Texas Day 2: The Forbidden Brewery
Irish Drinking Song:
A long time ago, way back in history,
When all they had to drink was nothing but cups of tea,
Along came a bloke by the name of Charlie Mopps,
And he invented a wonderful drink and he made it out of hops
Chorus:
He ought to have been an Admiral, a Sultan or a King
And to his praises we shall always sing.
Look what he has done for us: he's filled us up with cheer.
God bless Charlie Mopps, the man who invented beer.
Originally the Galveston Brewing Company: Open 1895 -1981
There were some issues with getting into this place as I mentioned in a previous post.
For the back story GO HERE.
Improvise, Adapt and Overcome.
The police are watching me. By watching me, they are actually telling me to leave. Cuz I couldn't do a damn thing as long as they were there. I must have been the most deadly criminal in all of Texas.
I grabbed my gear and hoofed around the perimeter of the building's property. I hadn't even done any reasonable recon yet. There was a railyard on the backside, maybe if I could get in there, out of site, perhaps the cops would scram.
Mission Map
I walk around the back corner of the buildling. It wasn't until this moment that I realized that the facility is partially active rather than totally abandoned.
A rolling armored door is open, and a Guatemalan guy is sitting on the loading dock watching me. The cop is now on the roll again. I can see him driving up the long side of the building. I walk directly over to the guy. I don't offer my had or anything I just start talking to him like I already knew him. After a couple of sentences I sat on the step next to him. The police roll by, check me out and then park down the street again.
So I just keep hanging out with the guy. His name is Elvin, my new buddy. And he and I were going to hang out all day, as long as the police were on my jock.
He tells me the history of the entire neighborhood. He tells me what parts to avoid because of crime and cautions me to make sure I was gone before dark, when it get's really bad. He also mentions that the cops are ball busters here because of the shipping port nearby.
Elvin Hanging out by the train that runs along the brewery.
Spot where Elvin and I hung out while I waited out the cops.
The cop is still stubbornly watching me. But I could wait them out. I started photographing Elvin. After about 5 minutes of shooting. The police got bored and split.
I asked Elvin if he minded if I left by cutting through the railyard. He shrugged, but told me not to be seen.
I hoofed it down the tracks. Made sure no cops were around. Made sure Elvin was back inside his loading dock. Found a busted in window and climbed in.
NOICE!
There were plenty of walls broken down from when they removed equipment that had been too large to fit through the doors.
An office full of service manuals for all the equipment in the building. YEARS of reading.
Master Alert Panel in the Brewmaster's office. Anything goes wrong anywhere, he can see it on this panel.
On and off switches.
Refrigeration Compressor
Asbestos covered devices. Mounds of asbestos on the floor.
I'm on a second level catwalk, looking down at a huge drum.
Fire door off its hinges.
Catwalk, to the relevant part of the building. "Good Wood Lady...Safe Bridge!"
If you thought that was cool...
Coming Soon: Part 2
In Part 2, I climb the Brewhouse Tower, photograph the brew kettles, mash cookers, fermenting tanks,
and plenty of wonderful industrial decay goodness.
BEER BEER BEER. I think I'm gong to go have one now.