Eberhard Anheuser

Who was Eberhard Anheuser?

Eberhard Anheuser was a German-born soap and candle maker as well as the father-in-law of Adolphus Busch, the founder of the Anheuser-Busch Company. He and two of his brothers moved to America in 1842. He was a major creditor of the Bavarian Brewery Company, a struggling brewery founded in 1853. When the company encountered financial difficulty in 1860 he purchased the minor creditors' interests and took over the company.

Eberhard Anheuser became president and CEO and changed the company name to the Eberhard Anheuser and Company. His daughter Lilly married Adolphus Busch, a brewery supply salesman, in a double wedding with Anna Anheuser and Ulrich Busch in 1861. The company became Anheuser-Busch in 1879.

Anheuser died in 1880 and was buried in Bellefontaine Cemetery in St. Louis.