Old Milwaukee Beer 16 Oz Bank Can

Old Milwaukee Memphis Bank Can

The Old Milwaukee Beer 16 Oz Bank Can from Jos. Schlitz Brewing Company represents a notable piece of breweriana advertising. Produced specifically for promotional distribution, these tall pint-sized bank cans were manufactured with coin slots in the top lid, allowing distributors, taverns, and consumers to use the classic beer container as a novelty coin bank.

Brewery Heritage & Memphis Plant

Old Milwaukee served as the flagship value brand for the Jos. Schlitz Brewing Company, originally developed to capture the economy beer market while carrying the legacy of the historic Milwaukee brewer. As Schlitz expanded its nationwide footprint, it opened a massive, technologically advanced production facility in Memphis, Tennessee. The Memphis facility became a major production powerhouse in the Schlitz network, supplying both Schlitz and Old Milwaukee products throughout the southern and central United States. Cans listing Memphis, TN on the mandatory brewery text line represent this era of Schlitz's expansive multi-plant operations.

Graphic Design and Variations

The 16-ounce bank can showcases the traditional Old Milwaukee branding, featuring bold, contrasting block typography alongside the recognizable brewery crest. The larger pint format offered an expanded surface area for the design compared to standard twelve-ounce packaging.

Among breweriana collectors, variations of this can exist across different factory press runs. Schlitz produced bank cans featuring various city combinations along the bottom text margin, reflecting different operational breweries within the company's network. Minor differences also appear in the specific mandatory font weight, copyright markings, and seam alignments from different can manufacturing suppliers. Because these cans were manufactured specifically as promotional novelties rather than filled beverage containers, they occupy a distinctive niche in breweriana collections.