M. V. Monarch

The Monarch family played an important role in the heritage of Daviess County, Kentucky distilling. Martin Van Buren Monarch was born on March 10, 1842, the son of Thomas and Susan Daviess Monarch. His mother believed in education and Martin was educated until the age of twenty when he graduated from Cecilian College in Hardin County in 1865.

M.V. Monarch started distilling with a small distillery located about five miles west of Owensboro, Kentucky in 1867. He was making about one barrel a day of sour mash Bourbon. In 1868, he built another distillery about a mile east of Owensboro with a capacity of five barrels per day. He gradually increased his capacity to twenty barrels a day by 1880. That year he also partnered with one of his employees, P.E. Payne, and created the Sour Mash Distilling Company. Part of his success was due to the water supply, a well 85 feet deep that supplied water at 56 degrees all year round.

In 1888 the Sour Mash Distilling Company purchased the E.C. Berry Distillery. E.C. Berry founded this distillery in 1868 and made sour mash Bourbon. That same year they purchased the John Hanning Distilling Company, established in 1871 and the Cliff Falls Distillery in Birk City on the banks of the Green River. The Cliff Falls Distillery was founded in 1881 by T.J. Monarch. With so many distilleries, they then incorporated in 1890 as M.V. Monarch Company with M.V. Monarch as President, P.E. Payne as Vice-President, R.W. Slack as Secretary and Fred W. Clarke as Treasurer. This allowed them to streamline their distribution across the United States. These distilleries were mashing in small tubs and making only sour mash whiskey. Their brands included M.V. Monarch, Sovereign, Jockey Club, Kentucky Tip, E.C. Berry, John Hanning, Cliff Falls, P.E. Payne, Kentucky Cyclone and Maryland Rye.

The Kentucky Cyclone brand was aged in heated warehouses and they claimed that barrels were as good at four to six months as older whiskeys. The Maryland Rye was a 100% rye mash bill, made with rye malt. All of the brands were well known in their day as quality whiskeys.

Martin Van Buren Monarch died on August 20, 1906 and is buried at Mater Dolorosa Cemetery in Owensboro. He played an important part in the distilling heritage of Owensboro, Kentucky.