A History of Half Moon Brewing Co.

On a cold September day in 1698, a tired Crustacean missionary treking through the wilds of central Pennsylvania stumbled upon the bank of Half Moon creek. The missionary, Phineas Trout, was looking for a site for a mission and trading post to benefit the indians and few white settlers in the area. Noticing the beauty of the land, the babbling brook, and how tired he was, he declared that this place would become the center of his missionary empire.

Buildings soon rose, and the little mission and store grew. It was a typical frontier trading post, offering live bait, cold beer, hunting licenses, and a Friday night "all-you-can-eat" beer batter fish dinner. Because of the distance from civilization, the beer was made on the spot. Thus was Half Moon Brewing Company founded.

The earliest brews were rather primitive, having to be made solely with malt extracts, hop pellets, and dry yeast, but yet they gained a good reputation among the locals and travelers. A young George Washington, on his way to survey western Pennsylvania, stopped at Half Moon, and reportedly continued to favor Half Moon beer for the rest of his life.

The peaceful tranquility of Half Moon creek and central Pennsylvania was threatened, however, by the outbreak of hostilities between the British settlers, the French, and the indians. What came to be known as the French and Indian war raged across much of the northern colonies, and central Pennsylvania was not spared. The tax revenues gained on the sale of the beer played a critical role during the war, providing much needed revenues to the colonial government. More than a few volunteers joined the militia, as well, while under the influence of Half Moon.

The end of the French and Indian War brought temporary stability to central Pennsylvania and Half Moon, but the King's insistence on extracting as much tax revenue as possible from the sale of Half Moon Ale soon helped turn colonial opinion against continued British rule. Shouting slogans like "no taxation without representation," or "Give me Half Moon or give me death," the colonies soon erupted in revolution against the King.

The Revolutionary War proved a difficult time for Half Moon Brewing, but it persevered and continued to produce good beer. George Washington reportedly had cornelius kegs of Half Moon Ale distributed to his troops at Valley Forge to help raise their flagging spirits, and Samuel Adams is said to have called Half Moon the "Blessed Beer in America" because of its missionary roots and good flavor. Hessian soldiers also had an uncontrollable craving for Half Moon beer, at least until the Battle of Trenton.

With the colonial victory, Half Moon became the beer of choice of the early iron workers and miners in central Pennsylvania, the nation's most important early iron-producing region. Half Moon also provided a ready market for much of the early iron production, with its constant demand for more cornelius kegs and fittings. Its reputation continued to grow among all segments of society.

Explorers Lewis and Clark took several kegs of Half Moon with them on their trip to the Pacific, and found that the beer's reputation was preceeding them on their travels. The indians referred to the two as Mill-wak-eh," literally "They Who Carry Half Moon." There is little coincidence that this phrase later became changed by the Americans into "Milwaukee," and became the name of one of America's most important brewing centers.

During the Civil War, the North's blockade of the Confederacy caused economic and libatious damage to the South. Cut off from Half Moon beer, Robert E. Lee twice invaded the North in an effort to reach central Pennsylvania. The first foray ended at Antietam, and the second invasion ended disastrously for the Army of Virginia at Gettysburg. Lee withdrew from Gettysburg because of the severe losses suffered during Pickett's Charge, and because J.E.B. Stuart's cavalry finally returned with a six-pack of Half Moon captured near Carlisle. Stuart is often castigated for his ill-fated ride which denied Lee's army of tactical information just before the battle, but Lee took the blame saying "It's all my fault. He did get the beer!" When Abraham Lincoln heard the news about the victory at Gettysburg, he is reported to have exclaimed with relief, "The rise of Half Moon was the dusk of the Confederacy."

The late 19th century saw unprecedented immigration into the United States. Immigrants from Europe came by the millions due to excitement over Half Moon brewing's new line of lager beers. The U.S. population increased dramatically. Half Moon was the beer of choice for many working-class and immigrant groups, and in its own way helped fuel the industrial revolution.

At the zenith of Half Moon's popularity, however, world events threatened its quality and survival. Early in 1916, in the midst of World War I, the Austro-Hungarian Empire cut off Half Moon's supply of Belgian Malts. Half Moon tried to use domestic malts, but public outcry was swift and strong. The U.S. quickly entered the war, and in another year the malt supplies were restored.

