Dayton Beer October events


Photo of a copy of the book Dayton Beer on a table in the Carillon Brewing Co.

© 2019 Timothy R. Gaffney

 If you’re a tinkerer, crafter, engineer or manufacturer—if you like to make stuff with your hands—the Make it Dayton Festival is for you. Held at Dayton History’s Carillon Historical Park on Saturday, Oct. 5, it will be a gathering of tinkerers, crafters, engineers and hobbyists who reflect Dayton’s heritage of invention and manufacturing.

 One of the things Dayton has a long history of making—over more than two centuries—is beer. I’ll share some of that history from 3 to 5 p.m. in Carillon Brewing’s Bier Hall. Copies of my book Dayton Beer will be for sale in the park’s gift shop and in Carillon Brewing itself, and I’ll be happy to sign them. 
Photo of historic Newcom's Tavern in Carillon Historical Park.

 Named for its iconic musical bell tower, Carillon Historical Park is a 65-acre, open-air museum that preserves and interprets stories of Dayton’s inventions and inventors. Among its most historic exhibits are George Newcom’s Tavern, Dayton’s first permanent building, and the restored 1905 Wright Flyer III, the world’s first practical airplane. (The Wright brothers weren't brewers, but Newcom built Dayton's first brewery of record next to his tavern around 1810.)

 Carillon Brewing is a reproduction brewery and restaurant where you can see how Dayton’s early brewers made beer. It serves historically brewed beers, and its menu reflect the fare Dayton’s predominantly English, German and Irish population would have found.  

 Make it Dayton is a grassroots group of people who, quite simply, like to make things. The festival is its biggest annual gathering and features demonstrations of everything from blacksmithing to robotics. The festival runs from 9:30 am to 5 pm. Admission is free to Dayton History members and $12 per adult to non-members, with discounts for seniors and children.

 But Carillon Brewing is open to the public at no charge, and my presentation will be free. So stop in, have a pint and learn about Dayton’s rich brewing history.  

 This event will kick off my October “History and a Pint”™ book tour. 
Photo of Moeller Brew Barn in Maria Stein, OH, undergoing expansion in 2018.
Moeller Brew Barn during expansion in 2018

 October 12: Moeller Brew Barn
I’ll be at the Moeller Brewer Barn, 8016 Marion Drive, Maria Stein, in southeastern Mercer County, from 1 to 3 pm on Saturday, Oct. 12. I'll talk about brewing history in that region. Nearly every community had a brewery at one time or another in the 19th century, and I pieced together the stories of several in rural counties by combing hundreds of old records, newspaper clippings and old history books. Even tiny New Madison and Union City had breweries, and Minster’s Wooden Shoe beer was known and enjoyed across many states, before and after Prohibition.

 I’m continuing to uncover old brewing locations. Even since my book was published in July, I’ve found new evidence of long-ago breweries—including one carved out of the woods in 1855 just a few miles from where Moeller Brew Barn stands today. (Just why its owner decided to build a brewery miles from the nearest sizable village is something I’m still trying to learn.)
Photo of Kevin Loftis, co-owner of Mother Stewart's Brewing, holding a glass of beer behind the bar.
Kevin Loftis, Mother Stewart's co-owner

 October 17: Mother Stewart’s
My third October event will take me to Mother Stewart’s Brewing, 102 W. Columbia St., Springfield, from 6 to 8 pm on Thursday, Oct. 17. I’ll tell the story behind the brewery’s name and talk about Springfield’s own rich brewing history—including a woman who owned a brewery there in the 1860s and a prohibition-era raid that sent several Springfield brewers to prison.

 If you already have Dayton Beer I'll be happy to sign it, and I'll have books available for sale.
Location: Dayton, OH, USA

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