During 1905, James Ben Ali Haggin, of Elmendorf Farm, began expanding his dairy cattle herd, to replace the thoroughbreds that were being sold. In 1908, he purchased the Alexander farm, opposite the farm entrance, on Paris Pike just north of Elkhorn Creek (about 6 miles from Lexington) and built a large dairy complex on the farm.
Eventually, Haggin, in collaboration with the University of Kentucky, developed one of the leading “model” dairies in the nation. This collaboration led to the development of the modern dairy industry. The dairy was described as “a modern up-to-date dairy, conducted according to the most scientific and hygienic methods.” The dairy was a certified dairy, operating to government sanitary standards, including scientific and pure food regulations. The dairy was advertised as “The Modern Dairy in the Southland.”
On February 1, 1907, he began experimental production of milk and butter, with a herd of 75 cows. The milk was supplied free to his employees on the farm. The dairy operated from temporary facilities on the Old Kenney Place.[i]
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In March 1908, Haggin began construction on the “model” dairy stable. The plans included a large dairy processing plant, dairy barn, cowsheds, calf barns, paddocks and cottages for employees. The entire grounds were landscaped with walkways and roads. One visitor commented that except for the silos, the dairy “would be taken as a country club.”[ii]
The dairy was located on the Lexington & Interurban Railway line, from Lexington to Paris. A special spur was built into the dairy, alongside the processing plant. This spur also connected Elmendorf to the Louisville & Nashville’s Kentucky Central line.
Side view of the Dairy Barn from Water Tower <Nollau>
Dairy Stable:
In 1908, Haggin built the dairy stable or milking barn, using the same material as the other major buildings on the farm. The barn was designed as a Maltese cross, with 17,000 square feet in four wings of 220 feet (40 feet in width). The barn was built on a limestone foundation, raised five feet above ground grade, sealed with a concrete cap. The walls were built of stone and red brick, with a red Spanish tile roof. The floor was poured concrete, with the center milking section raised one foot. The dairy barn cost $40,000.
Each wing had the capacity of 100 cows. The milking stalls were made of two-inch wrought iron pipe, with feed troughs molded in cement along the centerline. The walls were plastered with cement. Lighting was provided from a series of windows and electrical lights. The lights were powered by a new generator plant built for the dairy. Ventilation was supplied by galvanized ducts, with the intake eight feet above the floor and the exhaust at floor level.[iii]
Layout of the Elmendorf Dairy Barn, 1908
Enlargement of front entrance, 1912 <Elmendorf>
The center section was forty feet square, divided into a milk receiving, milk can washing, attendant’s and storage rooms. The attendant’s room contained a large shower, where each attendant showered daily, before dressing in a clean white suit and cap. A barber and manicurist were also hired to groom each attendant. Before entering the work area, each attendant was inspected for cleanness.[iv]
To prevent cross contamination, under each wing was a narrow gauge railway for manure removal. Manure was shoveled through grates in the concrete floor, into iron cars and then disposed of.
Cattle feed was stored in a pair of silos, located at the end of three wings. Feed was shuttled along the second floor to chutes to the first floor.
After milking, the milk was collected in 10-gallon cans in the receiving room. The milk cans were then transferred to the Dairy Processing Plant, by a motor driven conveyor. The conveyor ran 500 feet from the first floor of the Dairy Barn to the second floor of the Dairy Plant. The conveyor was driven by a ½-inch cable over trolley poles (erected every 32 feet). The conveyor operated at 75 feet per minute, with the capacity of 120 cans per hour.[v]
View of conveyor from Dairy Plant to Barn, 1912 <Elmendorf>
Dairy Processing Plant:
In 1909, the Dairy Processing Plant was built using similar material and located 500 yards north of the barn. Separate rooms were used for each step in production, with access only from the outside. This prevent cross contamination. Ventilation was supplied by a large fan in the basement, with fresh air pulled in from above the roofline and then filtered.
The raw milk in cans entered the plant into the milk receiving room, on the second floor. The milk was filtered through a strainer and the cream separated from the milk. The milk was then transferred to the bottling room, on the first floor. The filled bottles were then sealed in an automatic crown capper. A innovative seal made of cardboard, covered with a metal cap, sealed the bottle.
Before filling, the bottles were collected in the bottle receiving room located on the first floor, where the bottles and cases were washed and inspected. The bottles were then sterilized in an oven for over 30 minutes before filling.[vi]
Dairy Processing Plant, 1912 <Elmendorf>
In a separate cold storage room the milk, butter and skim milk were cooled. The filled bottles were stored in a separate cold storage room. The second floor contained the ice making plant and ice cream plants. The boiler and machinery rooms were located in the basement.
Pure water was drawn from Russell Cave Spring, several miles west of the dairy. Haggin installed a pumping station at the spring and a pipeline to the dairy. At the processing plant, was a 40,000-gallon storage tank, elevated 60 feet, which supplied water pressure to the complex.[vii]
Russell Cave Springs, circa 1900s
Behind the dairy barn were located the cow sheds, calf barns and paddocks.
