Weber Waukesha Beer Cone Top Can

Weber Waukesha Beer Cone Top

Manufactured by Continental Can Company as a 12-ounce cone top, this container dates to the late 1940s. The upper green border prominently bears the mandatory "INTERNAL REVENUE TAX PAID" statement, identifying it as an Internal Revenue Tax Paid (IRTP) release packaged prior to the federal tax statement repeal in 1950. Along the cap, the brand's core theme is highlighted with the text "WITH WAUKESHA WATER."

The brand built its identity around Waukesha, Wisconsin, historically known as "Spring City" for its famed natural mineral springs. Marketed on the premise that exceptional water yielded superior lager—championed in local advertising with the slogan "Wonderful water brews better beer"—the packaging visually celebrates this local resource. The central graphic features an Indigenous American figure wearing a feathered headdress and buckskin dipping a ladle into a rippling freshwater spring beneath the stylized red Weber nameplate. This artwork served as the signature emblem of the company for decades, linking the beer to regional lore surrounding the pure qualities of the town's artesian waters.

The origins of the Weber Waukesha Brewing Company trace back to the 1850s, with Stephen Weber acquiring the local brewing site in 1862. Over the decades, the family operation operated under several names, including the West Hill Brewery and Bethesda Brewery, before formalizing as the Weber Waukesha Brewing Company. To survive Prohibition, the facility pivoted to milk and dairy processing under the banner of the Waukesha Dairy Company. Following the repeal of the Eighteenth Amendment, the family resumed brewing and invested in modernized stainless steel plant equipment. Facing intense competitive pressure during postwar industry consolidation, Weber merged with rival local producer Fox Head Brewing Company in 1958, which led to the permanent shuttering of the historic Weber plant.

Among breweriana enthusiasts, mid-century cone tops from regional Wisconsin brewers hold a prominent place. Graphic cone top cans that showcase pictorial trademarks rather than plain lettering are particularly prized, and the scenic spring-dipping illustration remains an enduring tribute to Wisconsin's regional brewing heritage.