Farmland Dairies history

What is now Glendale Farms, Inc. began with the purchase of a small dairy farm in 1893 by E.W. Zell and his wife Katherine who emigrated to America from Germany.

After the war he settled in Jackson where he established a medical practice, a drug store (preceded by being a JR Watson distributor of health and other products), and in 1897 formed a company called McLaughlin Ward.

Modern dairy farming began in the early 1900’s after pasteurization was developed and utilized widely.

By 1914, the expanding family needed a larger house.

A lot goes into running a farm, and a lot has changed since the Feltz dairy farm was established in 1915, especially when it comes to farming technology.

That’s why in 1923, the debut of the Surge Milker milking machine was a game-changer for many farmers.

While the Feltz’s first tractor was a John Deere H, the most popular early tractor was the Farmall, which debuted in 1924.

The farm has had continuous operation of one type or another since 1932 by the McLaughlin family.

Following John Henry’s death in 1937, three bachelor sons - Earl, George, and Lester.- continued to work the dairy.

Vachon, J., photographer. (1941) Milking cows.

Before 1948, that meant farmers like the Feltz’s were filling milk cans — which could weigh 110 pounds each — and lugging them to a storage area, then loading them onto a truck once it was time for delivery.

In 1949, he completely renovated his milk barn, turning it into an innovative, stainless steel facility with a sophisticated, automated walk-through milking system.

They operated the dairy farm until the early 1950’s, at which time all of the farm’s livestock was disbursed.

In the 1960’s John’s grandparents demolished several of the unused buildings, including the beautiful milk barn, due to the high cost of maintenance and insurance.

After Larry’s death in 1966, daughter Joan and her husband, Gil Faulkner, became the third generation to run the dairy and raise a family in the farmhouse.

In 1977 the farm was incorporated as, “Glendale Farms”.

In 1978, Dale and June made the decision to grow strawberries and began with an eight acre parcel which ultimately expanded to twenty five.

In 1980 John and Cathie bought the farm and shortly thereafter reintroduced farm animals, including beef cattle, horses, sheep, chickens and turkeys.

The McLaughlin’s introduced Highland cattle in 2001.

When the garage was re-built in 2003 several bottles from other dairies were found, but unfortunately none from Sharp’s Dairy.

In 2005, Steve and Tammy built a modern free stall barn and milking parlor to expand the dairy herd to 210 cows.

Since 2013, Culver’s and guests like you have teamed up to support agricultural education programs that encourage smart farming.

According to the latest USDA reports, more than 3,200 United States dairy farms closed in 2019, as making a profit from selling milk became more challenging.

Answer: Culver’s served over 7 million gallons of Fresh Frozen Custard in 2020.

© 2021 American Dairy Association North East.