ITEMS. THERE WAS A THIRD PERSON AND HE WAS LOCATED IN SASKATOON, ALSO WORKING FOR MOLSON’S. THAT WAS BASICALLY THE ROLE. I WAS, PRIOR TO THAT, I WAS A BREW MASTER, THE BREWING MANAGER. I WAS FAMILIAR WITH THE PLANT LAYOUT AND EQUIPMENT THAT WAS AVAILABLE; SOME THAT WAS SENT TO OTHER MOLSON’S PLANTS LIKE CALGARY, EDMONTON, BARRIE, REGINA TO GET ENOUGH ITEMS. AND WHAT WAS NOT REQUIRED OR REQUESTED BY MOLSON’S BREWERIES, LIKE OTHER PLANTS, IT WAS MADE AVAILABLE FOR SALE TO PROSPECTIVE BUYERS FOR TANKS AND SOME OF THE MACHINERY. THAT IS BASICALLY IT - THE TEAM OF CONTRACTORS WITH POTENTIAL BUYERS GO TO THE PLANT, SEE WHAT EQUIPMENT THEY WERE INTERESTED IN, OR ALSO WHAT WAS AVAILABLE, AND WE HAD, IN CONJUNCTION WITH A THIRD PERSON IN SASKATOON, PRICES THAT WERE SET FOR DIFFERENT ITEMS AND WE HAD TO MAKE SURE THAT THE RIGHT EQUIPMENT WAS TAKEN OUT AND ALSO THAT THEY ARE PAYING THE SAME QUANTITY FOR THE PRICE THAT WAS SET BY MOLSON’S. WE DIDN’T SET ANY - IT WAS NOT MY FUNCTION TO SET PRICES. THAT WAS MOST LIKELY IN GENERAL WITH THE MEN FROM OTHER PLANTS CLOSURES.” AT THE TIME OF DONATION, HORN SAID, “IN ’74, WHEN I CAME TO LETHBRIDGE, WE MADE 3 BRANDS….PILSNER, BRIDGE, AND WE MADE A STOUT. LATER ON WE BROUGHT IN CANADIAN, COORS….. BRIDGE WAS SUCCESSFUL IN LETHBRIDGE. IT HAD A GOOD MARKET SHARE; PEOPLE WERE LOYAL; IT WAS A GOOD PRODUCT. BUT LATER ON, WE HAD VERY LITTLE MARKET SHARE IN CALGARY AND EDMONTON, SO WHEN IT CAME TO BRAND MANAGERS, THEY HAD TO PROMOTE THE BRANDS THAT HAD POTENTIAL AND WERE DOING WELL. IF YOU HAD 50% IN LETHBRIDGE, THAT WAS PRETTY GOOD, BUT YOU DON’T HAVE 50% IN CALGARY AND EDMONTON…YOU HAVE MAYBE 1%, SO THEY LOOK AT IT. WHAT IS FEASIBLE? WHAT DO WE WANT TO MARKET, WHAT HAS POTENTIAL? SO, BRIDGE GOT VERY LITTLE EXPOSURE, AND, AGAIN, I DON’T KNOW WHEN WE ELIMINATED IT. YES, I WOULD SAY IT WOULD BE MID-80’S. IN ’90 WHEN WE SHUT DOWN, WE BREWED PILSNER AND COORS…. THERE WAS NO MORE BRIDGE. IN ’90, WE BREWED; WE DIDN’T BOTTLE ANYMORE; IT WAS SHIPPED TO EDMONTON BY TRUCK. PRIOR TO THAT THE BOTTLING PLANT WAS SHUT DOWN. IT WAS PHASING IT OUT. THEY WERE BOTH (PILSNER AND BRIDGE) QUALITY PRODUCTS. BRIDGE HAD A VERY GOOD NAME. THE INGREDIENTS WERE THE SAME. MOST LIKELY THERE WOULD BE SLIGHTLY LESS HOPS/ALCOHOL, BECAUSE YOU HAD TO HAVE SOME DIFFERENCES BETWEEN BRANDS. OTHERWISE, YOU WOULD HAVE ONE BIG POT. THIS GOES BACK QUITE A BIT OF TIME. I COULD MOST LIKELY LOOK AT SOME SPECIFICATION SHEETS; I STILL HAVE SOMEPLACE, BUT THOSE WOULD BE SOME OF THE THINGS….ALCOHOL AND HOPS. AND, ALSO, WHEN I FIRST CAME HERE, WE WERE STILL USING MALT AND ADJUNCT WAS RICE, CAME FROM VANCOUVER BY TRUCK. AND WE HAD DIFFICULTY GETTING TRUCKS THROUGH IN THE WINTER SO WE DID TRIALS WITH CORN, AND THE TRIALS WERE MADE WITH PILSNER AND BRIDGE, AND, AGAIN, MOST LIKELY WE WOULD HAVE DIFFERENT RATIOS OF CORN AND MALT IN PILSNER AND BRIDGE. BUT, THEN AFTER THE TRIALS AND TASTE???? , YOU DON’T CHANGE OVERNIGHT. WHEN YOU GO FROM RICE TO CORN, IT’S A LENGTHY PROCESS BECAUSE YOU DON’T WANT TO UPSET THE APPLE CART, SO THOSE WOULD BE, BASICALLY, THOSE WOULD BE SOME OF THE CHANGES.” FOR MORE INFORMATION, PLEASE SEE PERMANENT FILE.

Catalogue Number

P20100013002

Acquisition Date

2010-03

Collection

Museum

Less detail