Busch page 2

Busch page 2 by ric gustafson


On April 7 1933, a huge crowd gathered at the intersection of Broadway and Pestalozzi in South St Louis. When midnight came, a party in the street started. Prohibition had officially ended. Inside the Busch plant, the conveyor belts started running and brewery president August Busch Sr and his two sons Adolphus III and August Jr posed for pictures. Full repeal would not occur for eight months but FDR asked Congress to pass the Volstead Act which set up the date for April 8.
Busch Sr spent more than seven million dollars modernizing his plant, purchasing supplies and buying expensive bohemian hops for his famed Budweiser. To advertise, August Jr bought several teams of Clydesdale draft horses. He also found two wooden wagons from the days when the company delivered beer from horse and wagon. The horses and the wagons were kept from view in the Circular Stable so he could surprise his father.
At 12:01, a plant whistle blew and beer trucks began to head down city streets. 130 freight cars were waiting at the Busch train yard to be loaded with bottled Budweiser for Chicago and Milwaukee.
August Jr proclaimed that beer was back and he was right in a big way.


research help: ' Bitter Brew' by William Knoedelseder


Peace and God's blessings. Love Ric