Antique 1920s Budd Creamy Root Beer Label Collectible

What Did New Hampshire Drink During Prohibition? 🥤

Every small New England town had a local soda works that mattered more to its neighbors than any national brand ever could. In Newport, New Hampshire, that company was Budd's — and this label is a direct survivor of the drink that put them on the map.

🥤 What It Is

This is an original New Old Stock (NOS) beverage label for Budd Creamy Root Beer, produced by Budd's Beverages, Inc. of Newport, New Hampshire, dating to the 1920s. It measures 4¼ x 3¾ inches, printed in cream and red with a bubbly, effervescent script and an illustrated cocktail glass. The label survives unused, exactly as it left the press.

🏭 Budd's Beverages — A Newport, New Hampshire Institution

Budd's Beverages, Inc. began in 1916 as a grocery store serving Newport's growing Polish immigrant community. In 1922, the company expanded into carbonated beverages, using the Newport Bottling Works to produce a line of sodas including this creamy root beer. By the 1930s, Budd's drinks were a genuine regional favorite across Vermont and New Hampshire — a real local success story built from a corner grocery into a beloved regional beverage brand. The company operated for five decades before closing in 1972, and labels like this one are what remain of that half-century run.

Root beer itself has deep American roots, and small regional bottlers like Budd's were the backbone of the country's soda culture through the early twentieth century — long before a handful of national brands consolidated the market. A label like this represents exactly that era: a family business, a local bottling works, and a drink that neighbors actually grew up on.

🖨️ The Printing

The bubbly, hand-lettered script and the illustrated glass reflect the confident, friendly commercial printing style small regional bottlers favored — designed to feel approachable and familiar rather than corporate, exactly the tone a hometown soda brand wanted.

🖼️ Display Ideas

• 🥤 Group it with other regional soda labels for a New England beverage history display.
• 🖼️ Frame it for a kitchen, soda fountain, or bar area — the warm cream and red palette suits both.
• 📚 Pair it with New Hampshire or Newport local history ephemera for a regional collection.

🎁 Who Collects These

Soda and beverage label collectors, New England regional historians, and Newport, NH locals all seek out Budd's material — a company with five decades of real local history and a genuinely fond place in Vermont and New Hampshire memory.

❓ Frequently Asked Questions

How long was Budd's Beverages in business?

From 1916 (as a grocery store) through 1972, with carbonated beverage production beginning in 1922 — 56 years in Newport, NH.

Is this label original?

Yes — New Old Stock, never applied to a bottle, dating to the 1920s.

What size is it?

4¼ x 3¾ inches.