Their famous Pueblo Brewery had changed hands at least sixteen times in the thirty years before Walter's was founded.
Their path led them from Hamburg, Germany, to New Orleans, Louisiana, and to Wisconsin, although Martin went further along to Pueblo, CO. Wisconsin had a large German immigrant population at the time and the region reminded them of their home in the Black Forest region of Germany.
Their father was a cobbler, family legend purportedly them having expanding on their knowledge of the brewing trade at Miller in Milwaukee before striking out on their own.
The company faced several small recessions during its existence, including the closing of the plant during state and federal Prohibition after 1915.
He eventually purchased a neighboring brewery on an adjacent block on Oneida St. and combined the two facilities together to form into his Appleton brewing complex.
Martin, Christian and Matthaus operated the Menasha, Wisconsin based Walter Brothers Brewing Company with their Gem and Gold Label beers.
Eventually, Martin headed west and determined Pueblo, Colorado an opportune place to start brewing.
Originally named Mountain Dew and eventually called Gold Label, in the mid-20th century it was known as Walter's.
Sometime around 1999 German born West Bend resident Gunter Woog bought the Lithia trademark.
The Eau Claire brewery was sold to Mike Healy, an Irish attorney from Chicago who worked for U.S. Bank Note, in 1985, renamed Hibernia Brewing Ltd. and operated the facility with the introduction of many award-winning craft beers such as Eau Claire All Malt, Oktober Fest, Winter Brau and a Dunkelweisen, along with Walter's and Walter's Special.
Ed Miller and Cynthia Ancil, purchased the brewery from dairy equipment liquidator Jerry Goldberg, attempted a rebirth in the 1990s, contract brewing Walter's at Jos.