Name/Title
Charles Narey Beer BottleEntry/Object ID
2011.11.12Description
Clear glass beer bottle embossed "Charles Narey Bottler, Columbia, S.C." Blob to lipped mouth.Context
As early as 1888, Irish immigrant Charles Narey (1850-1925) operated a saloon at 53 South Richardson Street (901-903 Main Street). Although opposed to the establishment of the South Carolina Dispensary system, which imposed a state-run monopoly on liquor sales from 1893 to 1916 and tightened control on the sale of beer, Narey became one of a handful of licensed beer dispensers in Columbia. An alderman (city councilman) for Columbia's Ward One district (the lower part of the city south of Gervais Street) beginning in 1892, Narey was forced to resign from this elected office in 1903 after it was pointed out that his holding "two offices of honor or profit"—alderman and dispenser—violated the South Carolina Constitution. An agent for the Augusta Brewing Company, Narey bottled and sold beer until he resigned from his post as dispenser in 1906. In addition to beer, Narey also bottled and sold soda water.
This bottle was most likely sold at Narey's dispensary between 1900 and 1906. As the South Carolina Dispensary system prohibited consumption of alcohol on the premises of any dispensary, the beer that came in this bottle would have been consumed off-site. Although other Columbia dispensers bent this rule by opening a drinking parlor adjacent to their dispensary, Narey "never permitted drinking about his dispensary."Made/Created
Manufacturer
Charles NareyDate made
circa 1900 - 1906Place
City
Columbia, South CarolinaInscription/Signature/Marks
Type
EmbossedLocation
FrontTranscription
"Charles Narey Bottler, Columbia, S.C."Dimensions
Height
9-1/2 inWidth
3 inDiameter
9 in