Ruhstaller Building
Introduction
Text-to-speech Audio
Frank Ruhstaller was a Swiss immigrant who came to Sacramento as a young man. In 1881, he founded the Ruhstaller Brewery, which became one of the city's leading breweries. The building is listed on the National Register of Historic Places.
Images
Backstory and Context
Text-to-speech Audio
In the late 1800s, the beer industry was a major part of Sacramento's economy. The city was well-known for its locally-grown hops, and a number of breweries flourished there. Hops continued to be widely grown in and around Sacramento until Prohibition in the 1920s.
Frank Ruhstaller immigrated to the United States from Swtizerland as a young man in 1862. He helped found and managed the Buffalo Brewing Company--at that time the largest brewery west of the Mississippi--and the Forum Investment Company. By the time he was 35, Ruhstaller was successful enough that he began his own brewery, Ruhstaller Brewing. To house his business ventures, he had the Ruhstaller Building built at the corner of 9th and J Streets. The building was one of the first in the city to use air conditioning.
Prohibition ended Sacramento's beer producing heyday. For many years, the Ruhstaller Building housed offices and businesses. Recently, however, breweries are making a comeback in Sacramento. In 2011, entrepreneur J.E. Paino, who had long been fascinated by the building, bought the Ruhstaller brand and launched a new, Sacramento-produced beer called Ruhstaller 1881. Like its namesake's products, the new beer is produced with only locally grown hops.
The Ruhstaller Building was added to the National Register of Historic Places in 1982.
Frank Ruhstaller immigrated to the United States from Swtizerland as a young man in 1862. He helped found and managed the Buffalo Brewing Company--at that time the largest brewery west of the Mississippi--and the Forum Investment Company. By the time he was 35, Ruhstaller was successful enough that he began his own brewery, Ruhstaller Brewing. To house his business ventures, he had the Ruhstaller Building built at the corner of 9th and J Streets. The building was one of the first in the city to use air conditioning.
Prohibition ended Sacramento's beer producing heyday. For many years, the Ruhstaller Building housed offices and businesses. Recently, however, breweries are making a comeback in Sacramento. In 2011, entrepreneur J.E. Paino, who had long been fascinated by the building, bought the Ruhstaller brand and launched a new, Sacramento-produced beer called Ruhstaller 1881. Like its namesake's products, the new beer is produced with only locally grown hops.
The Ruhstaller Building was added to the National Register of Historic Places in 1982.
Sources
1. History. ruhstallerbeer.com. Accessed August 07, 2017. http://ruhstallerbeer.com/history/.
2. "Frank Ruhstaller Answers Final Call." Sacramento Union(Sacramento), October 29, 1907. https://cdnc.ucr.edu/cgi-bin/cdnc?a=d&d=SU19071029.2.61
2. "Frank Ruhstaller Answers Final Call." Sacramento Union(Sacramento), October 29, 1907. https://cdnc.ucr.edu/cgi-bin/cdnc?a=d&d=SU19071029.2.61