Sir Oliver Godwin--What Does the Name have to do with Summerville

Beer hall verses pub? Other than the fact that they are both places where one goes to drink draft beer, they have differences. People generally sit in a beer hall. They are huge and boisterous. They are generally provisioned with the beer of a single brewer. They evoke sausage and simple German meals. On the other hand, pubs are small and more intimate. You order and retrieve your drink, and there is a lot of standing, greeting, and circulating. They require you to choose between at least half a dozen different beers or ales. The tavern is the American equivalent.

The Hofbräuhaus Brewery of Munich is one of the most famous beer halls in the world. Its history dates back to 1589. According to legend, Wilhelm V, Duke of Bavaria and a member of the Wittelsbach family, found the beer in Munich so bad that he commissioned his own state brewery. The Staatliches Hofbräuhaus was thus born. After centuries of producing beer for the royals, in 1828, the Hofbräuhaus was opened to the public by King Ludwig I of Bavaria. Almost completely destroyed by World War II bombings in 1945, it underwent over a decade of restoration work, finally reopening in 1958. Every day, more than 35,000 people visit the brewery's immense beer halls. Hofbräuhaus has eight franchised beer halls in the United States.

An interesting point of history in regard to the Hofbräuhaus illustrates how far some people will go for a good beer. The German beer hall was so famous that King Gustavius from Sweden accepted to not invade Munich in exchange of 600,000 barrels of the fine brew during the Thirty Years War.

American beer halls became popular in the mid-19th century, following a wave of immigration from Germany to the United States. They became an alternative to the American-style tavern. St. Louis, Missouri and Milwaukee, Wisconsin are notable cities for a number of beer halls, some of which seat several hundred persons. A famous beer hall is the Loerzel Beer Hall. Also known as "The Brewery," it was built in 1873 at 213 Partition Street in Saugerties, Ulster County, New York. The building was a large three-story, brick building that measured 45 feet wide and 65 feet deep. It was added to the U.S. National Register of Historic Places in 2000.

A new drinking and gathering establishment in the likes of a beer hall is coming to Summerville and will be located at 108 E 3rd N Street next to Brad Mallett's Coastal Coffee Roasters. The establishments name kind of roles off the tongue like a smooth Scottish ale--Godwin's Beer Hall. This is a Rizzo family venture. It is advertised to be a traditional European-style beer hall with selections from over 20 countries. In addition to some of the world's best beer, it will offer wine, mead, cider, and European street food. It is named for Sir Oliver Godwin. It is presently under way and will open soon.

I searched but could find nothing about Sir Oliver. Godwin or Goodwin is an English surname. It has Anglo-Saxon roots and has been used in Britain in some form since before the Norman Conquest of 1066. It comes from the personal name 'Godwine' (friend to God) and would be given to the lineage of those of that forename. That is that. Exactly as to who he was or is, you have have to wait for the full story when the beer hall opens, or possible before.

Such is the history of beer halls, pubs, and taverns. Today, they are all pretty much interchangeable. They are places to meet, commune, and drink. To be sure, there is nothing that can hold a stein to the original German Hofbräuhaus. Godwin's Beer Hall will be a welcome addition to Summerville's social scene. A place to raise a glass of liquid gold, exchange some niceties, talk about good things concerning your neighbors, scheme a new idea, or make a deal. Here's to a successful outcome. Here's to Summerville. Let it grow.

For more updated pics, click on Godwin's Beer Hall.