From Humble Beginnings to Badass Beers

The big bang of an idea that led to Mother’s? Jeff Schrag realized the coasts weren’t the only places to create flavorful craft beers. He knew we could brew perfection right in downtown Springfield, MO. After 15+ years helping build the community, Springfield’s beloved carouser wanted to launch a midwest brewing company. He just needed the team to make it happen. Thankfully, serendipity did her thing and united people who became the Mother’s family.

First, we needed an accomplished brewmaster. Enter Brian Allen, who moved to Springfield when his wife began teaching at Drury University. The timing was perfect, and Mother’s found our magic man. Brian has produced award-winning craft beers, led other successful breweries, and has long served as a judge for the annual Great American Beer Festival. Today, he brews Mother’s love by the barrel.

Every family needs an eternal optimist, and every business needs a marketer. We found both in Jeremy Wicks, who moved home to help build Mother’s. He and his beautiful wife had been missing Springfield, and Jeremy wanted to make a jump from his consulting business in Chicago to a gig he was truly passionate about. Leading a brewery? Now, that fits him just right.

With the key team in place, Mother’s only needed a home.

For midwest brewing of great craft beers, visit the Mother’s Brewing Company building.

Mother’s Brewery—A Little Piece of History

Finding the perfect building for a brewery in downtown Springfield wasn’t easy. After looking closely at ten buildings, having architectural work done on five, and actually buying and quickly selling one other, Jeff found Mother’s home just north of Walnut Street, at the corner of Grant and old Route 66—America’s Mother Road.

Mother’s Brewing Company brought the building full circle to bottling, its original purpose. Constructed around 1902, the building’s history runs deep. It has housed many businesses, starting with Star Bottling Works. In 1926, the Mueller Baking Company bought it to open a bakery, which grew and changed hands repeatedly during the 20th century. In 1983, the facility’s production peaked when Interstate Brands was baking $10 to $15 million worth of Holsum & Butternut bread per year.

Interstate Brands faced bankruptcy during the early 2k years, and the Springfield bakery closed in 2009, taking many jobs with it. In 2010, Jeff deemed the place perfect for Mother’s brewery and began the renovation process. Today, Mother’s provides good jobs for Springfield and great beers for the midwest and beyond.

During the bloody Battle of Springfield, in 1863, Confederate troops were driving Union soldiers back, until they hit an incline—right near where Mother’s brewery now stands. The slope protected Lincoln’s boys against the gunfire above long enough for reinforcements to arrive. The area marked a turning point in the battle, and Union soldiers held on to defend Springfield. Imagine that.