Songs of Long Ago – Bruck’s Jubilee Beer Advertising Songbook | Bruckmann Breweries Cincinnati (c. 1937–1945)

Post-Prohibition Sing-Along Culture – Bruck’s Jubilee Beer Songbook

Published by The Bruckmann Breweries of Cincinnati, this folded advertising songbook, Songs of Long Ago, likely dates between 1937 and 1945 — a period when breweries actively promoted at-home “beer parties” to rebuild sales after Prohibition.

Bruckmann Brewing Company was founded in 1856 by Frederick Bruckmann and was one of the few Cincinnati breweries to remain operational during Prohibition by producing near-beer. It was also the first Cincinnati brewery to ship beer immediately following repeal on April 7, 1933. The company closed in 1949. 

The front cover of Songs of Long Ago features a charming sepia-toned illustration of a barbershop quartet singing inside a barbershop — an intentional nod to nostalgic American harmony traditions. Beneath the illustration appears the bold red script logo for Bruck’s Jubilee Beer.

The reverse cover is equally striking, featuring a tall golden pilsner of beer surrounded by six illustrated dishes of party fare — reinforcing the era’s marketing message that beer belonged at family gatherings and social sing-alongs.

Inside are lyrics to twenty‑three classic songs, among them several German Trinklieders—a nod to Cincinnati’s deep German American brewing heritage. For many families, teaching children these drinking songs was a deliberate way to preserve the German language across generations.

• “The Star-Spangled Banner”
  
• “Yankee Doodle”
• “Auld Lang Syne”
• “Darling Nellie Gray”
• “Schnitzelbank”
  
• “Lauterbach”
• “Die Lorelei”

Condition is very good with light age browning but no tears or rips.

🍺A Bruckmann Brewery embossed amber beer bottle is available separately within our Breweriana and Tobacciano collection.