Frederick's Extra Pale Beer Cone Top Can

Frederick's Extra Pale Cone Top

The Frederick's Extra Pale Beer Cone Top Can is a mid-twentieth-century artifact produced by the Frederick's Brewing Company in Thornton, Illinois. Manufactured with the classic J-spout profile by Crown Cork & Seal, the can represents a notable era of regional brewing in Cook County.

Brewery History and Production

The Frederick's Brewing Company was formed after brothers Joseph, Dominic, Frank, and James Frederick took over and reorganized the former Illinois Brewing Company plant. The facility occupied a historic brewing property originally founded in the nineteenth century by John S. Bielfeldt.

Under the direction of brewmaster Henry Scholl and assistant brewer Ernest Buehler, the brewery modernized its bottling and canning operations. During World War II, the company secured contracts to supply beer to United States military training bases, dispatching railcars of beer to army camps across the country. Servicemen from the southern Chicago suburbs frequently encountered beer from their hometown delivered directly to their military outposts.

Design and Collector Significance

The can design displays mid-century typography highlighting the "Frederick's Extra Pale Beer" brand alongside the mandatory brewery markings for Thornton, Illinois. For breweriana specialists, known variations include slight shifts in text positioning and the presence of the federal "Internal Revenue Tax Paid" (IRTP) statement.

Following the post-war period, the brewery encountered financial difficulties and the plant transitioned to the McAvoy Brewing Company before closing entirely. Because the Frederick's label was packaged for only a limited duration, this cone top remains a highly regarded artifact of Illinois brewing history.