Anton Geiger
There was a time in Iowa City history when residents weren’t known for drinking beer but for making it.
Among the early Iowa City breweries was Union Brewery, which sat on the southwest corner of Market and Linn streets. The brewery was founded by Anton Geiger and Simeon Hotz. Hotz and Geiger were born in Germany but did not meet until they arrived in Iowa City in the late 1850s. Geiger married Hotz’s daughter, Clara.
Though originally a shoemaker, Hotz partnered with Louis Englert at City Brewery before going into business on his own and eventually with his son-in-law.
Though formally named the Union Brewery, the business often was referred to as Hotz and Geiger. Their beer was known as Graf’s Golden Brew, apparently named for brewmaster Conrad Graf.
Geiger died in 1903, but the brewery remained in the family. Graf married Hotz’s daughter and later became owner of the brewery. Operation of the brewery continued until Iowa enacted prohibition at the state level in 1916 — four years before it was mandated nationally by the 18th Amendment.
Interestingly, after Prohibition, Graf tried to bottle soda pop at the brewery. However, it proved to be difficult because of yeast spores causing the soda to ferment.
A 5-by-10-foot stone slab, which reads “In Memoriam Simeon Hotz and A. Geiger,” notes the operation of the brewery.
According to records, the Union Brewery Building later housed the Mississippi Valley Rubber Co. before becoming the home of the Economy Advertising Building. It now is known as Brewery Square.