UPDATED APRIL 15, 2006

Potosi Great River Road Interpretive Center & Potosi Brewery Museum
By Steve Freese, Secretary of the Potosi Brewery Foundation Inc.
"I am pleased to announce that I received a phone call from Congressman Mark Green (R Green Bay) who has been helping me on a Federal Scenic Byway Application for creating a Potosi Great River Road Interpretive Center & Potosi Brewery Museum. The request for funding was $449,574 for the Center to be located in the Former Potosi Brewery which operated from 1852-1972 in the Village of Potosi in Grant County Wisconsin.
I have been working with Congressman Green to get the Secretary of Transportation Norman Mineta to see the importance of this federal grant and how it will transform the southwestern portion of Grant County.
Congressman Green informed me this morning that the Secretary has accepted our application and released the funding for the project.
The Potosi Brewery Foundation Inc. a non profit that was established for the sole purpose of restoring the former Potosi Brewery. The Brewery is listed on the National Register of Historic Places and was considered one of the 10 most endangered historic sites in Wisconsin. The Foundation will need to raise a match amount of $112,397 which has already been done.
When the Project is completed it will house the Great River Road Interpretive Center, the Potosi Brewery Museum, and National Brewery Museum, a restaurant, and micro brewery. The complex is anticipated to provide approximately 50 jobs and bring 110 visitors per day to Potosi Wisconsin. The net result will be tourists spending $1.3 million dollars per year in Grant County because of this restoration project.
On behalf of the entire Potosi Brewery Foundation Board we want to thank the Bush Administration for seeing the importance of this project for our rural community in Southwestern Wisconsin. We would also like to thank Jane Carrola the Wisconsin Department of Transportation Scenic Byways and Rustic Roads Coordinator for her tremendous help in putting the application together. We would also like to especially thank Congressman Mark Green for his tremendous support for the project and his efforts with the Bush Administration on accepting our application."
For more information please contact:
Steve Freese Secretary 608-341-8860
Steve Vogelsberg, President 608-723-2185-

THE BREWERY MUSEUM FOUNDATION - MUSEUM AT LEMP
By KEVIN KIOUS and DONALD ROUSSIN
Today, the one-time Lemp Brewery is owned by the Lemp Partnership, which is actively working to redevelop the entire complex. Among its plans are the building of a micro-brewery, and the establishment of a museum. The museum will be housed on three floors in what was the Lemp Brewery's fermentation building.
The Lemp Museum development is being spearheaded by the Brewery Museum Foundation, or BMF. The BMF, a 501(c)(3) not-for-profit organization, is dedicated to the preservation of the history of the brewing industry and the education of the public in the brewing industry's major accomplishments and worldwide appeal. All aspects of the brewing industry will be represented in this museum, through a collection of historical documents, artifacts, case histories and other points of importance connected with the brewing industry. The role that beer has played in most cultures, going back thousands of years, all around the world, will also be stressed.
The Lemp Museum will be a celebration of the people, products, breweries, cultures and historic significance of the brewing industry. The display of artifacts from all fifty states will pay tribute to brewing in the United States and worldwide artifacts will have a place of their own. In an effort to personalize the experience, a bar of the 40's and 50's will depict typical life in every town USA.
Do you enjoy beer, or beer history? Then please consider joining, or supporting, the efforts of the Brewery Museum Foundation. Donations to the BMF are welcomed and are tax-deductible. Portions of this article were originally published in the American Breweriana Association (ABA) Journal, and Beer Cans & Brewery Collectibles (BCCA).
For additional information on the ABA, BCCA, history of the Lemp Brewery, or the Brewery Museum Foundation, contact Donald Roussin, at (314) 705.2591, (314) 434-6426, or via e-mail at donald.l.roussin-jr@boeing.com.