| Additional Information: | HABS WI-310. PHOTOGRAPHS 9/18,20 ARE FILED WITH THE FOX RIVER VALLEY NEGATIVES.
HAER INVENTORY (08/1979) [The HAER Inventory marks the date of construction as 1917-23]:
The tallest building of the Fairmont Foods Co. plant is a five-story, flat-roofed structure with brick exterior and reinforced concrete construction. It originally was rectangular-shaped, measured approximately 100' x 62' and was used as a cold storage house. In 1923 a five-story building of similar construction and measuring approximately 50' x 50' was added on the original building's northeast side. By 1934, the entire five-story facility was being used to manufacture butter, cheese and other dairy products and contained large storage vaults. Other smaller buildings connected to the five-story facility are rectangular in shape and one to three stories in height, with brick exterior, flat roofs and at least partial concrete floor, steel truss and gypsum slab construction.
The Fairmont Creamery Co. was founded at Fairmont, Neb. in 1884. In 1915 the firm began operations in Green Bay under the name Green Bay Cheese Co. Two years later the name was changed to the Fairmont Creamery Co. and the five-story building was constructed. At that time, the company expanded its operations to commercial cold storage, eggs and egg storage. The firm in 1917 also had ice machinery in a one-story brick building on the site of the 1923 addition to the five story facility. In 1919 a creamery department was added and an addition was erected to house a power plant. In 1925 Fairmont purchased the green Bay Ice Cream and Dairy and expanded to the retail mild and ice cream fields. As of 1934, the compnay employed 140 persons. The compnay today makes milk, ice cream and cottage cheese under the "Fairmont" label.
cheese factory |
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| Bibliographic References: | (A.) Sanborn Insurance map of Green Bay, 1917 (p. 64), 1934 (p. 64).
(B.) Cutline to series of photographs titled "Largest Dairy Plant in Section Operates Here," GREEN BAY PRESS GAZETTE, July 18, 1934, Wisconsing Tercentennial Edition, p. 18, Food Section, col. 2.
(C.) Advertisement for Fairmont Creamery Co., Green Bay Press-Gazette, July 18, 1934, Wisconsin Tercentennial Edition, p. 18, Food Section.
(D.) "Fairmont Co. Manufactures All Products," GREEN BAY PRESS- GAZETTE, July 18, 1934, Wisconsin Tercentennial Edition, p. 18, Food Section, col. 1.
(E.) Bruce Church, plant manager, interviewed by Bill Meindl, 09/18/1980. |
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