15. Beer Steins

Photos by Chrysalis Archeological Consultants

Various beer steins were found, which is logical given the historical usage of the property. One thing to note says Loorya is that the intact nature of most of the finds, or the ability to put pieces back together easily, demonstrates that these archeological finds are primary deposits.

One beer bottle, labeled CC Haley & Company’s Celebrated California Pop Beer, comes from sometime between 1872 and 1885. The Chrysalis team attempted to make a small batch of the California Pop Beer, and Loorya says “it was really tasty. A minty berry, lemonade-y thing, flavored with spruce and wintergreen.” The beer also contained spruce oils, sassafras and ginger root.

Intact, hand blown bottles. None of the bottles found at 50 Bowery were machine produced, but were blown into a mold, which dates the items to the 19th century.

Lauren Chu tells us that the family is still working out where the archeological finds will be showcased, but they will be somewhere within the hotel. In addition, the hotel will house an outpost of the Museum of Chinese America.

Next, discover 5 Alleys and Small Streets in Chinatown and take a peek into the construction at 5-7 Doyers Street, where gangs once used underground tunnels to escape.