For sale is a rare PROHIBITION ERA BREWERY CRATE from Horlacher, Allentown, PA. This sturdy wooden crate is in excellent condition. The crate holds a dozen wine size bottles and has two carry handles. The two short sides of the crate are marked “HORLACHER, ALLENTOWN, PA”. The two long sides of the crate are marked: “PUR-OX Beverages – Made From Pur-Ox Water Exclusively – Horlacher – Allentown, PA”. The crate measures 17 3/4 inches long, 12 1/2 inches wide, and 12 inches tall. This crate would function well as a wine storage rack or as a historic vintage display.
Horlacher Brewery was the second-oldest of Allentown’s major brewers. In 1866, James Wise started the Allentown Brewing Company at Fourth and Hamilton Streets. Fred Horlacher took over the business in 1882. Horlacher’s son, Frederick, moved the business to Gordon Street in 1902 and renamed it Horlacher. Horlacher was popular for its Nine Months Old “Perfection Beer” ale, specially aged to withstand long-distance deliveries, and its Nine Months Old lager. It also made and bottled porter, sarsaparilla and mineral waters. Between 1921 and 1933, during the prohibition era, the company obtained a permit to make non-alcoholic beverages and operated as the Horlacher Company. After prohibition in 1933, the company returned to its beer making roots as the Horlacher Brewing Company. The Company went out of business in 1978, as one the last of the major breweries in Allentown.
The history of Pur-Ox beverage begins in 1921 when Horlacher Brewing Company switched over their factory to produce fountain drinks and sodas. The crate for sale dates to sometime between 1921 and the repeal in 1933.
