Simon Pure Chapter Not Specified 12 Oz Flat Top Can

Simon Pure Rainbow Trade Show Can

This 12-ounce straight steel flat top container was created as a commemorative issue for the Simon Pure Chapter's International Rainbow Trade & Show, held on July 30–31, 1983, in Niagara Falls, New York. Finished with an applied paper label rather than standard lithography, the can features a prominent multi-colored rainbow arch over a scenic view of Niagara Falls, alongside event text welcoming collectors to "Rainbow Country." Chapter cans of this type were distributed directly at regional collector meets rather than through commercial retail channels.

Named after the renowned Western New York beer brand, the Simon Pure Chapter was formed as a regional branch of the Brewery Collectibles Club of America (BCCA). The Simon Pure moniker originally belonged to one of the most recognized beers in the Buffalo-Niagara area, famously promoted through regional advertising with slogans celebrating local industry and touting the beer as "The seal of good taste". Even after commercial packaging of the original brand ended, regional enthusiast groups kept the name alive through collector swaps, trade shows, and specialty releases.

The brewing lineage referenced by the chapter dates back to the William Simon Brewery in Buffalo. Originally established in the 1850s as the John Schusler Brewery, the facility was purchased in the late 1890s by brewmaster William Simon. The company survived Prohibition by marketing near beer and cereal beverages, quickly resuming traditional brewing following repeal in 1933. While waves of mid-century industry consolidation forced nearly all independent Buffalo breweries to close, the William Simon Brewery endured longer than its local competitors, operating as the city's last independent brewery until closing in the early 1970s.

Among breweriana collectors, chapter-issued paper label cans represent a distinct collecting category. Instead of serving as commercial beverage packaging, they stand as historical records of regional collector conventions and swap meets during the hobby's formative decades. They hold particular appeal for collectors focused on Western New York brewing history and event-specific memorabilia.