Schlitz Lager Beer Cone Top Can

Early Schlitz Flat-Bottom Cone Top

Manufactured during the mid-1930s, this 12-ounce Schlitz Lager Beer container represents one of Continental Can Company's earliest "Cap-Sealed" cone top designs, distinguished by its flat-bottom construction with an inverted bottom rib. Unlike certain related releases that carried explicit alcohol percentages, this version features no alcohol statement alongside its mandatory federal internal revenue tax-paid notice. The container features rich brown lithography accented by yellow lettering, highlighting the classic Schlitz script and the prominent declaration of "The Beer That Made Milwaukee Famous".

Schlitz was established as one of the premier American lagers of the late nineteenth and twentieth centuries. The brand gained immense national momentum following the Great Chicago Fire of 1871, when the brewery shipped hundreds of barrels of free beer to the devastated city, earning its famous moniker as the beer that made its hometown famous. Marketed nationally as a high-quality flagship lager, Schlitz dominated advertising through print, radio, and television campaigns for decades. Although production changes and labor disputes in the 1970s eroded its market dominance, the heritage brand retained a lasting cultural legacy and was later revitalized under new ownership.

The Joseph Schlitz Brewing Company originated in Milwaukee, Wisconsin, when August Krug opened a small brewery in 1849. Following Krug's death, bookkeeper Joseph Schlitz took over operations and formally incorporated the business under his own name in 1858. After Schlitz died at sea in 1875, management transitioned to Krug's nephews, the Uihlein brothers, who guided the company through decades of massive industrial expansion. Schlitz weathered Prohibition by producing malt syrups, soft drinks, and baker's yeast before swiftly resuming brewing operations upon repeal. By the mid-twentieth century, the brewery regularly vied with Anheuser-Busch for the title of the largest brewing enterprise in the United States, remaining an industry titan until its acquisition by the Stroh Brewery Company in 1982.

As a historic milestone in packaging development, flat-bottom cone tops hold enduring appeal for breweriana historians. When canned beer emerged in 1935, Continental Can Company partnered with Schlitz to roll out the cone top format as a direct rival to flat-top cans. These early flat-bottom variations remain quintessential artifacts documenting the dawn of canned malt beverages.