Schlitz Beer Pint Can

Schlitz 1960 16 oz Flat Top Pint

This 16-ounce flat top can represents a classic mid-century package produced by the Jos. Schlitz Brewing Company around 1960. Styled in the company's crisp white, gold, and deep red palette, the face displays the historic belted globe trademark encircled by golden filigree above an angular banner containing the sweeping Schlitz script. The lower third of the can features the famous declaration, "The Beer that made Milwaukee Famous." Associated with the company's Kansas City, Missouri brewing operations, this full pint can exemplifies the clean, modern aesthetic of post-war canned beer packaging.

Schlitz earned national acclaim in the late nineteenth century, famously shipping beer to Chicago to aid the city following the Great Chicago Fire of 1871. Capitalizing on its growing nationwide footprint, the brand adopted its hallmark Milwaukee slogan during the 1890s. Positioned as a flagship premium lager, Schlitz was backed by massive advertising campaigns across print, radio, and television. After spending decades as one of America's best-selling beers, controversial production and ingredient changes in the 1970s caused consumer backlash and precipitous sales drops. The brand was subsequently acquired by the Stroh Brewery Company in 1982 and eventually became part of the Pabst Brewing Company portfolio.

The brewery began in Milwaukee in 1849 as the August Krug Brewery, before bookkeeper Joseph Schlitz took over operations following Krug's death. The company survived Prohibition by producing baker's yeast, sodas, and malt syrup. Following repeal, Schlitz expanded rapidly, acquiring and opening regional breweries across the country, including the Kansas City facility acquired in 1956. Industry consolidation, labor disputes, and falling demand ultimately led to the closure of the historic Milwaukee brewhouse in 1981.

For breweriana collectors, 16-ounce flat tops from the late 1950s and early 1960s hold particular appeal. These pint-sized "tallboy" cans represent the final era of flat-top steel packaging prior to the nationwide switch to pull-tab and pop-top openers.