built in 1887 by john frederick wiessner, a german immigrant, for his weissner brewing company, the northeast baltimore brewery was one of the largest breweries in the state of maryland. at its peak, the brewery employed 61 workers: 16 in brewery work, 17 drivers, 14 in the bottling house, 8 garage men, and 6 office workers. the central tower of the building housed a 10,000-bushel grain elevator. prohibition forced the shutdown of the facility in 1920. in 1931 the wiessner family sold the brewery to the american malt company, which modernized the interior equipment and operated the brewery until 1973. the building was listed that year in the national registry of historic sites.