National Capital Brewing Company

National Capital Brewing Company was a historic brewery in Washington, D.C., established in 1890 by brewers Albert Carry and Robert Portner. The company was created through the redevelopment and renaming of an earlier brewery operation on the southeast side of the city, in the area of 14th Street between D and E Streets SE. Brewing activity had existed on or near the site since at least the 1870s, first under Francis J. Adt and later through businesses associated with John Guethler, Carl Eisenmenger, and Henry Rabe. Carry and Portner were prominent local brewers. In 1889, Carry had sold his Mount Vernon Lager Beer Brewery, which subsequently became associated with the Washington Brewery Company. The following year, Carry and Portner acquired the Washington Brewery operation and renamed it National Capital Brewing Company. A purpose-built replacement brewery was completed in June 1891 and reopened to the public on July 26 of that year. A formal reception followed on July 28, allowing visitors to inspect the five-story, fire-resistant facility and observe the brewing process. The plant had its own well and was reported to have annual production capacity of approximately 100,000 barrels, making it a substantial and technologically modern brewery for its period. The company produced lager beer for the Washington market and initially relied heavily on saloons and independent bottlers rather than bottling all of its production itself. In 1897 it registered distinctive green and amber bottles bearing the company name and an image of the United States Capitol, reinforcing a strongly local identity. The brewery also entered a large supply arrangement with the F. H. Findley & Son Bottling Company for a special Pale Extra Beer. In 1898, it introduced a light lager known as Diamond. Distribution was initially conducted with horse-drawn wagons, but in 1903 the company purchased an electric delivery truck, reportedly becoming the first Washington brewer to use one for beer delivery. National Capital Brewing Company also expanded beyond brewing-related activity. In 1897, it purchased equipment and other movable property from the Park Brewery Agency associated with Gerhard Lang's Buffalo brewery. In 1913, it bought the Commercial Hotel at Seventh Street and Pennsylvania Avenue NW as an investment. These transactions suggest that the company operated as a locally rooted brewing enterprise with interests extending into distribution, property, and hospitality. The brewery was also connected to a serious criminal investigation in 1912, when the disappearance and presumed murder of Navy Yard mechanic Arthur A. Webster led investigators to a furnace at the plant. A brewery fireman, Lentie L. Jett, was identified by a coroner's jury as responsible for the killing and subsequent cremation of the remains before his own suicide. The incident was widely reported locally, but it was a criminal event involving an employee rather than a documented corporate misconduct case. The company's brewing business was curtailed by Washington, D.C.'s early Prohibition measures. In May 1917, the facility shifted from beer to ice-cream production, using its existing ice-making infrastructure. Carry's Ice Cream operated for approximately one year before Albert Carry sold it. The property subsequently became the Meadowgold Dairy, which remained in operation until the 1960s. The original brewery was demolished in 1965, and the site was later occupied by a Safeway grocery store. National Capital Brewing Company is therefore remembered primarily as part of Washington's late-nineteenth- and early-twentieth-century brewing history. In 2015, Michael Webb and Wes McCann announced plans for a new Washington brewery using the National Capital Brewing Company name and drawing inspiration from the historical operation. The available reference material describes these as plans to pay homage to the original brands, not as evidence that the historic company itself resumed opera…

