Augustus R. Stanton

Lewiston, 1890-1900

Stanton is listed as a brewer, but it is unclear as to whether he actually ever produced “real” beer. He began “brewing” with Charles Skinner in 1890 from 6 Ash Street in Lewiston. They were known for their Standard Hop Beer, a temperance drink. However, in 1893 Stanton branched out on his own at a new location: 7 Canal Street. He is listed as a beer manufacturer in the city directory from that point on. At some point, he moved to 440 Sabattus Street (where a printer’s error lists him as a “beef manufacturer”). In 1900, at approximately 44 years old, he quit the business and moved back to Biddeford, where he was born.

 

Augustus R. Stanton got his start in brewing at the corner of Ash and Canal Streets. His address is 6 Ash, which is the building marked as a "Brass Foundry" in the bottom left corner of this 1886 map (Sanborn Map Company, 1886. Library of Congress).

Augustus R. Stanton did most of his brewing at 7 Canal Street, an address that doesn't appear on the Sanborn Maps, but was most likely on the long block between Main and Ash Streets, near the city's many mills (J.H. Stuart & Co., 1894. David Rumsey Historical Map Collection).

 

Locations are true to 19th-century street addresses, not current numbering.

Sources

 

Will Anderson, The Great State of Maine Beer Book (Portland: Anderson & Sons’ Publishing Co., 1996), 12.

Lewiston City Directory, 1893.

U. S. Census, 1900.