Empire Brewery (Nanaimo)
Nanaimo, British Columbia, Canada · Est. 1891
Tally's Take
Why this matters
Brewing from 1891 to 1917, with its line running across prohibition to July 1921. Keep it distinct from the Empire Brewery in Victoria — a different business, a different island town, and two years to this one's twenty-six. Two breweries sharing a name in one province is the easiest mistake in British Columbia brewing history, and this archive holds them apart on purpose.
The Museum
Timeline
- 1891Opens
Distinct from Victoria's Empire Brewery (1885–87).
- 1917Brewing stops
British Columbia prohibition.
- 1921Line ends
July 1921 — the same month as Union and Lansdowne.
Show your working
Sources
- recordProbable
Brewery record taken from Tally's British Columbia master, Pass 57, which cited https://www.sfu.ca/archives/archives-program/research/bc-beer-history-archive/bc-beer-history-archive-resources/timeline-pre-prohibition.html for this entry. The cited page has not been opened by the archive.
Tally's British Columbia master, Pass 57 (research workbook) · Tally's Beer Universe research workbook · 2026
CommercialMedium reliabilityAccessed 2026-08-19Reviewed 2026-08-19 - historyProbable
Continuity dates as recorded in BC Pass 57: 1891, 1917, 1921.
Tally's British Columbia master, Pass 57 (research workbook) · Tally's Beer Universe research workbook · 2026
CommercialMedium reliabilityAccessed 2026-08-19Reviewed 2026-08-19
Only the claims above are sourced. Everything else on this page is the archive's own research and has not yet been tied to a document — which is worth knowing rather than hiding.
Straight answers
Common questions about Empire Brewery (Nanaimo)
- Is Empire Brewery (Nanaimo) still open?
- No. Empire Brewery (Nanaimo) has closed. BC Pass 57. SFU timeline dates Empire Brewery 1891-1917 and shows it across Prohibition to July 1921; distinct from Victoria's Empire Brewery.
- When was Empire Brewery (Nanaimo) founded?
- Empire Brewery (Nanaimo) was founded in 1891 in Nanaimo, British Columbia, Canada.
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