Brewing the Revolution: Enslaved Labor and Early American Beer

Who brewed the beer that fueled the Revolutionary era?

Beer’s role in the founding of our nation is a story riddled with mystery and passive reference in primary texts and letters from the late 17th and early 18th centuries. Although mentions of beer may appear brief or routine, alcohol played a major role in the Revolutionary American War and the diets of those populating the many estates and plantations of the Thirteen Colonies.

This lecture from Travis Rupp of the University of Colorado, Boulder, explores why beer surfaces so quietly in early American records and examines the striking divide between what was purchased and enjoyed by free landowners and what was produced and consumed by enslaved communities before, during, and after the Revolution. Drawing on evidence from George Washington’s Mount Vernon, Thomas Jefferson’s Monticello, and James Madison’s Montpelier, this presentation demonstrates that those who wrote about beer were seldom those who brewed it. Moreover, where the Founding Fathers relied on beer styles and imports from England, true brewing creativity and experimentation was in the hands of the enslaved and unvoiced populations of our early nation.

The evening also marks the release of a commemorative beer in partnership with George Washington’s Mount Vernon and crafted for the event by Black-owned breweries Funkytown Brewery (Chicago) and Soul Mega (Virginia). The collaborative brew features ingredients that would have been used by the enslaved beer makers whose labor and ingenuity helped sustain early America.

$40 ticket includes beer, wine, and non-alcoholic beverages. Light snacks will be provided but we encourage you to plan for dinner before or after the event.

Event Venue & Nearby Stays

Newberry Library, 60 West Walton Street, Chicago, United States

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