Happy Valentines Day! We’re sticking with the prohibition era breweries today. Heading east from LaSalle all the way to the former town of Riverside, and the former Riverside Brewery.
Founded in 1926, the building was designed by Albert McPhail, who designed many other buildings in Windsor. It’s amazing that after 85 years, the sign is still clearly visible.
Over the front door, there is remains of a painted sign for a Bird Seed Company that once occupied the site.
The front doorway has alternating limetsone and brick. I love the big “R” over the front door.
An impressive structure towering over the local area. It’s too bad that the best use for the building today is the sand/gravel docks to the rear. It seems to me that this building would have been perfect for a condo conversion.
Looks like “Riverside Bird Seed” ? Does anyone remember the seed factory?
Here you can see the poor old gal surrounded by piles of sand and gravel. It’s a sad same, given this building’s part in our local history, and in the story of prohibition.
An ad that ran in the paper in 1934 looking for investors.
I am assuming that the investors didn’t come, as the brewery closed in 1935, after only 9 years in operation.
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It was the Hybrid Seed Company as I recall.
I’ve always thought that Windsor should have a “Rumrunners” or bootleggers museum and one of these old breweries would be a perfect spot for it.
Anyone know what the similar looking building is just to the east of this?
http://maps.google.ca/?ie=UTF8&hq=&hnear=360+Fairview+Ave+W,+Essex,+Essex+County,+Ontario+N8M+1Y3&ll=42.338776,-82.920867&spn=0.006154,0.016512&z=17&layer=c&cbll=42.33874,-82.920724&panoid=E_EOHe55477FkkA-1hZsXw&cbp=12,314.83,,0,-1.2
Now sure if it was this building or the one Tom D is refering to, but one of them was to be turned into condos. I think the problem was title to the property. The owners of the sand and gravel dock said they owned the building and someone else said they did. At any rate the condo idea must have gotten shelved. I think it is probably home to bats and birds now.
i was at lakeview marina on friday and was looking at this building thinking the same as you andrew. what a great building for condo/lofts. a building like this with a fantasatic view of the river, lake and peche island. i love this building and it’s a shame to see it being used the way it is today.
A similar large, red-brick building, also a brewery (Brading’s) was on south side of Riverside Dr. West, between approximately Church & Bruce. Since removed and paved over after all these years, I recall a track on north side of Riverside and adjacent to the curb. A spur led across Riverside and into the brewery. I assume the line was part of the SW&A when it was a railway and I think it went all the way to Amherstburg. Or would it be the Windsor, Essex and Lakeshore. Or even the ETR. The traction and rail fans probably have the answer to this memory.
And yes, I agree the Riverside Brewery would be ideal for lofts/condos, if the structure is still in sound shape.
Tom – It used to be “Webster Manufacturing”…..and before that “Monarch Liquor Co.”
If you go to “from the vaults” on the Star, and find the pics about Sandpoint beach cottages, you can spot part of this building in the background with all it’s windows intact….beautiful.
I had also thouth these would make great condos. When I was a kid I used to climb to the top of those gravel piles and jump off. Now I realize just how dumb that was!
Ken – That would be the old Carling brewery….maybe Brading’s at some point? Later it was turned into the art gallery and then the temporary Casino. And yup, that would have been the SW&A. Both SW&A and WE&LS used to handle freight. WE&LS used to ship goods to Heinz in Leamington.
Thanks Andrew!
So who owns it now? Everytime I drive by this place I wonder why it’s still around. Thanks for reporting on it Andrew. I am not sure how many lofts could be made from this place, they would be pricey or really small.
At this point it just seems like an eyesore blocking the view of the water.
I worked at Websters FEB-MAY 1984,We made map pockets for G.M.on the top floor and truck seats for Chryslers on the bottom floor..$4.00 an hour $6.00 when local 195 came in..That is one solid building it was desighned to hold alot of weight and it shows on the inside.the veiw is excellent from there,you can see down the river and out to the lake plus the summer view of sandpoint beach..The windows are larger than they appear from the street.I didn’t stay long but enjoyed working with the girls upstairs a friendly bunch and alot of laughs. I stopped one day to take some pics and was kicked out by the port authority….Free country.
“ESSEX” Hybrid Seed….
I still remember that painted mural sign which was applied over the brewery sign on the west face. Not sure when the seed sign would have been painted; it slowly faded away as I was growing up but I’m sure it protected the original brewery sign for a good part of the last 85 years. I’m pretty sure there is a photo of this building (taken from the river side) in the foyer of Red Lobster …. revenuers bust’n kegs.
Think I’ll have to add a little thing on wikimapia about that place!
I’ve added many historic areas of the city and county to wikimapia. I’d love it if other people could possibly pitch in and tag some places they know about as well!
🙂
Interesting places, that’s for sure!
I thought the Shawn M from wikimapia was the same one from here.
Meet Magnatomicflux!
My girlfriend and I were inside a few years ago. There was a small opening in the brick/block at the back, and the adjacent gravel pile was sliding into the building. You basically had to slide on your stomach backwards into the hole with all this gravel pouring in on you as you slid into the building. Getting out was even harder! There is nothing inside anymore except concrete stairs with iron pipe railings, and gaping holes in the floors where conveyors, machinery and brewing equipment used to be. The top floor had a layer of cork insulation on the ceiling which was deteriorating and falling down.
Yes Aaron, that would be me! 🙂
Ken and Aaron… from Windsor Public Library: “The British American Brewery was located on Riverside Dr. and Bruce St. The Brewery opened in 1883 and was know most for its production of Cincinnati Cream Ale. The brewery later operated as Brading Brewery, Canadian Breweries and Carlings. The brewery closed in 1969 when the building became the Art Gallery of Windsor, and later the temporary home of Casino Windsor. The building has since been demolished and replaced with a new home for the Art Gallery.”
/\ What a terrible shame. Tear down a gorgeous building to put up a new ‘modern’ one.
I don’t mind the look of the new art gallery, but it was unnecessary. Especially while tearing down a historic gem.
Same old story, same old city.
why don’t we get some more information on this building and the one to the east on here! I love the look of these buildings, very old and mysterious, if converted into lofts, they would sell out asap because of the view and the beach!
at some point the chimney came down, from what it looks like.
Shawn M, I try to pitch-in to Wikimapia, as well! I do what I can. I try to be as accurate as possible.
I saw the building when visiting my daughter in Windsor in January 2013(I’m from Oshawa). I am fasinated with old buildings and this I just loved both of these buildings.
One thing though, I was told that both of the buildings were run by Al Capone during prohibition and under the brewery building there are tunnel’s that run under the river to Peche Island. Most of the tunnel is caved in now I heard.
When I was there, I took a some of the red brick’s for a souvenier and some picture’s.
**Can anyone confirm what I heard about Al Capone’s involvement? And about the tunnel’s?
I thought it not only would make great condo’s but the bottom floor could be a restaurant in honour of “gangsters & prohibition”.
If you read the sign on the front of the building (difficult as that may be) it doesn’t say “bird”–it reads “brid”, which suggests that the Essex Hybrid Seed Company occupied the building at one time, even though the building next door was also designated thus.
I have been researching my mother’s ancestry and I find that the Riverside Brewery was mention in some of her ancestors and I was wondering where I can do more research on this business to prove the information I have gathered is true.
Pretty sure this is the same building, judging by the sand piles, that we used to play in as teenagers. We’d get in through a back window.
Inside there must have been some kind of elevator that was torn out, because there was a hole in each of the floors in the same space.
On the first floor, at the bottom of the hole, there was a pile of mattresses and foam. I used to jump from the second floor. I had friends who went from higher floors.