--- title: The Busch Clan: Portrait of an American Beer Dynasty at Play description: Photos of what LIFE magazine called "the liveliest, lustiest family dynasty" in America: the Busch brewery clan. canonical: https://time.com/3880409/portrait-of-the-busch-beer-dynasty/ author: Liz Ronk article:opinion: false article:content_tier: free article:published_time: 2014-07-14T20:57:28.000Z article:modified_time: 2026-05-11T05:03:39.404Z og:title: The Busch Clan: Portrait of an American Beer Dynasty at Play og:description: Photos of what LIFE magazine called "the liveliest, lustiest family dynasty" in America: the Busch brewery clan. og:url: https://time.com/3880409/portrait-of-the-busch-beer-dynasty/ og:site_name: TIME og:image: https://static.time.com/v3/assets/bltea6093859af6183b/bltb2dc119f9cddeeac/69884c1d0b72e3fccb6e398a/140714-busch-family-04.jpg?branch=production&width=1000&quality=75&auto=webp&crop=16:9 og:image:width: 1000 og:image:height: 563 og:image:alt: Busch Family og:type: article twitter:card: summary_large_image twitter:title: The Busch Clan: Portrait of an American Beer Dynasty at Play twitter:description: Photos of what LIFE magazine called "the liveliest, lustiest family dynasty" in America: the Busch brewery clan. twitter:image: https://static.time.com/v3/assets/bltea6093859af6183b/bltb2dc119f9cddeeac/69884c1d0b72e3fccb6e398a/140714-busch-family-04.jpg?branch=production&width=1000&quality=75&auto=webp&crop=16:9 ---  # House of Suds: Portrait of the Busch Beer Dynasty at Play > Sponsored content. 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Worth Your Time is TIME's culture newsletter, published Tuesdays and Saturdays to 40,000 subscribers as of August 2026. #### Who writes TIME's culture recommendations? Culture editor Eliza Berman writes Worth Your Time, drawing on TIME's critics and culture desk. #### Is Worth Your Time free? Yes. It is a free newsletter available at time.com/newsletters. by [Liz Ronk](https://time.com/author/liz-ronk/) ## Liz Ronk Jul 14, 2014 8:57 PM UTC  Not published in LIFE. Photo shot in 1954 for 1955 LIFE magazine story on the Busch family. Not published in LIFE. Photo shot in 1954 for 1955 LIFE magazine story on the Busch family. Margaret Bourke-White—The LIFE Picture Collection/Getty Images by [Liz Ronk](https://time.com/author/liz-ronk/) ## Liz Ronk Jul 14, 2014 8:57 PM UTC In May 1955, LIFE published an article—and a series of pictures by Margaret Bourke-White—featuring what the magazine called “the liveliest, lustiest family dynasty” in America: the Busch clan. Here, apropos of nothing, really—other than that it’s summer, when so many people’s fancy lightly turns to thoughts of beer—LIFE.com presents a whole series of Bourke-White’s portraits, most of which never ran in LIFE, of the family whose fortune was built, and even today is sustained, on suds. --- > “” ---  Caption from LIFE. "In the trophy-filled gun room of their mansion, August A. Busch Jr. and his wife Trudy, 28, hold baby Beatrice Alice and Adolphus Busch IV." Margaret Bourke-White—The LIFE Picture Collection/Getty Images  Caption from LIFE. "Out for the daily ride, Trudy astride Happy Landing and Gussie on Miss Budweiser amble across the lawn of the 34-room brick mansion Gussie's father erected in 1911." Margaret Bourke-White—The LIFE Picture Collection/Getty Images  Not published in LIFE. Photo shot in 1954 for 1955 LIFE magazine story on the Busch family. Margaret Bourke-White—The LIFE Picture Collection/Getty Images  Not published in LIFE. Photo shot in 1954 for 1955 LIFE magazine story on the Busch family. Margaret Bourke-White—The LIFE Picture Collection/Getty Images  Not published in LIFE. Photo shot in 1954 for 1955 LIFE magazine story on the Busch family. Margaret Bourke-White—The LIFE Picture Collection/Getty Images  Caption from LIFE. "Dancing outdoors at hunting lodge during annual outing. Gussie and Trudy in peasant dress jig to German band with guest Dr. John C. Martz (left)." Margaret Bourke-White—The LIFE Picture Collection/Getty Images  Caption from LIFE. "Singing at Schlachtfest, Gussie sits with guest, Mrs. Charles Thomas, wearing chef's hat and apron which his male guests received." Margaret Bourke-White—The LIFE Picture Collection/Getty Images  Caption from LIFE. "Carriage collection at the Bauernhof ranges from six three-ton coaches aligned at the rear to gigs and donkey cart in front and a ladies' phaeton