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Brief description |
1/8 beer barrel, Frank J. Hess and Sons Cooperage, Madison, ca. 1904-1966. |
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Object name |
Barrel |
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Alternate object name |
Container |
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Maker |
Frank J. Hess and Sons Cooperage, 1904-1966 |
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Date |
1904-1966 |
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Dimensions |
16"H x 12 1/2"W x 10" diam. |
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Materials and techniques |
White oak; Pine pitch; Steel |
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Marks |
Rim stamped "G.F. Bauer" |
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Original location |
Madison, Dane County, Wisconsin |
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Current location |
Monona, Dane County, Wisconsin |
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Description |
1/8 beer barrel (3.875 gallon capacity). Quarter-sawn white oak staves joined with steel hoops. Interior pitched with pine rosin. |
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History |
The Frank J. Hess and Sons Cooperage, one of the longest-lived barrel producers in the United States, was established on Madison's east side in 1904. Born in Bohemia in 1870, company founder Frank J. Hess was a trained cooper who emigrated to America in 1889. He worked as a cooper in Chicago and Prairie du Chien before starting his own business in Madison. The Hess Cooperage used white oak shipped from Missouri and cattails gathered from local marshes to construct beer and wine barrels for breweries throughout Wisconsin and across the country. All four of Hess's sons, Joseph, Tony, Frank and Edward, carried on their father's craft, while daughter Josephine Hess served as the company manager. |
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Sources |
Robert T. Holland, "The Last Wooden Beer Barrels" Wisconsin Tales and Trails v. 7, no. 1 (1966), pp. 12-16; John Warnick and Gary Hess, "Hess Cooperage--Once Wisconsin's Largest" Fauerbach Brewery (accessed September 17, 2009): http://www.fauerbachbrewery.com/HessCooperage.htm Images of the barrel-making process, photographed at the Hess Cooperage in 1954, are available from the Wisconsin Historical Society's Wisconsin Historical Images (accessed September 17, 2009): http://www.wisconsinhistory.org/whi/fullRecord.asp?id=32267 |
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Related objects |
The collections of the Historic Blooming Grove Historical Society include two additional examples of Hess barrels: http://content.wisconsinhistory.org/u?/wda,2211 and http://content.wisconsinhistory.org/u?/wda,2201 |
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Owner |
Historic Blooming Grove Historical Society |
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Rights |
© 2009 by the Historic Blooming Grove Historical Society. Contact the owner for more information. http://www.bloominggrovehistory.org/ |
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Digital collection |
Wisconsin Decorative Arts Database |
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Digital identifier |
HBGHS003 |
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Digital format |
image/jpeg |
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Type |
Physical object |
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Keywords |
Barrel (container); Container (receptacle); Furnishings and equipment; Merchandising tools and equipment |
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Date digitized |
2009-07-20 |
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Date modified |
2010-04-29 |