The site associated with National Capital Brewing Company had a long prehistory before the company was formed. The surrounding lots began to be sold in the early nineteenth century, but the area remained lightly developed for decades. The first documented brewery and garden on the site belonged to Francis J. Adt, who operated the Navy Yard Lager Beer Brewery and Summer Garden from the 1870s into the early 1880s. The premises later passed to John Guethler, whose tenure included the construction of a dancing pavilion and the hosting of large German-American cultural and social events. In 1886, Carl Eisenmenger and Henry Rabe acquired the brewery. Their partnership ended the following year, and the operation was renamed the Henry Rabe Brewery in 1888. Albert Carry, a successful Washington-area brewer, sold his Mount Vernon Lager Beer Brewery in 1889. That business later became associated with the Washington Brewery Company. In 1890, Carry joined Robert Portner in acquiring the Washington Brewery operation and renamed it National Capital Brewing Company. The new company invested in a modern plant. A five-story, fire-resistant building was completed in June 1891, and the brewery reopened on July 26. A public reception held two days later offered visitors an opportunity to see the equipment and brewing stages. The brewery used water from its own well and had stated capacity of roughly 100,000 barrels annually. This capacity, combined with its purpose-built construction, positioned the company as a significant regional producer rather than a small neighborhood brewpub. National Capital's beers were principally sold through Washington saloons. The company did not initially bottle all of its own output, instead using outside bottlers. In 1897, it registered its bottle designs and trade markings with the District of Columbia authorities. Both green and amber bottles carried the brewery's name and a representation of the United States Capitol, giving the packaging a clear civic and geographic association. That year, the company also acquired bottles, equipment, and other chattels connected with the Gerhard Lang Park Brewery Agency in Buffalo. A significant bottling contract was recorded in 1891 with F. H. Findley & Son Bottling Company for a special Pale Extra Beer. The company later introduced Diamond, a light lager, in 1898. Its delivery system also modernized over time: horse-drawn wagons were eventually supplemented by an electric truck purchased in 1903. The company made a further investment outside brewing in 1913, buying the Commercial Hotel at Seventh Street and Pennsylvania Avenue NW. The brewery became the site of a prominent criminal investigation in 1912. Arthur A. Webster, a Navy Yard mechanic, disappeared after reportedly being seen near the brewery. Investigators later found charred human remains in a furnace. Evidence presented to a coroner's jury implicated fireman Lentie L. Jett, who was believed to have killed Webster and burned the remains before committing suicide. The event generated local newspaper coverage and is part of the site's documented history, although it was not a corporate scandal in the ordinary business sense. The company's beer production ended in the context of Washington, D.C.'s early Prohibition regime. In May 1917, the facility was converted to ice-cream production, marketed as Carry's Ice Cream. Carry sold that operation after about a year. The site subsequently operated as Meadowgold Dairy until the 1960s and was demolished in 1965. No brewery structure survives; a Safeway grocery store occupies the location described in the historical account. In 2015, Michael Webb and Wes McCann announced plans for a new brewery in Washington using the National Capital Brewing Company name and referencing the historic brand. The available material does not establish that the planned operation became a continuation of the original company. The historic National Capital Brewing Company is consequently classified as defunct.

1. 2015Revival plans announced

   Michael Webb and Wes McCann announced plans for a new brewery using the historic name.

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2. 1965Former brewery site demolished

   The former brewery and later dairy site was demolished.

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3. 1917Beer production ends under Prohibition

   The plant shifted to ice-cream production after Washington, D.C., adopted local Prohibition measures.

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4. 1913Commercial Hotel acquired

   The company purchased the Commercial Hotel as a property investment.

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5. 1903Electric delivery truck purchased

   National Capital acquired an electric truck for local beer distribution.

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6. 1898Diamond light lager introduced

   The brewery launched a new light lager called Diamond.

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7. 1897Bottle trademarks registered

   The company recorded green and amber bottle designs featuring its name and the United States Capitol.

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8. 1891Modern brewery building opens

   A five-story fire-resistant brewery opened after construction was completed in June.

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9. 1890National Capital Brewing Company founded

   Albert Carry and Robert Portner acquired and renamed the Washington Brewery operation.

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10. 1886Eisenmenger and Rabe acquire the brewery

    Carl Eisenmenger and Henry Rabe purchased the existing brewery operation.

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11. 1875First documented brewery on the later National Capital site

    Francis J. Adt operated the Navy Yard Lager Beer Brewery and Summer Garden at the site.

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A locally identified Washington, D.C., lager brewery that emphasized modern production capacity, Capitol-themed packaging, and regional distribution.

• DiamondLight lager1898

  Diamond was a light lager introduced by National Capital Brewing Company in 1898. The available historical material identifies its style and launch date but does not provide a surviving formulation, alcohol content, label details beyond the brand name, or evidence of continued production after the brewery ceased making beer.

