Back Roads from Wisconsin's Past

Chris Hardie For Agri-View
Nov 21, 2021
Nov 21, 2021

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Partial walls are all that now remain of the Melchior Hotel and Brewery.

Chris Hardie/For Agri-View

The ruins of the Melchior Hotel and Brewery stand in Trempealeau, Wisconsin, along the Mississippi River.

Chris Hardie/For Agri-View

Caves carved out of the hillside in back of the Melchior Brewery are perfect for brewing and storing beer, thanks to cool temperatures in the caves. They were connected to the building.

Chris Hardie/For Agri-View

The side of the brewery building, though covered in vines, reflects the one-time beauty of the structure.

Chris Hardie/For Agri-View

Brick arches still stand over top of the remaining windows.

Chris Hardie/For Agri-View

The brewery and hotel building are still standing in the 1920s.

Trempealeau County Historical Society

An 1855 view across the Mississippi River shows the Trempealeau riverfront. The Melchior Hotel and Brewery was fully open by 1862.

Trempealeau County Historical Society

An 1890s photo shows a river steamer docked at Trempealeau, Wisconsin.

Trempealeau County Historical Society

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Chris Hardie For Agri-View

TREMPEALEAU, Wis. – The crumbling remains of a two-story stone building along the Mississippi River are all that’s left of what was once a bustling brewery and hotel.

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Chris Hardie and his wife, Sherry, raise animals and crops on his great-grandparents’ Jackson County farm. Nominated for a Pulitzer Prize in 2001, he’s a former member of the Wisconsin Freedom of Information Council and past-president of the Wisconsin Newspaper Association. Email chardie1963@gmail.com with comments.