There is a small rural town in the Mount Pleasant County Township of Pennsylvania called Kecksburg which became very famous in December 1965. Before we explain that defining event, let’s first talk about the originating history and how this town was formed by the soda industry way before that event. Kecksburg was founded in 1866 when John Martin Keck, a German immigrant who had settled in Greensburg, purchased five acres and laid out plans for a small community.

In The Beginning

By 1868, the community had a general store, blacksmith shop and a post office with Keck serving as postmaster. By the late 1800s, Kecksburg also had a hotel, doctor, and drug store. Keck's son William, or "Will G.," worked with the firm that bottled mineral water found on the Keck farm which was formally a mineral springs and spa. Eventually the bottling facility starting bottling ginger ale. In addition to the mineral water. Will G. Keck also helped bring the first telephone company to the area. In 1906, the company that would become "The Citizens Telephone Company of Kecksburg" was founded.

In the 1920s business was booming for his sodas and Keck found the need for brand recognition. Keck’s most famous soda was labeled as the "Big Stick" Ginger Ale. After applying a year earlier, In 1928 William Keck was awarded patent USD74230S for his unique bottle design that featured a “Big Stick” embossed in its design. This finalized the brand recognition for Keck’s popular Ginger Ale.

Keck’s “Big Stick” ginger ale was a hit (get it) with the locals and eventually grew into high demand during those hot Pennsylvania summers. Keck’s bottling plant, fleet of White Star delivery trucks, and laborers increased in the roaring 1930s.

Keck’s Bottling plant and fleet of delivery trucks

The Great Fire of 1939

Times were great in the roaring 30s but that was soon to change. In early March 1939 there was a great fire at the Kecksburg bottling plant that did sufficient damage. A warehouse, delivery trucks and large stock of bottles and cases were lost at an estimated $20,000. As mentioned in the newspaper article, Keck said that this would not interrupt any of his services to the great community of Kecksburg.

I’m not sure of the exact terms or financial agreement, but in the early 1940s, Long Island NY Pepsi Bottling took over the bottling plant and in addition to Keck’s Ginger Ale started bottling Pepsi, Frostie, Fruit Bowl, Cherikee Red soda and other flavors over the next couple decades at the Kecksburg plant.

The Great UFO sighting of 1965

On December 9, 1965 a large, brilliant fireball was seen by thousands in at least six states and dropped metal debris over Michigan and Ohio causing sonic booms and then finally landed in Western Pennsylvania. The fireball landed in the woods just outside Kecksburg and was reportedly an acorn-shaped aircraft. For many decades and for some still today speculated that it was a UFO. NASA released a statement in 2005 reporting that experts had examined fragments from the area and determined they were from a Soviet satellite.

A large bell-shaped metallic object was made by Unsolved Mysteries in order to present the story of the landing. After the story aired, the show donated the model to the Kecksburg, which is currently on the location behind the Kecksburg Volunteer Fire Department. The model was taken indoors for a while, but now it is supported on a metal pedestal. Currently today, Kecksburg hosts annual celebrations and a festival to honor this event. For sure I’m not an expert on writing UFO stories, but if you would like to learn more just google “Kecksburg, UFO” and there are thousands of reference links. Even better and if your in the area, stop by and visit a Kecksburg UFO festival. Link: https://kecksburgvfd.com/ufo-festival-events/

In the End

In 1988, The Kecksburg Pepsi bottling rights was sold to the Pepsi-Cola Co. of Purchase, N.Y and not much longer eventually closed. In the 1990s, Columbia Northwest, parent company of Aliner, bought the facility and moved operations from Oregon to the new Pennsylvania home. Currently today, Aliner is building original A-frame campers at the facility. You can see their story and campers at Aliner.com

In conclusion, Will Keck and the Keck soda (Big Stick) is a great example of the past history of the soda industry in the United States. It’s great to collect the many remaining artifacts and bottles of the Keck era and most importantly to share with others. Hope you enjoyed this article and happy collecting Kecks! Tom

Keck’s former plant location: 1297 Kecksburg Rd Mt Pleasant, PA 15666

Google Map:1297 Kecksburg Rd Mt Pleasant, PA 15666