Gluek's Beer Pin

German immigrant Gottlieb Gluek used the brewing methods of his home country in the brewery he established along the northern reaches of the Mississippi River in 1857. The business preceded the establishment of the state of Minnesota and the city of Minneapolis. The next year, Gluek produced 3,996 barrels of beer. A March 1880 fire destroyed the brewery. No lives were lost directly but the founder died the following October at the age of 52, taxed by the loss and the effort to rebuild. Only partially covered by insurance, the Gluek family lost $20,000 and used their funds to rebuild a larger, more modern facility and continue the operation.