Dateline Dayton — A few weeks ago my essays dealt with growing up in a small town in the 1950s. Continuing with that theme, I will tell you about our local dairies. So you think a dairy is a dairy? You’ve seen one, you’ve seen every kind? Going to the dairy in my day was entertainment. That was where you bought your ice cream. There was one other location for ice cream, the soda fountain in the drug store or pharmacy.
I would be remiss if I didn’t start with a dairy that although not in existence during the 1950s, is still of great interest to me and my family. The Lange Brothers dairy belonged to my grandfather and his brothers. Grandpa Lange and his brothers originally operated a brewery. During Prohibition, they converted their business into a dairy that survived until Aug. 17, 1947. I can’t recall ever being in the building while it was an operating dairy. But I only would have been 6 years old when it closed. I remember being in the building many times after it was closed and before it was razed by the new owner. I even remember what the equipment was like.
Still today, I have milk bottles from the dairy, and I have provided a milk and beer bottle to each of our children. As a youngster I played in the large attic of my grandparents’ home where there was a stash of milk bottle caps, throwing them around the attic, something on the order of 52 Pickup. There are probably caps in the walls of that house today. I saved some caps, and I regret our children didn’t have the privilege of tossing them about.
The next dairy in order of family importance would be Sanders Dairy, which delivered milk to our door three days a week. As with most dairies of the time, Sanders sold ice cream by the scoop or handpacked cartons at its store on Washington Avenue. The store was in the front portion of the dairy building. Many evenings during the summer we would take a ride around the loop (the old traction car route), and end up at Sanders for ice cream.
No Shortage of Dairies
Sometime later we started having milk delivered from another dairy, the other three days of the week. I can’t remember the name. Possibly it was Medal Gold, which had a bottling plant in town, having purchased the Favorite City Dairy in 1949. I’m certain we started using another dairy because that the milkman was our neighbor.
I was usually the first one up in the morning, and I would bring in the milk. During the winter I can remember the cream, on the top of the glass bottle, actually popping the lid when it froze. If you didn’t want to pour off the cream, you just shook the bottle to mix the cream with the milk. During the summer, the problem was just the opposite, with the milk being warm. To try and solve the freezing and warmth problems, dairies came up with insulated boxes for the milk. They helped, without completely resolving the dilemma.
Like us, Sanders wanted to get all the business from their large milk users. They came up with the idea of delivering milk in cans. At no charge, they provided a special refrigerator for you. We referred to as the “milk machine.” They delivered the milk inside, placing it in the unit. The refrigerator would hold two cans, but only dispense from one side. This was great as long as you didn’t have a problem with the rubber spout on the can. There were a few accidents. We just made the best of it, putting into pitchers what we could, with the rest going on the floor. No use crying over spilled milk, right?
Another favorite serving our community was Furrow Dairy. Furrow’s was out in the country, and I recall once riding my bike to this dairy for ice cream. After I began driving and was out with Pauline, we would stop once in awhile at Furrow’s for ice cream. We never used Furrow’s until they merged with Sanders in 1960, to become San-Fur. The combined dairies only lasted for three years.
Those were the days, the milkman, the iceman and the bread man whose truck full of freshly baked bread and rolls would make various stops on the street. To stay healthy, there was the vegetable wagon (which actually was a truck). Normally you didn’t see the milkman, except for when he collected because he delivered early in the morning. However, the other deliverymen made their rounds during the day.
In a day when there wasn’t television, delivery people were actually a form of entertainment and provided a wonderful service to the community.
Mr. Hennessey may be contacted at pmhenn@sbcglobal.net