The Early Times Distillery
RD #7, 5 th District
Nelson County, KY

(Est. 1866)

The distillery was originally located on the Beam family farm near Mooresville. Around 1856, D. M. Beam left the farm and established RD #230 in Nelson Co., but John Henry Beam, better known as "Jack" Beam, continued to operate the farm distillery, making only about 1/2 barrel a day.

1866: Jack moved the operation to a location on the L & N railroad in Nelson Co. that later became known as Early Times station. There he built a 50 bu plant, situated about four miles east of Bardstown. His brands were "Early Times", "Jack Beam" and "A. G. Nall".

Some time later the wholesale firm of Pierce, Hurt & Co. were contracted to distribute the goods which gained wide popularity. In the panic of the 1880s, Pierce, Hurt & Co. gained control of the distillery and B. H. Hurt became President., with J H Beam VP and distiller.

1891: The plant was replaced with a 400 bu. operation.

1892: Insurance underwriter records describe the distillery as being of iron-clad , with an iron-clad boiler and doubler house located 25 ft east. There was also a cattle shed, located 400 ft east of the still house.

The distillery property included five warehouses, all described as being iron-clad with metal or slate roofs:
Warehouse A -- located 100 ft north of the still.
Warehouse B -- located 100 ft north
Warehouse C -- located 100 ft north
Free Warehouse -- located 100 ft north
Warehouse D -- located 105 ft west

The insurance records note that the still was known as J H Beam's "Early Times Distilling Co."

1915: Jack Beam died on May 11 and his nephew John W. Shaunty became President. Shortly thereafter, the main office was moved to Paducah, Shaunty's home and the home base of Pierce, Hurt & Co.

1918: Operations ceased with the onset of Prohibition.

1920: S J Guthrie purchased the property and company. Shortly thereafter the whiskey and brand names were sold to Brown-Forman for medicinal bottling.

1934: The J.T.S. Brown family purchased the property and built a 40 bu. plant known as J. T. S. Brown's Sons Co. to produce "Old J.T.S. Brown". About 1956, the Browns sold out and the distillery was dismantled after selling the brand to Schenley (Coyte papers, cited in OASG, 1988).

Aliases that this distillery's product was sold under
Review bonded warehouse transactions for this distillery