Mower County, Minnesota - Chapter 51: Dairy Interests, 1911

Importance of the Dairy Industry in Mower County - A. V. Ellis, the Father of Dairy Farming in This Vicinity - Story of the Present Day Creameries - The Dairy Cow, Her Worth and Virtues. - By H. L. Banfield.

In writing the liistory of the dairy interests of Slower county, T feel tliat I must only touch upon the early history and relate that part of it that I am directly familiar with. As near as I can find out, the first steps taken in the direction of dairying were in the late seventies, after the great wheat failure.

In 1878 A. V. Ellis brought the first pair of pure bred dairy cattle into the county - a pair of registered Holstein-Fresians - and I consider him the father of dairying in this section of the state. How well he succeeded in this line need not be told here, but the beautiful farm he left behind him speaks volumes for his courage and perseverance.

tin. It was uot until the late eighties and early nineties that the farmers' co-operative creameries began to start up. Then is when the farmers began to realize the importance of the dairy cow, and then is when dairying in this county received its impetus. The Walthain creamery, whicli began operations in 1889, was one of the first to start. Others followed iu Ihe next few years, until at the present time, the county has fourteen creameries, and one cheese factory, with about twelve other creameries, located within a few miles of the county line, and tributary to our county on all sides.

The Lansing Co-operative Creamery was incorporated February 15, 1895, with a capital of $2,500. It started business in section 11, Lansing township, in a building purchased from the Lansing Cheese and Butter Manufacturing Company. The plant occupied the frame building until 1907, Avhen a modern substantial building of brick and concrete was constructed. This is one of the finest creamery buildings in the state. In 1907 the capital was also increased to if*6,500. The business has increased from $6,779.17 paid for Initter to patrons in 1894, to $49,698.29 iu 1910. The Waltham Creamery started as a cheese factory in 1885. In 1889 it was changed to a creamery under the same management. At that time it was the second largest in the stale. The factory is located in Waltham village. The Red Rock Creamery Association was incorporated in 1893 and changed management ten years later. Before that it did a business of from $25,000 to $50,000 a year. In 1910 the creamery made 190,000 pounds of butter. The plant is located in Brownsdale. The Red Oak Grove Co-operative Creamery Company Avas organized in 1892, and the plant is located in the northwest corner of section 6, Lansing township, in what is known as Corning village. The first officers and directors were: Halvor Kittleson, Halvor Thompson, 0. G. Andersen, L. 0. Aldal, N. K. Goodwin, James Taylor and John Peterson. The present officers and directors are: N. N. Goodwin, C. B. Christensen, Charles Kittleson, Simon Thompson, James Taylor, S. S. Ulland and 0. A. Ulland. In 1910 the milk and cream received amounted to nearly 2,300,000 pounds, making over 160,000 pounds of butter, and paying an average price of 33Vi cents per pound. The total receipts and disbursements were nearly $50,000. The Nevada Farmers' Co-operative Creamery Association was organized in the home of Ole Aslakson on Februai\v 13, lS!)-t, with thirty-nine members and 260 cows pledged, with shares at $5 per cow. The creamery is located on Jacob Jacobson's farm in Nevada township, and cost, with machinery, $3,400. Business was commenced April 6, 1894. The first officers and directors were: Ole Aslakson, A. G. Ellingson, T. Guttormson, Jacob Jacobson and Sven Jacobson. The present officers and directors are Ole Aslakson, C. K. Olson, Jacob Jacobson, G. Aslnkson, Ole H. Lee, H. Asblesou and H. J. Hanson. The Otter Creek Farmers ' Creamery Company, of Lyle, was organized in 1896, and is located in Lyle township, hi 1910 the plant received nearly 800,000 pounds of milk and cream and made nearly 90,000 pounds of butter. The first officers and directors were: Charles Volstad, B. Bothum, K. Amundson, C. Meyer, 0. Tieman, A. P. ^Martin, Ed N. Nilson. The present officers and directors are : A. Halvorsen, T. H. ]Mnrpby, C. Meyer, A. P. Martin, J. A. Thorstad, 0. E. Iloflaiul and K. L. Lendal. Other creameries in the county are: Austin Dairy Company, North Star Dairy Company, Adams Creamery Company, Rose Creek Creamery Company, LeRoy Creamery Company, Dexter Creamery Company, Racine Creamery Company, Grand Meadow Creamery Company, and Mayville Cheese Company. The story of these creameries is told elsewhere. Great credit is due to the farmers of Mower county for fostering the co-operative creamery idea and there have been so few failures that the good work has gone on almost unrestrained until it is altogether our greatest industry. So with a soil that raises the best grasses in the world, I look to see the returns increased many fold as the years go on. The flavor that our butter gets from the sweet and nutritioiis grasses enables us to top the New York market with the product. We have at present nearly 17,000 cows actually assessed in the year 1910, and our slogan for the future is more and better cows. The income from our cows last year exceeded a half a million dollars, to say nothing of the fertility that went back onto the soil. The large returns from milk and butter in the past five years have encouraged the farmers to breed better cattle and the mimber that are using pure bred dairy sires has increased very materially in that time, and in another five years will add many full-blood and highgrade animals to our herds. Many full-blood and high-grade dairy herds have sprung up in the past few years. The dairy cow is queen of the farm and one of the greatest mortgage lifters in existence. She is virtually a machine which turns the prodiicts of the farms into greatest profit. In order to get the largest returns her ways and her disposition miist be understood. She affects almost any branch of farming and she is the most economical producer on the farm.