Bomber's

The American brand Michter’s , known for its bourbons and rye whiskeys , is closely associated with the old Bomberger distillery , whose origins date back to 1753. While the name Michter’s only appeared in the early 1950s, the site itself has one of the oldest distillation traditions in the United States.

The story begins with John and Michael Shenk, Swiss Mennonite farmers, who produced rye whiskey there. The distillery then passed into the hands of Rudolph Meyer, then John Kratzer, before being bought around 1860 by Abraham Bomberger , who gave it his name. Closed in 1919 due to Prohibition, it did not resume operations until 1934.

In 1950 , Louis Forman revived production and, with master distiller Charles Everett Beam , developed a Pot Still Sour Mash Whiskey. It was in this context that he created the Michter's brand in 1951 , a contraction of his sons' first names. However, a recession forced him to sell the distillery to Pennco Distillers, while retaining the rights to the brand and existing stocks. After several changes of ownership and a gradual decline in activity, the distillery closed permanently in 1989 , before being largely demolished.

Located near Schaefferstown , Pennsylvania , the site illustrates the transition from small agricultural distilleries to industrial production. Listed on the National Register of Historic Places in 1975 and designated a National Historic Landmark in 1980, it was, at the time of its closure, the smallest commercial distillery in the country.

Today, whiskeys marketed under the Bomberger and Michter's names still exist, but they are no longer directly linked to the original historic distillery. Read less