Hurstories

Written and researched by Steven Mooradian Koehler Beer and the Prohibition Era  Steven Mooradian  Hello! Welcome to this episode of the Hurstories, a history podcast presented by Mercyhurst students. My name is Steven Mooradian and I will be your host for this episode.    Any good Erieite will tell you, there’s a church on every street, and a bar on every corner.   Erie’s long history with beer extends to the first large waves of immigration, bringing their brewing practices with them, none more locally famous than the Koehler family.  Their persistence through 13 years of prohibition propelled them into local legend, and the Koheler name remains a staple in northwestern Pennsylvania.  Erie, Pennsylvania has been a Mecca for immigrants for over a century and a half. Groups of Italian, Polish, German, Irish, Russian, Greek, and other European immigrants have historically found a small slice of Erie to call home. Even more recently, large contingencies of Nepalese, Bhutanese, Syrian, Central African, a