Object Record
Images
Metadata
Object Name |
Tray, Serving |
Catalog Number |
2023.011.04 |
Description |
Advertising tray from Dolly Madison. Round, silver metal tray with blue text and Dolly Madison silhouette logo. Text reads "Dolly Madison SELECTED ICE CREAM." |
Provenance |
Located at Front and Main streets in downtown La Crosse, the Dolly Madison Dairy began in 1919 as the Tri-State Ice Cream Corp., a company formed from two earlier companies. In 1939, the company’s name became Dolly Madison, in honor of President James Madison’s wife, Dolley, who was the first person to serve ice cream in the White House. By 1964, Dolly Madison employed 90 workers who processed and provided home delivery of milk and other dairy products. The company shipped its line through much of Wisconsin, Minnesota, Iowa and Illinois and operated branches in Eau Claire and Reedsburg. The company’s plant on Front Street remained active during the record flood of 1965, but shortly after that the operations were moved to Gateway Industrial Court. The company soon became a part of Marigold Foods and later was absorbed by Kemp’s. Dolly Madison Dairy is last listed in the 1979 directory. |
Owned By |
Donald Baird |
Material |
Metal |
People |
Baird, Donald |
Subjects |
Businesses Food |
Search Terms |
Dolly Madison Dairies |
Notes |
A year after Don and Ruth Baird were married in 1959, Don left his job at the La Crosse Rubber Mills and began driving a truck delivering Dolly Madison Dairy products. Thirty-eight years later, he retired from that job, still driving a truck and delivering dairy products, though his work day had been considerably adapted to meet the needs of 1998. Through those years, Don Baird witnessed many changes in the dairy industry. He began his career delivering milk to households on a route in the La Crosse area. At the time (1960), there were seven dairies operating in La Crosse, and many households had milk delivered directly to their homes by the neighborhood milkman. A milkman’s retail route consisted of up to 200 homes and a few small businesses in a designated section of the city or county. Many people had an insulated metal box on their doorstep or porch where the milkman placed glass milk bottles and other dairy products that the homeowner had previously ordered. He also retrieved empty bottles to be cleaned and re-used, collected orders for the next delivery day and picked up cash or a check left for payment. The milkman knew many of his customers on a first-name basis; sometimes, he even had coffee and chatted with them for a few minutes. Some people knew him well enough to have him deliver milk right into their refrigerator. Dolly Madison began about 1930 as a brand of ice cream made by the well-established Tri-State Ice Cream Corporation of La Crosse. By 1938, the brand had become so popular that Tri-State registered the name Dolly Madison Dairy with the state of Wisconsin and began operating its business under that name. In 1946, the dairy became a charter member of the Quality Chekd Ice Cream Association, a cooperative group of dairies that submitted their products for independent testing to check the quality and purity of their products. This earned each member the right to use the Quality Chekd symbol on their packaging. Dolly Madison continued to grow, and by 1964, the company employed 90 workers who processed and provided home delivery of milk and other dairy products. The company shipped its line throughout much of Wisconsin, Minnesota, and Iowa and operated branches in Eau Claire and Reedsburg. The world of the 1960s and Don Baird’s early employment with the company was much different from the early years of Dolly Madison. In the 1930s and 1940s, many homes only had iceboxes for cold food storage. Regular ice delivery was necessary to keep the iceboxes cool, making lengthy, safe storage of milk riskier. By the time Don Baird began his delivery route, almost every home had a reliable refrigerator in their kitchen. Families of the 1960s were shopping for food in spacious supermarkets that kept large coolers and freezers to hold dairy products. Glass bottles were less common because lightweight paper cartons were taking their place. Modern methods of packing, shipping, and preservation made buying dairy products just as convenient as shopping for any other packaged food. Home delivery of milk was slowing down and becoming less cost-effective for the consumer. By the mid-1970s, Dolly Madison and most other dairies had eliminated home delivery service. The company merged with Marigold Foods of Rochester, Minnesota, in the late 1960s and was later absorbed by Kemps. Dolly Madison Dairy is last listed in the 1979 La Crosse City Directory as a "Division of Marigold Foods." Through it all, Don Baird continued to drive trucks for Dolly Madison, Marigold Foods, and Kemps. His trucks became much bigger than the small delivery truck he drove from house to house in 1960. His customers were no longer individual homeowners but grocery stores, restaurants, schools, hospitals, and service stations spread over a much larger area, whether his route was in Trempealeau County, southeastern Minnesota, or across the state of Wisconsin to Shawano. He worked a long day, beginning in the wee hours of the morning, and was often on the road for 12 to 15 hours, driving through all kinds of weather, loading and unloading heavy cases of dairy products, and keeping track of every sale. Don’s family referred to him as "a Dolly Man" because he never forgot his roots with Dolly Madison. Over the years, Don collected many items that had the Dolly Madison brand on them: bottles, containers, promotional giveaways, and advertising items, all with the familiar red Quality Chekd logo. He displayed his collection on several shelves in the downstairs recreation room at his home. Don passed away in 2019. Earlier this year, his wife Ruth and her family donated much of Don’s collection from this iconic La Crosse business to LCHS. |