Civil War enthusiast Tyler Budwash, a Kutztown University graduate and co-owner of Pilger Ruh Brewing, has crafted a special beer in honor of Pottsville’s quintessential citizen-soldier.
The Gen. James Nagle Lager was first served to patrons last week at the craft brewery in the former Coney Island restaurant building on North Centre Street.
“I wanted to express who I am, and who we are as a brewery,” said Budwash, 35, a Frackville native who is a principal in Pilger Ruh breweries in Pottsville and Gettysburg.
Nagle, who was born in Reading, was only 18 years old when he organized what would become the Washington Artillerists, one of the First Defenders that answered President Abraham Lincoln’s call to arms at the start of the Civil War.
An organizer of the 48th Pennsylvania Infantry Regiment, Nagle was promoted to the rank of brigadier general on the battlefield at Antietam on Sept. 17, 1862.
Nagle is memorialized in a statue that stands atop a monument at Antietam, near Sharpsburg, Md.
True to his German ancestry, Budwash chose a Schwarzbier, or black lager, to commemorate Nagle.
Alyssa Gunsch, 34, Pilger Ruh’s head brewer, described it as a dark, roasty lager with a hint of coffee/chocolate flavor.
Budwash and partners Tony Deppen and Conlan Budwash opened Pilger Ruh in July 2021. In April 2023, they opened Pilger Ruh Brewing Taproom and Beer Garden in Gettysburg.
A graduate of KU with a degree in political science, Budwash has always been interested in history.
In the summer, he brewed a German lager in honor of the First Defenders, militia units from Pottsville, Reading, Allentown and Lewisburg that answered Lincoln’s call to arms after Confederate forces attacked Fort Sumter on April 12, 1861.
Nagle founded the Pottsville Blues, later the Washington Artillerists, one of two Pottsville units in the First Defenders. The other was the National Light Infantry.
Nicholas Biddle, an African American with the Washington Artillerists, was struck in the head with a brick as the unit went through pro-Confederate Baltimore, arguably making him the first casualty of the Civil War.
Budwash keeps a diary that has about 500 names of prospective beers.
“I had Gen. Nagle in my book of potential beer names for about four years,” he said in a recent interview at Pilger Ruh. “I did a lot of research on him and the Civil War.”
In May, Budwash and Gunsch visited Nagle’s monument at Antietam. It contains a replica of a sword given to Nagle when he returned from the Mexican War. A replica is also on the obelisk over his grave in Presbyterian Cemetery in Pottsville.
“It’s cool to find that someone from the area has done so much, and participated in events that I’ve been studying for years,” Budwash said. “This area is so rich in history, and it’s often overlooked.”
Paper Hanger Warrior
James M. Nagle was born in Reading, but married Elizabeth Kaercher, a member of a prominent Pottsville family.
A sign painter and wallpaper hanger by trade, he served as Schuylkill County sheriff and proved to be an outstanding organizer and commander of military units.
In 1840, he organized the Pottsville Blues, which became the Washington Artillerists two years later. In 1846, the unit went to Mexico with then-Capt. Nagle at the helm.
During the Civil War, Nagle raised four regiments, including the 48th Pennsylvania Infantry, made up largely of Schuylkill County men.
Even after retiring due to a heart ailment in 1861, at the behest of Gov. Andrew Gregg Curtin, he took command of the 39th Pennsylvania Emergency Militia as Gen. Robert E. Lee’s forces invaded Pennsylvania.
Surrounded by his wife and seven children, Nagle died at age 44 on Aug. 22, 1866, two days after President Andrew Johnson officially declared an end to the Civil War.
Flags were lowered to half-staff, and accolades came from Curtin and others who eulogized him as an “estimable citizen, brave soldier and patriot” in one of the largest funerals in Schuylkill County history.
Some 36 original members paid respects to the “father” of the 48th Infantry Regiment.
The funeral cortege of 600 people, which included the Washington Artillerists and the Cumbola Nagle Guards, escorted Nagle to his grave on a hilltop overlooking the city.
Civil War buff
Over a tall glass of Gen. James Nagle Lager, Tyler Budwash professed his love of Civil War history.
Gettysburg National Military Park, in particular, holds a special place in his historical heart.
“I enjoy walking around the battlefield,” he said, “and wondering what it must have been like during the Battle of Gettysburg.”
Among other spots, he’s been to the site where Lincoln delivered his Gettysburg Address on Nov. 19, 1863.
One of his heroes is Gen. Gouverneur K. Warren, known as the “savior of Little Round Top.”
Warren successfully defended Little Round Top, a strategic rocky hill south of Gettysburg on July 2, 1863, the second day of the Battle of Gettysburg, a turning point in the Civil War.
Budwash lifted his shirt sleeve to reveal a colorful tattoo on his right bicep — of Gen. Warren.
Source: Berkshire mont
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