Creamery Records

In the storage of the high school was an old box labeled 'Creamery Records.' This includes tax records and building records from the early twentieth century. Among these records were these three instruments.

The object on the right is a “Paley Test Bottle”. This instrument was used to measure fat in milk and cream. This was called the “Babcock Method” of measuring. In the middle of the image there is the instructions for use of the Paley Test Bottle. On the top of the image is a Butter Color Indicator used to tell the correct color of butter. If it was the correct color that meant it was made correctly.The other glass instrument was a ladle to pour the milk and cream into the “Paley Test Bottle.”



Shown here is a record of stock from the Parkers Prairie creamery.  The original price of the stock was $5.00 per share in the 1930’s. The first stockholders were A.B. Hazen and Geo. Mccombs. The owner and founder of the creamery was John Hawkinson. The first creamery was erected on Highway 29 Where Frank Bettin’s house now stands. It ended up going bankrupt after about 3 years of operation. In 1907 farmers pushed to have another creamery and eventually did buying the building for $600. It continued business until Land O’ Lakes bought the building in 1970 and the building was abandoned in 1971. This signified the end of Parkers Prairie Creamery.