• Pale Extra BeerPale beer1891

  Pale Extra Beer was a specially designated beer associated with a 1891 contract between National Capital Brewing Company and F. H. Findley & Son Bottling Company. The agreement covered a large quantity for bottling, but the available source does not provide a detailed recipe, style classification beyond the name, or evidence that the product survived the brewery's closure.

• Carry's Ice CreamIce cream1917

  Carry's Ice Cream was a temporary non-alcoholic product made at the former brewery after Washington, D.C., introduced local Prohibition measures. Production began in May 1917 and lasted approximately one year, after which Albert Carry sold the operation. It represented an adaptation of the plant's ice-making and cold-storage capabilities rather than a continuing beer line.

• 2015Proposed revival of the historic nameOther

  The original brewery site and buildings were gone, but the historic brand name remained associated with Washington brewing history.

  What changed. Michael Webb and Wes McCann announced plans to open a new Washington brewery under the National Capital Brewing Company name and to create products honoring the original brands.

  Aftermath. The available reference does not establish whether the planned brewery opened or became a legal continuation of the historic company.

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• 1917Conversion from beer to ice creamStrategy

  Washington, D.C.'s early Prohibition measures made the brewery's core beer business impracticable.

  What changed. The facility began producing Carry's Ice Cream using its existing ice plant.

  Aftermath. The ice-cream operation lasted about a year before it was sold, and the property later became Meadowgold Dairy.

  Source
• 1903Modernization of beer deliveryStrategy

  Beer had traditionally been moved from the brewery using horse-drawn wagons.

  What changed. National Capital purchased an electric truck for deliveries.

  Aftermath. The move modernized local distribution and was reported as a first for a Washington brewer.

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• 1897Formalization of branded packagingStrategy

  The company had initially relied substantially on saloons and third-party bottlers to sell its beer.

  What changed. It registered green and amber bottle designs carrying the company name and a United States Capitol motif.

  Aftermath. The packaging created a recognizable Washington identity for the brewery's bottled products.

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• 1891Commissioning of a large modern breweryStrategy

  The newly renamed company sought substantial production capacity and a modern industrial facility in Washington, D.C.

  What changed. It opened a five-story, fire-resistant brewery with reported capacity of approximately 100,000 barrels per year and water supplied by its own well.

  Aftermath. The investment established National Capital as a significant local producer and supported broader bottling and distribution activity.

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• 1912Arthur A. Webster murder investigationControversy

  The disappearance of Navy Yard mechanic Arthur A. Webster led police to search a brewery furnace, where charred human remains and other suspected evidence were found. A coroner's jury concluded that brewery fireman Lentie L. Jett had killed Webster and burned his remains before committing suicide. The incident was an employee criminal case associated with the premises, not a documented allegation of company-wide misconduct.

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• 2015Plans announced for a new National Capital Brewing Company

  Michael Webb and Wes McCann announced plans to open a new Washington, D.C., brewery under the historic name, with products intended to pay tribute to the original company's brands.

  Product launchOther
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• 1917Brewery shifts to ice-cream production during Washington Prohibition

  After Washington, D.C., adopted an early local Prohibition measure, the facility stopped producing beer and began making ice cream using its ice plant.

  Regulation
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• 1903National Capital Brewing Company adopts electric delivery

  The company purchased an electric truck for beer delivery, reportedly becoming the first Washington brewer to use this type of vehicle.

  Other
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• 1898National Capital Brewing Company introduces Diamond light lager

  The brewery added a new light lager called Diamond to its beer range.

  Product launch
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• 1891National Capital Brewing Company announces a major Pale Extra Beer bottling arrangement

  The brewery entered an agreement with F. H. Findley & Son Bottling Company involving 20,000 barrels of a special Pale Extra Beer, linking the new brewery to a substantial third-party bottling and distribution commitment.

  Other
  Source

1. National Capital Brewing Company
2. Capital Beer: A Heady History of Brewing in Washington, D.C.