John Emmerling, of the Emmerling Brewery, was born February 22, 1851 in Philadelphia County Pennsylvania.

Otto Emmet Flood Emmerling was born in Johnstown, Pennsylvania. His mother, Philomena (née Hauch), went into labor on May 31st, 1889, the day of the town's historic flood, and Otto and twin brother Phillis (Philip) Henry Wreck Emmerling were born the next morning.

The boys were born into a brewing family. Their father, John Emmerling, had founded the Empire Brewery in town eleven years earlier, and although his company wasn't hurt badly by the flood, most of the town and the townspeople were wiped out. However, the brewery continued, as did Johnstown, and when his father took ill in 1911, Otto and his older brother Emmet took control.

In 1917 Otto went off to Europe to fight in WWI and returned just in time for Prohibition. Prohibition shut down all beer-making operations in 1920, so the brewery was converted into a soda bottling establishment. Otto's twin had died tragically at age 14, but Otto lived a long life, passing on at last at 102 on December 2nd, 1992. He was one of the last survivors of the Johnstown Flood.