Sunday, June 12, 2011

Outside and Friendly

We've already covered the beer, brand and history, so maybe I'll go in a different direction with this sign on the back/inside courtyard of the old Grain Belt Brewery. As for the brewery itself, as the City of Minneapolis tells us, construction began in 1891. It was closed from 1927 until the end of Prohibition, but re-opened with the passing of that dark age and operated until 1975 when operations were transferred to St. Louis. Today it houses office space.

I was also a little surprised to see this ad, directly on the side of the brewery, sporting the name of Naegele. I get how the billboard portion of the former Naegele Outdoor Advertising business worked. They put up a sign and you pay to advertise on it. But why would they be involved in a sign on your own building? If that was a more interesting question, maybe I'd look for an answer, but instead I'll just point out that Naegele was a key source of the fortune that brought hockey back to Minnesota in the form of the Wild.

Getting back to beer, the building is an excellent example of what I call the "cool old building" architectural style. Yes, I'd be happy to guest teach an architectural class at your school. Meanwhile, enjoy this friendly sign from the front of the building:



2 comments:

  1. Hey, that's one of my favorite architectural styles, too! Did you know it's often refered to as "neat old building" style, too?

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  2. Juli, while I appreciate your enthusiasm, that statement is absolute heresy ;)

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