Harvard Export Beer Flat Top Can

Harvard Export Beer Flat Top Can

The Harvard Export Beer flat top can represents a classic mid-century package from the Harvard Brewing Company of Lowell, Massachusetts. This 12-ounce container bears an Internal Revenue Tax Paid (IRTP) statement, dating its manufacture to the 1940s. The can features an intricate, repeating background pattern composed of interlocking green geometric tiles that incorporate the brewery's name and "H" monogram. Front and center is the bold red "Harvard" script angled across the upper face, positioned above a crimson pennant emblem set inside a sunburst trademark. Anchoring the bottom of the can is a prominent green band displaying the text "FULLY AGED," representing an earlier design iteration before subsequent runs substituted the phrase with "Green Label."

Harvard Export Beer served as the brewery's flagship lager, heavily marketed across New England as a traditional, thoroughly aged beer with a clean flavor and light golden color. Harvard pushed the brand through extensive local print and tavern promotions, often bundling Export Beer in variety samplers alongside Harvard Ale to drive retail sales during the post-Prohibition boom. The brand persisted as a staple of regional taprooms and refrigerators for decades until brewing ended in the mid-1950s.

The Harvard Brewing Company originated in 1893 as the Consumers Brewing Company before being reorganized in 1898 under John J. Joyce, John H. Coffey, and outside investors, who adopted the Harvard name. By the 1910s, the Lowell facility had expanded into one of the largest brewing and bottling operations in New England. During Prohibition, the brewery attempted to pivot to soft drinks and near-beer, but became central to regional folklore when federal agents staged the largest Prohibition raid in New England on the facility, seizing over 100,000 gallons of contraband brew. The plant successfully reopened after repeal in 1933 and enjoyed sustained regional success before consolidation pressures forced its closure in the 1950s, when production rights were transferred to Hampden-Harvard Breweries.

For breweriana collectors, this can stands as a prized artifact of Massachusetts brewing history. The intricate wallpaper-style background and striking two-tone color scheme give it an eye-catching display presence among vintage flat tops.