apothecary to pharmacy and back again
the word ‘apothecary’ originally meant shopkeeper. apothecaries would mix herbs and minerals to cure various ailments. the ale apothecary is a small family brewery that makes wild and spontaneous beers by hand with local ingredients.
Neihart Drug circa 1950’s
CB behind the counter in the 1920’s. We have one of these display cabinets with our merchandise in it at our tasting room!
Paul’s dad, Buzz Arney, behind the counter at The Prescription Shoppe in the early 1980’s.
Paul Arney grew up with pharmacists on both sides of the family. His great-grandfather, C.B. Neihart owned and operated Neihart Drug in Coulee City, Washington starting the early 1900’s.
C.B. Neihart and his namesake drug store were a cornerstone of the small, windswept town and C.B. was known for his sense of humor and trustworthiness. He filled prescriptions for alcohol during prohibition (the bathroom in our tasting room is wallpapered with them), served soda and played pranks on his regular customers. Unfortunately, C.B. died early which forced his son, Paul Neihart, to abandon his life’s plans and take over the family business.
Grandpa Paul bringing ice back to the drugstore for the walk-in cooler in the back. They’d cover the ice with sawdust to keep it from melting.
Paul Neihart ran Neihart Drug with his wife, Pauline (see where Apothecary Paul Arney gets his name??) for years.
Grandpa Paul kept C.B.’s store and spirit alive, following in his fathers’ footsteps. He licensed the drugstore as the first state-run liquor store in the Washington and sold alcohol for years as well as comic books, balsa wood airplanes and prescription drugs. Paul & Pauline retired in the 1980’s and Neihart Drug closed down.
Cool guys out in front of Neihart Drug in the 1920’s
Coulee City, WA early 20th century.
Grandpa Paul in a couple promotional pics for another local pharmacy.
Oddly enough, Grandpa Paul’s daughter, Patti, ended up marrying a pharmacist herself! Ralph (who goes by Buzz) Arney ran the Prescription Shoppe and then Silver Lake Pharmacy to provide for his family. So when Paul Arney started his own small business, he wanted to incorporate his family’s shared history of small business and the spirit of the local drugstore. Family loans/grants helped fund the brewery in start-up, bringing the influence of these family drug stores behind this family brewery full-circle!