Jersey cattle displayed in front of calf barn, 1912 <Elmendorf>
On February 6, 1909, the dairy began shipment of butter, milk, buttermilk and cream to Lexington. Every morning a special interurban car delivered dairy products to the Elmendorf Depot, on Loudon Avenue. The milk was then dispatched in a fleet of delivery wagons to the customers. James A. Eastin was placed in charge of the depot and marketing, while farm manager, Charles H. Berryman, was in overall control. By the summer, the plant began regular shipments between Lexington and Paris, four times a day.[viii]
In 1910, Professor M. A. Scovell[1], of the Agricultural Experimental Station of the State College, developed a program with Elmendorf for the training of agricultural students. These students worked in the dairy as part of their studies.
During January 1910, the dairy began shipping milk along the interurban to Georgetown, Versailles, Frankfort and Nicholasville. In addition, plans were also made to ship milk to Covington and Cincinnati, over the morning L&N express train. Depots were planned in these cities.[ix]
In late February 1910, twenty out of twenty-three milkers at the dairy barn struck for higher wages. The workers were paid $25 per month (plus board) and demanded a $5 raise, to $30 per month (plus board). After Manager Berryman’s refusal, the milkers walked off leaving only three workers, with over 300 cows to milk and feed. However, by the end of the day the strikers had been replaced.[x]
The next month, the dairy began to supply milk at no charge to the kindergarten classes at the West End School. The school also began offering a morning lunch, with milk and rolls. The rolls were paid for by Charles H. Berryman and the Civic League.[xi]
In May 1910, the farm received another shipment of 108 imported Jersey dairy cows. These cows had been purchased by Haggin’s representatives in England and the Channel Island. They were shipped across the Atlantic on a steamship to New York. From New York, these cows were shipped by railroad to Lexington, using special cars attached to express passenger trains. These cars were then detached and transferred on the interurban tracks to the farm. The cattle were attended along their voyage by Elmendorf employees.[xii]
Cattle heading into the dairy for milking,
During June 1910, General Manager Charles H. Berryman leased 11 Cheapside[2] for the Milk Depot and appointed George S. Bell as Dairy Manager. Bell was employed around 1906 by Haggin, to help with the thoroughbreds. The depot was equipped with a refrigerated storage plant.[xiii]
In addition, during June 1910, Elmendorf contracted with J. R. Williamson & Sons, to build thirty cottages for dairy workers. These cottages were located near the dairy plant and consisted of five rooms each. Ten of these cottages were also equipped with modern bathrooms. The Lexington Leader stated:
“This is part of the scheme of Mr. Haggin to make the Elmendorf dairy one of the model dairy plants of the United States, and the cottages are for the accommodation of his employees who are to conduct the plant.”[xiv]
In 1910, an underground tunnel was excavated under the Maysville Turnpike, 300 feet north of the bridge over Elkhorn Creek, to transferred cattle from one grazing field to another. The passageway was built of reinforced concrete, 12 feet wide and 46 feet in length.[xv]
In September 1910, Elmendorf held a banquet in the dairy stable for the State Medical Associations. That afternoon, the doctors were given a tour of the “model” dairy and sampled pure milk from a certified plant. Later they were served Gus Jaubert’s famous burgoo in the milking barn. Attendance was 380.[xvi]
In February 1911, George S. Bell resigned as the manager, to accept a position with Hickory Valley Farm in Tennessee. Bell was replaced by Kenney Erdman.[xvii]
Express Car #600
During 1911, the American Car Company, of St Louis, constructed a special refrigeration car for the Lexington & Interurban Railway, to ship products from the Elmendorf Dairy. The car was 50 feet in length, with the wooden body and steel frame. The front compartment contained racks for bottled milk, cream and butter, while the rear compartment contained blocks of ice for refrigeration. The car cost $12,000. This car was lettered Elmendorf Dairy and designated on the roster as Express Car #600. During the 1920s, the car was replaced by motor trucks and converted into a line maintenance car. The milk car entered service on June 21, 1912.[xviii]
Express Car parked at Processing Plant, 1912 <Elmendorf>
Refrigerated Interior of Express Car #600
During April 1911, Charles H. Berryman purchased the property at the southeast corner of North Limestone and Short Streets. The site was intended for a new milk depot to distribute the dairy’s products. A switch and siding off the interurban was built into the depot.[xix]
