Bomberger's Distillery

Bomberger's Distillery, later known as Michter's Distillery, may at the time of its closing have been the oldest distillery in the United States. The complex, located near Schaefferstown, Pennsylvania represents the transformation of whiskey distilling from an agricultural enterprise into a large-scale industry. The still house, warehouse, and jug house date from about 1840.^[3]

In 1753, John and Michael Shenk, Swiss Mennonite farmers, began distilling rye whiskey at the site. Sometime before 1860, Abraham Bomberger, a Pennsylvania Dutchman, purchased the distillery from the Shenk family. The distillery closed in 1919. With the lifting of Prohibition, Pennco Distillers acquired the property and made whiskey until 1978, when the distillery was sold to Michter's.^[4] The distillery closed in 1989 after Michter's filed for bankruptcy.

Bomberger's was listed on the National Register of Historic Places in 1975, and was declared a National Historic Landmark in 1980.^[2][5]

According to one of Y. Fowler's websites^[4] the site is no longer a National Historic Landmark; however this appears to be incorrect as it is still listed as one by the National Park Service. It is possible that there was a recommendation for removing the designation, but it appears not to have been acted upon.

Today the distillery is severely deteriorated from lack of maintenance^[2] and is owned by a woodworker named Dwight Hostetter who has (with help from an enthusiast named Ethan Smith) somewhat tried to preserve the site but has no particular interest in the property as a distillery.^[6]

Recently, bourbon whiskey made prior to the distillery's closing has been bottled under the A. H. Hirsch label.

Since 2004, bourbon and rye whiskey produced in Bardstown, Kentucky by Kentucky Bourbon Distillers has been sold under the Michter's label, currently owned by Chatham Imports, Inc.

References and notes

1. ^ "National Register Information System". National Register of Historic Places. National Park Service. no date specified. http://nrhp.focus.nps.gov/natreg/docs/All_Data.html. 
2. ^ ^{a b c} "Bomberger's Distillery". National Historic Landmark summary listing. National Park Service. http://tps.cr.nps.gov/nhl/detail.cfm?ResourceId=1567&ResourceType=Building. Retrieved 2007-11-12. 
3. ^ National Park Service. "National Register Write-Up" (PDF). http://www.nr.nps.gov/writeups/75001649.nl.pdf. Retrieved May 5, 2006. 
4. ^ ^{a b} Yvonne Bomberger Fowler. "Legacy Of The Bomberger's Distillery". http://web.tampabay.rr.com/ybfowler/legacy.htm. Retrieved May 5, 2006. 
5. ^ Ralph J. Christian (March, 1978). National Register of Historic Places Inventory-Nomination: Bomberger's Distillery / Michter's DistilleryPDF (758 KiB). National Park Service  and Accompanying 11 photos, exterior and interior, from 1978, c.1900, c.1933 and undated.PDF (0.97 MiB)
6. ^ Michter's Jug House, Schaefferstown, Pennsylvania, John & Linda Lipman's American Whiskey web site, July 24, 2010 update (accessed May 2011).

External links

• Chatham Imports: Michter's
• The Whisky Portal