This is a pre-prohibition era wooden Deppen Beer 1/4 keg from the Deppen Brewing Company located in Reading, PA. The approximate age of this keg is probably from between 1901 when the brewery stated till prohibition in 1920 that closed the brewery. Operations commenced after prohibition ended from 1933 till the brewery closed for good in 1937.
This keg is in excellent original condition for it’s age especially for what it was used for. It even has the original bung collar and plug (the piece of metal that holds the bung plug in on the side of the barrel) as well as the original metal tap on the top of the keg. Even the branded lettering on the top and bottom of the keg is very legible and clean.
Kegs like this one were used to keg beer for bars, taverns, and hotels back in the old days prior to production and use of aluminum and stainless steel kegs. I’ve been actively looking for one of these ever since I started collecting breweriana. I only know of a few local collectors that have these in there collections and mine is by far in the best condition. I am very happy to have this in my collection.