Stop in the Explore Elgin Area’s Visitor Center at 60 S. Grove Street, and you may be surprised by the holiday decorations featuring something you might find on your kitchen counter every morning or tucked into a drawer in the fridge.
Can’t imagine what item would be featured in holiday decor? What if you knew that it all began in the 1850s, when Elgin-area farmers provided high-quality, fresh milk to hotels and grocers in Chicago? Not just a little milk; we’re talking 21,845 gallons of milk in 1858. According to the Elgin History Museum’s Dairy to Praries exhibit, wagons filled with milk cans left farms every morning for the train depot, once located at Crystal and Chicago Street.
Of course, Elgin-area farmers and city leaders knew that other products using their quality product would be needed. In 1860, several creameries, or factories that produced butter and cheese from extra milk, began to open across Kane County.
The Elgin Dairy Company started a butter cooperative in 1870 at the corner of Ball and Harvey Streets (now a residential neighborhood just a few blocks west of 31 and off Highland Avenue). In 1874, the Elgin Dairy Company could produce 149,000 pounds of butter and 190,000 pounds of cheese.
After local creameries discovered that their products were being repackaged and sold at higher prices in the Chicago markets, Elgin leaders established the Elgin Board of Trade in 1872 with 19 creameries to eliminate the middleman and increase profits. “Buyers from places such as St. Louis and New Orleans ensured the Board of Trade’s early success,” states the Elgin History Museum’s display. “The Elgin Board of Trade provided a reliable market and established a rigid grading standard for butter and cheese.”
As a result:
- In 1872, 30,734 pounds of butter and 993,500 pounds of cheese valued at $81,000 were traded.
- In 1880, 2.5 million pounds of butter and more than 9 million pounds of cheese were sold, valued at $1.8 million. (Calculate that percentage increase of production volume and profitability and post it on our social media!)
New businesses began providing tools and equipment for the dairy industry. In 1877, the Elgin Butter Tub Company began using wooden tubs to distribute cheese and butter to grocers near and far. The Elgin Butter Tub Company had several Elgin locations on Division Street near Douglas Ave. and at 69 N. State St. before moving to 824 Raymond Street.
The Elgin Butter Tub Company had another significant innovation. It invented cutting a pound of butter into four narrow sticks, dubbed the “Elgin style.”
Have you figured out what is featured in our holiday decor?
You guessed it, the Elgin-style butter!
Why butter? Well, the Elgin History Museum summarizes the significance of butter to the Elgin area this way: “From the 1870s-1910s Elgin was the butter capital of the Midwest. Over 6,000 cows lived on the farms surrounding town. The Elgin Board of Trade set the price for Elgin butter and maintained standards for quality and authenticity.”
Stop by the Visitor Center this holiday and see how the Elgin-style butter is a key decoration that also points back to the rich history of butter in the Elgin area. You will also discover recipes from around the world that rely on butter as a key ingredient.
For the full story of Elgin’s butter and dairy industries, visit the Elgin History Museum, which is open Wednesday through Saturday. Spend an afternoon viewing its special exhibits, especially the “Dairies to Prairies” project that tells about the dairy industry of the area.
