Peter Alois Kalenborn was born in Mayen, Prussia.  He emigrated to America in his mid twenties and settled in Waterloo, Illinois where he opened a brewery with Mr. J. Emig.  Emig died (apparently) in around 1868, and at this point Kalenborn may have purchased the Eagle Brewery in LaCrosse, Wisconsin from Jacob Franz.

Some time before 1869 Kalenborn moved to Marysville, Kansas where he met and married Emma Mohrbacher on November 2nd, 1870.  At this time he also established a brewery in town which he ran for about ten years.

In 1881 Kalenborn sold his stake the brewery to William & Henry Meier and continued on in the firm as brewer.  Due to a strong anti-saloon league presence in Kansas at the time, the Meier brothers were only able to keep the brewery solvent for a few years.  The brewery closed in 1884.

In 1885 Kalenborn took his family west to seek better fortunes.  They found them in Tacoma, Washington, where Peter obtained work as a bookkeeper in the Puget Sound Brewery.  Peter Alois Kalenborn died on July 27th, 1921 at 82 years of age.

After a vote on November 2nd, 1880 Kansas enters statewide Prohibition the following January 1.  The new law made the manufacture and sale of intoxicating liquors punishable by a fine of $100.  Most businesses simply paid the fine, which could only be levied once a month.