Adolphus Busch
The History of a German American Immigrant
Born: July 10, 1839. Kastel Hesse, Germany
Died: October 10, 1913. Bad Schwalbach Hesse, Germany
Cause of Death: “Dropsy” aka Edema
Occupation: Philanthropist, Industrialist, President of Anheuser-Busch Brewing Co.
Education: Collegiate Institute in Belgium, French
Spouse: Elisa “Lilly” Anheuser
Children: Thirteen Children
Net Worth: $60,000,000 est. ($1.45 billion 2016)
Overview and Early Life:
Adolphus Busch was born to a wealthy merchant family in Mainz, Germany. Born on July 10, 1839 he was the twenty-first child born to the family, which would eventually number twenty-two children. His family was able to provide him an education from gymnasium through college where he studied French at the Collegiate Institute of Belgium. His father Ulrich operated several businesses including: lumber, a tavern, and vineyards. His first foray into business was as a shipping clerk in Cologne, Germany at the age of seventeen. A young Adolphus began to hone his business acumen that would lead to his eventual success as a brewer baron in America. Three of Adolphus’s siblings, George, Ulrich, and John, had already migrated to America and sent word back about the many opportunities to be had in America. In 1857 an eighteen year old Adolphus Busch stepped into America at the port of New Orleans, Louisiana. His story would not be the same as industrialists and robber barons of the 19th century. Adolphus’s business life would be characterized by the values of his German heritage: hard work, perseverance, vigor, and intellect. He would go on the pioneer the use of many new technologies and lead the way in creating an iconic symbol of American culture to this day.
St. Louis and Eberhard Anheuser:
The same year Busch arrived in St. Louis ready to make a name for himself. His brother George was a successful hop merchant and John had opened his own brewery some fifty miles to the west of St. Louis in Washington, Missouri. Busch was moving to an area that was part of the “German Quadrangle” an area that stretched from Cincinnati in the east to Milwaukee in the North down to St. Louis. Busch’s beginnings in St. Louis were different than most immigrants. Due to his family wealth, he was able to spend
time acclimating to his surroundings. When he did start his career, he began by working as a “mud clerk” a shipping clerk that worked with the river boat trade on the Mississippi.He naturally excelled and worked with other merchants on what was known as “Commission Row” to start making a name for himself. He developed a knack for assessing the value of brewery supplies, like hops, malt, and barley.
When his father passed away, Adolphus inherited a portion of the family estate. This allowed him to go into business in partnership with Ernst Wattenberg in 1859; selling brewery supplies. St. Louis saw a large amount of German immigration during the 19th century. At the same time as Adolphus was making a name for himself, another German immigrant, Eberhard Anheuser, was also an upcoming business mogul in St. Louis. Anheuser had started as a soap manufacturer before he purchased the struggling Bavarian Brewery. Anheuser began purchasing brewing materials from Busch and soon the two had become close friends. Ironically, both Adolphus and his brother Ulrich, whom lived in St. Louis, married one of Anheuser’s daughters. Adolphus was enthralled by Elisa “Lilly” Anheuser and on March 7, 1861 Adolphus and Lilly were married. In an odd turn of events both Busch brothers wed the Anheuser sisters on the same day in a double ceremony. At the onset of the Civil War both Anheuser and Busch enlisted in the Union Army to help defend Missouri against the Secessionists. Both men served a term of three months and were both honorably discharged with the rank of Corporal from the Union army.
