August Fitger
August Fitger
by Rachael E. Martin, Club #25 Historian
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One of Club 25's 1911 Charter members was August Fitger. Born in Bremen, Germany in 1854, Fitger came to Duluth in 1882 and was hired as a brewmaster for the Michael Fink Lake Superior Brewery. By 1883, Fitger purchased half interest in the brewery.
In 1885, Percy S. Anneke, auditor and salesman for Schlitz of Milwaukee, purchased Fink's interest and became Fitger's partner. Anneke and Fitger incorporated the brewery and changed the name to A. Fitger & Co. - Lake Superior Brewery.
From 1886 to 1911, 15 new buildings were built, expanding the original brewery. In 1904 the brewery was incorporated as the Fitger Brewing Company, with Fitger as President and Anneke as Secretary/Treasurer.
By 1910, the Fitger Brewing Co. was the 4th largest and one of the most modern breweries in the State.
August Fitger, at age 57, took the classification "Brewing" when he became a Charter member of Rotary Club 25 in 1911. Fitger sold his interest in the brewery to Anneke in 1920 and moved to California. |