07/31/2026
From Yukon to Oklahoma’s First Legal Brewery🍺
With the repeal of Prohibition in late 1933, Oklahoma once again allowed the sale of b**r and w**e containing up to 3.2% alcohol, ushering in a new chapter for the state’s brewing industry.
Soon afterward, Yukon businessmen John F. Kroutil and Gustave F. Streich established Progress Brewing in Oklahoma City, the first legal brewery to operate in Oklahoma following the end of Prohibition.
According to local history, the company’s earliest brewing operation began in a barn in Yukon before relocating and expanding into Oklahoma City. (Source: Yukon 66 Main Street Association.)
Yukon remained closely connected to the brewery’s success. John Kroutil transported grain from Yukon to the brewery by rail, where it was used in the brewing process. The operation also utilized gravity-flow brewing methods. As demand grew, Progress Brewing expanded into a six-story facility capable of producing up to 100,000 barrels of b**r daily and employed approximately 1,000 people during the Great Depression, making it one of Oklahoma’s largest industrial employers of its era.
The historic photograph shown here captures the original Progress Brewing facility before later additions were made, preserving an important chapter in both Yukon and Oklahoma history.
📷 Photo courtesy of the Kathryn Kroutil Wright family.
