So far for my research I have been able to find out the history of Wisconsin of a drinking state. I have learned some of the impacts that prohibition had on the bars and breweries however have not found a lot about the specific questions relating to Eau Claire. It has been a lot easier for me to find history about brewing and the general state of Wisconsin instead, Milwaukee specifically, rather than Eau Claire. I have decided to aim my research towards Milwaukee, which I found out is considered the “brewing capital of the United States”. It is local enough that I believe I will be able to maximize my research results accordingly.

While learning about Milwaukee I have also learned about the contribution that the German immigrants made on the city’s brewing success. I haven’t learned as much about the aftermath as I would like, such as if or if not there were tax changes, or any other dramatic changes. I will look to see if I can find more information about the Eau Claire area, however I think I will be more successful if I hold my focus on the Milwaukee area. There is just more information about the general concepts I am looking for when I broaden my search away from the Eau Claire area, but I will definitely keep my eyes open for credible sources that will give me the information I am looking for.

I found my next source, which I found very helpful, on the Wisconsin Historical Society page. The article is called “Brewing and Prohibition” which really gives me some good insight on how this state became so involved with brewing beer, and the toll prohibition took on it.  I chose it because it talks a lot about immigrants, and why beer and brewing came to be so popular in Wisconsin, information I have been looking for.

This source does not really have any bias, and simply gives information that relates to this time of prohibition and the history of Wisconsin.  It does a nice job of explaining what words mean, or what it is trying to say, by explaining it in common everyday English.

This source starts out explaining that before Wisconsin was known as the dairy land state it is today, it was a beer state. This answers one of my questions right off the bat, Wisconsin itself is known for brewing and beer, that is why people often relate colleges in Wisconsin to ‘party schools’. I found it interesting that this article said “Breweries were as much a part of Wisconsin communities as churches and schools”. This is interesting to me because things are very different in this day and age. Why was that the case? Breweries provided employment to workers, bought grain from farmers and they sponsored festivals, teams, and groups.

How did this beer crazy state come to be? That relates to many of the first immigrants, Germans. It kicked off mainly in Milwaukee, where many of these German immigrants were resorting to for religious and political freedom. They had a demand for ‘lager’ a German beer, which widened the industries’ need and demand in general. Not only did these immigrants demand a supply, but they supplied owners with money and time saving skills, which allowed the giant brewing industry to expand and thrive.

However, while all of this was happening, the controversies regarding alcohol consumption began to grow too. There were many mild laws passed in Wisconsin, with the attempt to control alcohol consumption and use. Such as the Graham Law, this made tavern owners responsible for selling alcohol to known drunks.  It wasn’t until the national prohibition act in 1919, that action really took a toll. This caused breweries to find other products to make them profits. Some sold partial alcohol, such as malt syrup, this allowed people to brew at their own homes. Many breweries decided to start selling cheese, candy, or ice cream instead. This helped keep some of them in business through the hard years of prohibition.

I liked this source because it gave me a lot of new information. It provided me with information about the different laws that Wisconsin faced, and the different “coping mechanisms” each brewery used to try to survive the prohibition period. I also liked all the background it gave me on the German immigrant population, that is useful for my research as well. I would like to find some more specific information, with specific breweries and information about local Wisconsin breweries that are either still around, or not around, due to prohibition.