Scheerer’s Soda:The Legacy of Scheerer Bottling Co.

In 1882, German immigrant Frederick Heilman arrived in Wabash, Indiana. By 1901 Heilman became the property owner of 87 E Market St., and in 1910 he built and opened Wabash Bottling Works. Over the years, the business would see other owners such as Stewart Smallwood, but perhaps the most memorable was Carl Scheerer.

Carl Scheerer was no stranger to the business world. A Huntington County native, Carl and his brother Lawrence opened Scheerer’s Market in Wabash in 1918. The grocery, located at 102 S Wabash St., had barely opened its doors before Carl was shipped off to France to fight in WWI.