Jug

around 1860

When local farmers brought their rye and wheat grains to William Hespeler and George Randall’s Granite Mills in Waterloo, a portion of the grain was given as payment for grinding the grains into flour. This grain, mostly rye, was then distilled into whisky. Whisky was easy to make and profitable. George Randall also owned a general store on King Street in Waterloo where you could buy Granite Mills whisky in jugs. Notice the name “George Randall Waterloo” stamped into the salt-glazed jug? Whisky was transferred from a large barrel into a smaller jug for the customer to take with them. This was before glass bottles and labels. When you needed a refill, you knew exactly which store to go back to.