In July 1911, the dairy installed an ice cream plant, with the capacity of 80 gallons per hour. With this capacity, the dairy began to market ice cream to Central Kentucky, Covington and Cincinnati.[xx]
Ad - March 1912
In April 1912, the Lexington Leader announced “Pipe Line To Carry Milk.” The paper indicated “Elmendorf to Lay Main From Dairy to City and all One Will Have to Do for Supply Is to Turn a Faucet.” The article continued “the unprecedented demand for the certified milk of the Elmendorf dairy, recognized as the largest and best equipped dairy plant in the South, has prompted the Elmendorf management to decide upon a unique arrangement to supply its patrons in Lexington with pure, fresh milk at nominal cost.” A meter would be installed in homes, hotel and restaurant to record usage. The user would have two faucets, one for sweet milk and one for buttermilk. The announcement was made on April 1st, as an “April Fool’s” joke.[xxi]
In September 1912, the dairy published a booklet titled ELMENDORF FARM DAIRY – The Modern Dairy of the Southland, detailing the history of Elmendorf Farm and Dairy. The booklet also reviewed sanitary methods used by the dairy.[xxii]
In February 1913, a new one-ton milk truck, built by the International Motor Truck Company (later Mack Trucks), was purchased by the dairy. The truck delivered milk to customers around Lexington. The interior of the truck had a porcelain icebox and was painted a cream color.[xxiii]
In April 1913, the dairy investigated adding bread and cake to the dairy’s products.[xxiv]
In May 1913, the dairy’s offices were relocated to the Phoenix Hotel, at 104 East Main Street.[xxv] In December 1913, the dairy again relocated to the lobby of the Ben Ali Theater (owned by Haggin). The dairy’s office and showroom were located on one side of the lobby, while the milk depot was located on Short Street, connecting with the rear of the theater.[xxvi]
Ad - April 1915
[1] Dr. Melville A. Scovell – was the director of the Agricultural Experiment Station, at the University of Kentucky, since its establishment in 1885 until his death in 1912. Scovell was educated at the University of Illinois, before coming to Lexington. He expanded the Experimental Station into one of the county’s leading agricultural research laboratories. Scovell directed research into tobacco, dairy cattle and other crops of the region. He was also one of the prime supporters of the Pure Food and Drug Act of 1906.
Scovell was a national expert on dairy cattle. During the World’s Columbian Exposition in 1893 he supervised the tests of dairy breeds. He was known as “the best known and best liked judge of dairy cattle in America.” Scovell also oversaw the purchase of Elmendorf’s dairy herd.
[2] Later denoted as 113 Cheapside.
[i] Lexington Leader, January 8, 1907, page 6, column 2, and March 7, 1907, page 15, columns 1-3.
[ii] Harrison, Katherine A., ELMENDORF FARM DAIRY – The Modern Dairy of the Southland, Elmendorf Farm Publishers, Lexington, 1912, pages 34-43.
[iii] Harrison, Katherine A., ELMENDORF FARM DAIRY – The Modern Dairy of the Southland, Elmendorf Farm Publishers, Lexington, 1912, pages 34-43.
[iv] Lexington Leader, August 24, 1919, section 4, page 1, columns 1-7.
[v] Harrison, Katherine A., ELMENDORF FARM DAIRY – The Modern Dairy of the Southland, Elmendorf Farm Publishers, Lexington, 1912, pages 34-43.
[vi] Harrison, Katherine A., ELMENDORF FARM DAIRY – The Modern Dairy of the Southland, Elmendorf Farm Publishers, Lexington, 1912, pages 34-43.
[vii] Harrison, Katherine A., ELMENDORF FARM DAIRY – The Modern Dairy of the Southland, Elmendorf Farm Publishers, Lexington, 1912, pages 34-43.
[viii] Lexington Leader, February 1, 1909, page 1, column 5.
[ix] Lexington Leader, January 28, 1910, page 1, column 7 and June 13, 1911, page 1, column 5.
[x] Lexington Leader, February 22, 1910, page 1, column 3.
[xi] Lexington Leader, August 6, 1911, page 6, columns 1-2.
[xii] Lexington Leader, May 6, 1910, page 1, column 5.
[xiii] Lexington Leader, June 13, 1910, page 1, column 4.
[xiv] Lexington Leader, June 30, 1910, page 6, column 4.
[xv] Fayette County Miscellaneous Book 8, pages 406-11 and 419-422 and Lexington Leader, September 28, 1910, page 1, column 7.
[xvi] Lexington Leader, September 28, 1910, page 1, column 7 and September 25, 1974, page 17, columns 1-2.
[xvii] Lexington Leader, January 29, 1911, page 2, column 5.
[xviii] Lexington Leader, June 22, 1911, page 6, column 3.
[xix] Lexington Leader, April 15, 1911, page 15, column 3.
[xx] Lexington Leader, July 18, 1911, page 7, column 6.
[xxi] Lexington Leader, April 1, 1912, page 1, column 5 and April 14, 1912, page 3, column 2.
[xxii] Lexington Leader, September 3, 1912, page 4, column 2.
[xxiii] Lexington Leader, February 16, 1902, section 2, page 5, column 6.
[xxiv] Lexington Leader, April 20, 1913, page 5, columns 1-4.
[xxv] Lexington Leader, May 25, 1913, page 2, column 5.
[xxvi] Lexington Leader, December 13, 1913, page 6, column 3.