Business Developments:
After his discharge from the Union army Busch decided to capitalize on the uncertainty caused by the war and start trading in Southern goods. This allowed Busch to amass a considerable amount of capital which he used to purchase a stake in his father-in-law’s brewery. Driven by the large influx of German and Eastern European immigrants to St. Louis during the 19th century the demand for the iconic pilsner beer was born. After his purchase of a share in the Anheuser Brewing Co. Busch immediately began reading and learning everything he could about the brewing industry. He even traveled to Europe in order to learn brewing techniques that he could implement at the factory. Busch developed the keen desire to not only create a successful business but also the image of a successful company. He developed a marketing strategy that is still in use to this day. Busch decided that by promoting his brand of beer that he could influence the success of the brewery itself. He strategically paid salon owners to stock Anheuser Busch products, placed agents that would buy rounds of drinks for patrons, giving free beer to customers he was able to create a demand for his product. When Busch bought into his father-in-law’s brewery it was struggling and only produced about 4,000 barrels of beer. During the five year stretch from 1865–1870 Busch was able to increase production 300%. Busch was a brilliant marketer for his time. He sought to develop a brand of beer that would be an upscale product. Thus Budweiser was born.While Busch was also a shrewd marketer he was also a generous philanthropist in his later years. Due to his amassed wealth Busch was able to live out the American dream to the fullest. It was frequently noted that Busch gave large sum donations to: orphanages, hospitals, relief organizations, schools, and universities. Not only was he a generous donor but also a leader of for his workers. In an age where labor unions were often violently crushed by other robber barons, Busch became the first major brewer to sign an agreement with a labor Union in 1891. This move prompted other brewers to follow suit. Busch also maintained a “happiness fund” to provide entertainment, he provided a pension fund, and also gave aid to workers in need.
Science and Technological Innovations:
Adolphus Busch also saw the power in the new technologies being developed. The company bought railcars and developed the first refrigerated railcards in use. This allowed for Busch to expand his product to broader markets around the United States. Not only was Anhueser-Busch the first brewery to make widespread use of refrigerated rail cars they were also the first to introduce pasteurization into the brewing process. These two innovations combined created an opportunity for Anheuser-Busch to pursuit new markets in the Southwest and West that were previously unreachable before. Busch was not only involved in the brewing business. In fact, he struck a deal with Sulzer Bros., a Swiss engineering firm, to produce diesel combustion engines that were outfitted on U.S submarines during World War I. He was a man of many talents and sought to continuously expand his reach.
The Threat of Prohibition:
Though Adolphus Busch did not live to see national Prohibition realized, it was an issue at the forefront of all early twentieth century American brewers’ minds. By the turn of the century, prohibition legislation was making gradual headway at the local and state levels in parts of the country and threatened established markets for many breweries. By 1908, Anheuser-Busch began to produce a non-alcoholic beverage called “Bevo” to market in dry zones and establish a product that could withstand a nationwide halt in beer sales. Bevo did enjoy significant success and went on to be a popular drink during Prohibition in the 1920’s. Busch himself also staunchly opposed the notion of prohibition, claiming that it was a misguided venture that was out of keeping with German virtues. This opposition informed Busch’s political activism later in life, and he opposed Woodrow Wilson’s candidacy in the presidential election of 1912, viewing Wilson as a prohibitionist and an enemy of personal freedom. It was a battle that he was not destined to win however, and the stress weighed heavily on the elderly Busch. Coupled with his failing health, Busch died only one year later, at the age of 74 while vacationing in Germany.
The Estate Crisis.
After his death on October 10, 1913 Adolphus Busch had created a brewing empire that had amassed him a fortune of roughly sixty million dollars, or roughly 1.45 billion dollars today. One of the unfortunate turn of events was the treatment of his estate after he had passed. His wife Lilly had been living in Germany for
“several years” after the death of Adolphus returned to the United States to take custody over her late husband’s estate. But, under the Alien Property Law of 1917 the United States government seized control over the Busch estate. During World War I and World War II the United States government created a bureau that seized control over “enemy property”. In essence, the United States Government had the ability to seize control over any property of German Americans that they felt harbored pro-German sentiments. Mrs. Busch had to prove to United States government that she was indeed loyal citizen of the United States. One of the accusations made against her was that, following in her late husband’s tradition, she had donated a large sum to the German hospital service. At this time Lilly Anheuser Busch was 74 years old.
Notes and Sources:
[1]Holian, Timothy J. “Adolphus Busch.” Immigrant Entrepreneurship. April 30, 2013. Accessed February 02, 2017. http://www.immigrantentrepreneurship.org/entry.php?rec=152#_ednref3.
[2] Missouri Historical Society