From Cow to Kitchen

From Cow to Kitchen An Overview of Milk Deliveryin New Hampshire

Vermont Products We take for granted much of the food we consume today — like these dairy products. For us, they are just something else to pick up at the supermarket.

Dan’s Market (1962) But supermarkets have really been part of everyday life in New Hampshire only since the 1950s.

Milk Maid Long before supermarkets — in the early days of our country, before the Civil War — New Hampshire was a land of small farms… and most of a family’s dairy needs were supplied by their farm’s own cows.

Women’s Work Some equipment, like the butter churn, had remained unchanged for hundreds of years… and most work was performed by the women of the family.

Street Hawker A farm’s surplus milk could be sold to neighbors in the village or in nearby towns.

City vs. Farm Beginning around 1860, however,… more and more people lived in cities, like Manchester… and fewer people lived on farms.

Early Delivery Delivering milk to these larger city markets was important. Dairy operations became a commercial enterprise.

Cans & Dippers Dairy farmers had to modernize to solve problems of delivery, spoilage, and sanitation. It was no longer sufficient to carry cans of “cool” milk with dippers to fill customers’ containers.

Ice Business Ice was harvested from ponds in winter and stored for year-round use in refrigerating milk during delivery.

Daily Delivery Daily delivery was important to the urban consumer. Until around 1950, most homes in the state lacked electrical refrigeration that would allow longer storage of dairy products.

Sears Refrigerator As late as 1940, almost half of New Hampshire’s homes used iceboxes, perhaps similar to this model in the 1908 Sears Catalog. One out of six homes in the state had no refrigeration at all!

Science By the early 1900s, state agencies as well as businesses worked to improve standards of quality and cleanliness.

Farmers’ Institute Farmers eagerly sought ways to improve their product and their efficiency through changes in technology and technique.

UNH Many young dairy farmers enrolled in two-year or four-year programs in animal science at the University of New Hampshire — offered at its campus in Durham since 1893.

Bottling Much thought was given to finding ways to package milk products efficiently… …and ways to keep handling conditions spotless.

Refrigerated Trucks Refrigerated trucks also increased efficiency and sanitation. Milk could now be stored at farms and be transferred directly to trucks for long-distance transportation.

Dairy Art Home delivery of dairy products peaked in the 1940s and early 1950s.

Advertising Attractive advertising and packaging helped increase dairy consumption.

Chippa Granite Milk and dairy products were promoted not only as good… …but good for you, too.

Kitchen circa 1950 Beginning in the 1950s, more and more people lived outside the city in suburbs. As shown in this exhibit at the Museum of New Hampshire History, families were likely to own kitchen appliances capable of storing perishable products for longer times.

Gallons of Milk Now in a weekly trip to a supermarket a family could buy milk in quantity… …and find a great variety of dairy products. Daily delivery service was no longer necessary.

Churns Certainly much has changed in the dairy industry over the past 150 years… from the traditional dairymaid’s churn… …to the spotless mechanized churn room of a New Boston dairy(c. 1910).

Direct Line Despite all the changes, we have never lost a direct connection between… …the cow and …the kitchen.

From Cow to Kitchen