| | Abstract: | The Leisy Brewing Company was a Cleveland, Ohio, based brewery which began as Isaac Leisy & Co. in 1873. Once Cleveland's largest independent brewery, it had branch agencies in Ohio, western Pa., and Indiana, and gained a reputation for its Premium Lager and Budweiser beers, before that became a brand name. Production in 1890 was over 90,000 barrels, and rose to 355,000 barrels by 1917. When the company closed in 1959, it was the oldest brewery in Cleveland and one of the longest surviving family-operated breweries in America. The collection consists of individual portraits of Otto Leisy and his family; unidentified individual and group portraits of Leisy Brewing Company staff; Leisy staff party portraits; views of the Leisy family residence; and exterior and interior views of the Leisy plant complex at various stages. The majority of photographs depict various aspects of Leisy advertising and include views of billboards, taxi posters, displays, horse-drawn and motorized delivery vehicles, and the Leisy company mascot. A bound album contains reproductions of product labels and advertising. | |
