Steward’s Albion Brewery, St. Arnaud Poster

Gavinus McRoberts opened his St Arnaud Brewery on 4 October 1864, and at the banquet there were no complaints about the quality of the first samples of beer. He had sold his hotel, but one year of brewing was enough for him, and he went back to hotelkeeping.

In 1865 the St Arnaud Brewery, together with a substantial house, was leased to William E. Wheeler. He had previously worked at Archie Faulkner’s West­ern Creek Brewery at the nearby township of Carapooee. After two years Wheeler bought the brewery, the house and all the outbuildings, and constructed a 15-foot dam for his supply of water. The water from the St Arnaud Creek, which ran past the brewery, was brackish.

It was not long before William Wheeler had to double his brewing capacity to keep up with the demand for his very popular Pale Ale, but tragically he died in 1894 as the result of a bite from a redback spider. His wife, Ann, kept the business going with the aid of her sons, Jack and Frank, but finally she sold the brewery and property to James Steward on 6 June 1896.

When Steward took over, he changed the name to the Albion Brewery, set about extending and upgrading the buildings and equipment, and appointed his eldest son, James George Steward, to take charge of the brewing and management of the business. James, the father, died in 1898, and the Albion Brewery, together with the residence and other buildings, plus the sum of £3000, were bequeathed to his son, who then ran the business on his own.

Brewing was suspended for about eight months during 1903 because of severe drought, and beer supplies were sent from Steward’s brother’s Albion Brewery at Eaglehawk (Bendigo).

The last decade of the brewery’s history was plagued with difficulty and change. During 1905 a partnership was formed with Thomas Bilton, and before the closure of the brewery Charles McLean was the owner.