and French sailor wagon right behind fountain." Margaret Bourke-White—The LIFE Picture Collection/Getty Images  Not published in LIFE. Paul Victor von Gontard, general manager of San Fernando Valley brewery, sniffing hops. Margaret Bourke-White—The LIFE Picture Collection/Getty Images  Not published in LIFE. Photo shot in 1954 for 1955 LIFE magazine story on the Busch family. Margaret Bourke-White—The LIFE Picture Collection/Getty Images  Not published in LIFE. Photo shot in 1954 for 1955 LIFE magazine story on the Busch family. Margaret Bourke-White—The LIFE Picture Collection/Getty Images  Not published in LIFE. Photo shot in 1954 for 1955 LIFE magazine story on the Busch family. Margaret Bourke-White—The LIFE Picture Collection/Getty Images  Not published in LIFE. Photo shot in 1954 for 1955 LIFE magazine story on the Busch family. Margaret Bourke-White—The LIFE Picture Collection/Getty Images  Caption from LIFE. "Touring the stables in their formal dress, guests at the Bridlespur Hunt Club ball, held at Grant's farm, inspect the Busch hunters and jumpers." Margaret Bourke-White—The LIFE Picture Collection/Getty Images  Not published in LIFE. Photo shot in 1954 for 1955 LIFE magazine story on the Busch family. Margaret Bourke-White—The LIFE Picture Collection/Getty Images  Caption from LIFE. "Toast to their master and mistress is drunk in champagne at annual gathering of 20 Grant's Farm workers, who just received envelopes containing their annual bonus. In dark jacket at left is zookeeper Frank Parko and alongside him are stablemen, grounds keepers. Butler and cook are at right." Margaret Bourke-White—The LIFE Picture Collection/Getty Images  Not published in LIFE. Photo shot in 1954 for 1955 LIFE magazine story on the Busch family. Margaret Bourke-White—The LIFE Picture Collection/Getty Images  Not published in LIFE. Photo shot in 1954 for 1955 LIFE magazine story on the Busch family. Margaret Bourke-White—The LIFE Picture Collection/Getty Images  Caption from LIFE. "Percy Orthwein, Gussie's brother-in-law, is a board member, handles firm's advertising and collects old Budweiser posters like those on the wall." Margaret Bourke-White—The LIFE Picture Collection/Getty Images  Not published in LIFE. Photo shot in 1954 for 1955 LIFE magazine story on the Busch family. Margaret Bourke-White—The LIFE Picture Collection/Getty Images  Caption from LIFE. "Donkey cart is hitched up by coachman Henry Gersman to give John and Karen Flanigan, children of Gussie's daughter Carlota, a ride around courtyard." Margaret Bourke-White—The LIFE Picture Collection/Getty Images  Caption from LIFE. Photo shot in 1954 for 1955 LIFE magazine story on the Busch family. Margaret Bourke-White—The LIFE Picture Collection/Getty Images  Not published in LIFE. Photo shot in 1954 for 1955 LIFE magazine story on the Busch family. Margaret Bourke-White—The LIFE Picture Collection/Getty Images  Not published in LIFE. Photo shot in 1954 for 1955 LIFE magazine story on the Busch family. Margaret Bourke-White—The LIFE Picture Collection/Getty Images  Caption from LIFE. "Rolling through the Deer Park on a pleasant afternoon, Gussie, Trudy and Adolphus Busch IV ride a Vigilant coach drawn by four hackneys. Seated primly behind them, wearing the derby but not the red coat and blue breeches which are de rigueur for his job, is brewery driver named Bob Ferguson." Margaret Bourke-White—The LIFE Picture Collection/Getty Images  Caption from LIFE. "Tessie the Elephant, age 3, performs near the Bauernhof. She is named for an elephant which August I once owned." Margaret Bourke-White—The LIFE Picture Collection/Getty Images  Caption from LIFE. "Frances the Camel, a recent addition to the zoo, eats a banana from Gussie's hand. The zoo now has a full-time keeper." Margaret Bourke-White—The LIFE Picture Collection/Getty Images  Caption from LIFE. "Jerry the Chimp, one of four in the private zoo, essays a headstand with an assist from Gussie. Jerry also roller-skates." Margaret Bourke-White—The LIFE Picture Collection/Getty Images  Not published in LIFE. Photo shot in 1954 for 1955 LIFE magazine story on the Busch family. Margaret Bourke-White—The LIFE Picture Collection/Getty Images  Caption from LIFE. "Expertly manipulating a team of six matched white mules, Gussie Busch rolls through the Deer Park at Grant's Farm atop a pony coach." 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