The war's end did not end Half Moon's troubles, however. The public's anger and disappointment over the poorer quality of other domestic beers soon led to initiatives to give Half Moon the sole authority to brew malt beverages in the United States, essentially prohibiting all other companies' from brewing beer. Half Moon's exclusion in the constitutional amendment that implemented this prohibition, however, was accidentally left out due to a clerk's copying error. This was a difficult time for all breweries in the United States. Forced to find alternative products because beer was outlawed, Half Moon Brewing converted its brewing equipment to make rigid airships. Two airships were produced, the Diacetyl, and the Trub. Enthusiasm soared when Pan American Airlines placed an order for a fleet of 15 Half Moon airships for their Pacific routes, and Half Moon seemed even higher on the rise.

Disaster struck, however, with the crash of the Zeppelin Hindenburg. Afraid that the public was now scared of traveling in airships, Pan Am quietly canceled their order, and Half Moon Brewing moved close to receivership. Only the end of Prohibition saved the company from receivership. The two airships suffered ignominious fates; the Diacetyl was destroyed by a freak hail storm in 1938, luckily with no loss of life. That was just as well, considering no one could agree on how to pronounce that airship's name, anyway. The loss of the Trub, however, was more upsetting because it was lost with all hands on a routine training flight over Three Rivers Stadium in Pittsburgh. The wreckage was never found.

Nazi Germany's invasion of Poland and the start of World War II saw Half Moon recovered from their economic difficulties, with a good market share and profitability. Americans watched events in Europe and China with nervousness, but life continued as normal in the U.S. until the shock of Pearl Harbor. Only days later, the U.S. was further surprised when Hitler declared war and once again cut off Half Moon's supply of Belgian malts. The U.S. public became ever more inflamed with rage at the Axis.

Half Moon supported the war effort by shipping thousands of cornelius kegs of beer to U.S. troops throughout the world, and by using its advertising resources in the many War Bond drives. Its reputation for good beer continued throughout the war, only strengthened by persistent rumors that when a German U-boat was sunk off the coast of North Carolina, the captain was found with two opera tickets and a bottle of Half Moon in his pocket.

General George Patton helped increase the public's awareness of Half Moon Brewing due to his notorious encounter in a hospital with a shell-shocked soldier in Italy. When Patton slapped the soldier for "cowardice" and ordered the convalescent's Half Moon quota be denied, reaction was swift; he was relieved of command of U.S. troops. Historians still debate whether it was the slapping or the cutting off of Half Moon that was the major cause of his censure, but in any regard, the incident only increased Half Moon's reputation.

In a savvy advertising deal preshadowing future deals over sports events, late in the war Half Moon Brewing became the official and exclusive sponsor of the Manhattan Project. The deal brought Half Moon additional revenues through sales of the official "Manhattan Project-Half Moon" logo, t-shirt, baseball cap, and warm-up jackets, as well as additional name recognition.

Half Moon settled into a cozy complacency during the post-war economic boom. The 1950's seemed to pass quickly, as Half Moon slowly expanded operations. In an effort to differentiate itself from other beers, in 1962 Half Moon Brewing developed an innovative line of new labels and bottle designs, including tie-died, paisley, and black light labels, and lava light bottles. These quickly were adopted by the hippie generation. More than a few rock stars used Half Moon beer bottles to add a flourish to their slide guitar technique, and Jimi Hendrix was often photographed wearing a Half Moon t-shirt.

Production dropped slightly during the 1970's, though Half Moon became a cult beer west of the Mississippi. Because it was difficult to purchase west of the Mississippi, beer enthusiasts made forays to central Pennsylvania simply to buy Half Moon and take it back home to places like St. Louis, San Francisco, Golden, Colorado, or the Pacific Northwest.

In the 1990's, Half Moon has returned to its roots; simple all-grain recipes, liquid yeast, choice hops, and pure bottled water, combined in an old world manner.

Half Moon Brewing's corporate symbol, an outhouse with a crescent moon over the door, depicts the only surviving building from the original trading post. Preserved as a monument to the spirit of the early company (some would also say the taste of those early brews), Half Moon is proud to claim its heritage.

This site is under construction-stopped to make beer