John Phillip (J.P.) Wiser

10/4/1825 - 4/30/1911

John Philip Wiser was born on October 4th, 1825, in Oneida County, New York. Wiser's father, Isaac J. Wiser, settled in Oneida County, New York, in 1809. His mother, Mary Egert, was originally from Philadelphia. Isaac and Mary settled on a farm in the dense forest of Oneida County, New York. The Wisers were of German descent. JP’s great-grandfather was an aide to General Herkimer at the battle of Oriskany during the American Revolution.

JP was educated in the common schools of his county, later at Hobart Hall Institute in Holland Patent, New York. Early employment included farming (until the age of 20) and a clerk position in Gouverneur, New York, for several years. 

In 1856, Wiser married Emily Godard, daughter of Harlow Godard. They had six children together. In 1857, Wiser moved to Prescott, Ontario, approximately 129 miles north of Wiser’s birthplace in New York. Prescott had direct railway connections to Ottawa, Montreal, and Toronto, and railway links to the Northern Railway in the United States, providing access to the Atlantic Seaboard ports. Prescott also had a port of call for the Canadian Steamers heading east and west along the St. Lawrence River. 

Prescott is where Wiser was introduced to the world of distilling. He worked for his uncle, Charles Egert, who, with his partner Amos Averell, owned Charles Payne Distillery. Before long, Wiser was made the general manager of the distillery. Five years later, Wiser purchased the distillery and farm from his Uncle Charles and from Averell. At that time, the distillery was producing 116,500 gallons of whisky a year. In the prime producing years, they had increased production to over 500,000 gallons a year.

The United States Civil War was a catalyst for the growth of the Wiser’s empire. The war wreaked havoc on distilleries in the United States, throughout the battleground states, pot stills were melted down to make cannons. Therefore, the United States turned to Canada for its supply of whisky, and the Canadians were happy to accommodate. 

Wiser was able to incorporate other businesses into his empire. There were farms to grow the grains he required in his distillery; he had a huge interest in beef cattle that fed on by-products from the distillery (usually between 1,000-1,200 graded cattle). Wiser also developed a brickyard to manufacture bricks and had the only large breeding stable for racehorses in Ontario. 

John Philip Wiser also served as a Federal Member of Parliament as a Liberal under Prime Minister Sir John A. MacDonald from September 17th, 1878, to June 19th, 1882.

In 1893, Wiser revolutionized how individuals buy whisky. He introduced whisky in bottles at the Chicago World Fair, making it possible, for the first time, for Canadians to take whisky home. Before this time, whisky was only sold in barrels and casks.

In the early 1900s, Prescott, Ontario, was a thriving community on the St. Lawrence River. This is largely attributed to the success of J. P. Wiser’s and Sons Distillery. At this time, Wiser’s was the third largest distillery in Canada, producing high quality whisky, and supplying markets in Canada, the United States, China, and the Philippines. In 1911, Wiser employed 100 employees at the distillery and another 40 at his brickyard. 

The demise of the distillery business in Prescott started with the death of John Philip Wiser on the 30th of April, 1911. Wiser was considered an outstanding businessman; unfortunately, his sons lacked his business acumen, and the great company declined under their leadership, ultimately collapsing after the death of treasurer Albert Whitney in 1917. The distillery was then sold to Corby’s (Hiram Walker), and the production was moved to the Bellville area in 1932. 

Wiser whisky had a solid reputation for quality that has continued to this day. There are still several whisky products sold under the Wiser label.

 Contributed by: Peter Hetu, London, Ontario

with support from Katrina Bevington, Canadian Whisky Section Editor, Ottawa, Ontario