| Extra info | David Kuntz, who founded the Kuntz Brewery, came to Canada from Germany in the late 1830's. He was quite a craftsman and by trade he was a brewer, a cooper (maker of casks), and a brick maker. It was said that he first owned a brickyard and made beer "on the side" for his employees. His beer became so popular that in 1844, he founded his first brewery behind the present site of the Kent Hotel and this became his full time job. (It is also said, that he aged his home-made product in a dugout on Norman Street in Waterloo.)
In the late 1850's, he started to build a brewery at the present site in Waterloo (formally Labatt's). This brewery, completed in 1864, was called the Spring Brewery because of the clean, fresh, spring water which was found on site. David made the bricks used in the building himself. (It was noted in the article that at that time (1991), that even though the building had been torn down, that the basement and a tunnel were left and the bricks were still there and in good condition.)
David Kuntz also made the beer kegs in which stored and delivered his beer. In the brewery's early days, he personally peddled the beer up King Street to his customers in a wheelbarrow. In those days, the pioneers worked long hours. By day he would brew his beer, and during the evening, he would load the previous brewed and aged beer on his wagon and deliver it. At that time, beer was sold as a cash business; rather then risk a night hold-up, he would hide the money collected in one of his empty beer kegs on the wagon for safekeeping. At this time, Waterloo had less then 1,000 residents, however, it had nearly a dozen taverns for its residents and for travelers requiring meals, resting and/or overnight stays.
David Kuntz developed quite a business in Waterloo, despite the fact that many small breweries began to locate in the immediate area (Kitchener, Waterloo, New Hamburg, Baden, Salem, Stratford and Wellesley). In fact, it grew to the extent where he was forced to buy a team of horses to deliver his product in Waterloo and the surrounding counties - He even made deliveries to Hamilton during this period of time.)
At the time of the 1861 census in the Village of Waterloo, David Kuntz was listed as "married with four children." The Kuntz family was living in a brick house on 2/5 an acre of land. They owned four horses, twelve cows and 12 pigs valued at $560.00. Their means of travel were two carriages valued at $50.00. David Kuntz had $10,000.00 invested in the brewery and personal property, which included 3,000 bushels of barley plus 1,000 bushels of hops. Horsepower was the means of supplying power for the machinery in the brewery. The brewery, which employed two men at $36.00 a month and one woman at $11.50 a month, produced 12,000 gallons of beer a year valued at $2,400.00. The Enumerator's comments were "The best beer in the country as far as the judgment of the Enumerator extends. The Brewery, cellars and house are first quality." David Kuntz built the Alexander House, which became one of the most outstanding hotels in Ontario. The Kuntz family eventually consisted of three sons besides the four daughters. The sons were Louis, Gustave, and Henry.
Around the year 1870, David's eldest son Louis, took over his father's business and renamed it the L. Kuntz Park Brewery. The reason for the "Park" name was because of the park in front of and across the street from the brewery. Louis ran the brewery quite successfully and expanded it several times. In 1891, following an appendectomy operation, Louie, still a young man, passed away. As his three young sons, David, William and Herbert (known as "Pat") were still in their childhood, his wife's brother, Frank Bauer (also a brewer) took charge of the growing business. He managed the business until 1895, when he too passed away. Aloyes Bauer took over the duties for the Brewery. He was not a brewmaster by trade, and therefore Aloyes hired an outside brewmaster for the making of the beer.
The Kuntz Brewery also established the Lion Brewery in Carlsruhe, the Dominion Brewery in Hamilton, the Capital in Ottawa, and Schwan's in Owen Sound.
David Kuntz passed away on July 11, 1892. Rapid growth of the brewery continued and included expansion to the original building. On September 18, 1899, Mr. Young, (the owner of the Huether/Kent Hotel) auctioned the hotel and brewery there to the highest bidder, Theresa Kuntz for $15,444.00.
In April of 1910, the brewery was incorporated as a Limited company with all shares held by the Kuntz families. It was at this time that David Kuntz Jr. was named President while his younger brothers William and Pat were named Vice-Presidents of the Brewery. The property was transferred to The Kuntz Brewery Ltd., which held the premises until May of 1930.
Kuntz Electroplating's founder, Oscar Kuntz, was the third child born to this David Kuntz Jr., thus Kuntz Electroplating's connection to the brewery. It is also interesting to note that the Kuntz logo is styled much like that used for the Brewery's.
In 1914, the year that started the beginning of World War 1, the Kuntz Brewery was selling 90,000 barrels of beer a year and was the second largest brewery in Ontario. It was "the beer that made Waterloo famous". In 1915, David Kuntz Jr. passed away. The brewery business began to decline due to war legislation and prohibition. Even with this fact, the Kuntz Brewery had agents all over the province and was selling 70,000 barrels of 2 1/2% beer in 1920. Prohibition forced Kuntz to switch to export beer sales and the manufacture of soft drinks such as Kayo-chocolate, Special Ginger Ale, Orange Fruit, Cream Soda, Birch-beer, Lime-O, Jersey Cream, Lemon Sour, Kuna Kola, Stone Ginger, Half and Half, and Langerine. In 1924, Kuntz Brewery's became one of Gotfredson Trucks' early customers.
In 1925, Aloyes Bauer died and Pat and William took over complete management of the brewery. With the end of the prohibition in 1927, things looked good. It was the "Great Depression" which followed the ten years of prohibition that hurt the Kuntz Brewery badly. The mortal blow came in September 1929, when the Attorney General for Canada won a Sales and Gallonage tax suit for $200,000.00 against Kuntz for their bootlegging revenues. Sleeman Breweries was also charged at this time and closed.
In October 1929, the company was sold to E.P. Taylor and Canadian Breweries Limited in return for stock and payment of the tax suit. Regal Brewing Co. also acquired by Taylor brewed for seven years beginning in 1930 at the old Kuntz Hamilton site. Under Taylor, the soft drinks were transferred to O'Keefe's beverages between 1934 and 1936. When Taylor closed Carling's London plant at the end of 1936, this was amalgamated with the Kuntz Brewery in Waterloo and retained the name in the title to become the Carling-Kuntz Brewery. Pat rejoined the operations in 1935, and in 1940 became Vice-President and held this position until his death in 1945.
The Kuntz name was dropped with the outbreak of World War II, because it was "too German". At this same time, old favorite brands such as Culmbacher, Bohemian, Kuntz's Original, Export Lager, Waterloo Cream Lager, Ye Olde Inn Ale, Old Friar Stout, Olde German Lager, Old Tavern Ale and Olde Dutch Lager were also discontinued.
Amid many changes of personnel and repeated rumors of closing, the plant continued producing for Carling-O'Keefe until September 30, 1977 when it was sold to Labatt's. |
|