Each year the Southeast Museum installs a new historical exhibit, for 2009 the exhibition is on Gail Borden and his Brewster Milk Factory. Please share your Borden Milk stories with us.
This Borden Milk poster was designed by Denis Castelli.
Gail Borden and Condensed Milk
The mid-nineteenth century was a time of unique invention amidst turbulent times. Food preservation consisted of salting, drying, and smoking. Knowledge of the spread of disease and germs was limited. The lack of well-preserved food made traveling precarious. Prospect gold miners heading to California often arrived malnourished and weak. Families traveling westward searching for new opportunities faced the same perils. Children and infants suffered from the lack of fresh pure milk often developing aliments that would follow them their adult life. Into this world came Gail Borden with his invention for condensed milk which gave strength and nourishment to thousands of Union Soldiers during the Civil War and provided a healthy diet for infants and children. Gail Borden started a revolutionary process in the food industry.
During the return voyage from England, Borden witnessed babies dying from impure milk. Confident he could save victims from impure milk; Borden experimented for many years. The problem lay in preserving milk from impurities while keeping its taste. The years of experimenting were filled with failure and debt. Borden’s break came while he was experimenting at the Shaker Colony laboratory in Lebanon, New York. He discovered evaporating milk in a vacuum at low temperature protected the milk from air and impurities while avoiding scalding the milk. Borden learned by trail and error that extreme cleanliness was necessary to preserve food.
Eager to start mass-producing his new product Borden encountered three years of bureaucratic red tape at the United States Patent Office. Describing the need for concentrated milk Borden wrote, “Like blood milk is a living fluid, and as soon as drawn from the cow begins to die, change and decompose.” He ended his patent with,” My process will cause milk to become in as general and common use as sugar.” Finally proving the validity of his process, Borden received his first patent in August 1856. With his patent and determination Borden opened his first Condensed Milk factory in Wolcottville Connecticut (now Torrington) in 1856. Unable to secure financial stability the Wolcotville plant was forced to close in the same year.
New York Condensed Milk Company
One day on a chance railroad journey, Borden met New York City merchant Jeremiah Milbank. Borden explained his invention and financial troubles to Milbank. Soon the two became partners; Milbank supplied the necessary capital and shared in the company’s responsibilities. The partners changed the company name in 1858 to the New York Condensed Milk Company and opened a factory in Burville, Connecticut. A marketing campaign to inform the public about the purity of Borden’s condensed milk was initiated. Borden placed the company’s first advertisement in Leslie’s Illustrated, a popular magazine of the era. Even with advertisements in popular papers, introducing consumers to this new milk product proved difficult. Then the outbreak of the Civil War created a massive demand for condensed milk and sales rocketed. In 1861 the United States government ordered 500 pounds of condensed milk to feed the Union soldiers. As public demand for this “safe milk” increased new factories were built. These early plants were small and inefficient. In order to meet the Union army demands Borden allowed other milk companies to use his patent and trademark. In 1863 two companies began producing condensed milk using the Borden trademark; the Rokomeka Company in Livermore Falls, Maine and the Baltimore Condensed Milk Company in York, Pennsylvania. Borden and Milbank opened a factory in Brewster, New York in 1863. Brewster was the ideal location with good diary land and a short four-hour rail link to New York City. Gail Borden referred to the Brewster factory as his “perfect plant.”
The Brewster factory produced both Borden’s Condensed and Eagle Brand Milk. The plant was Borden’s first completely successful condensery laying the foundation for his company’s growth. As a major supplier for the Union Army during the war the Brewster factory was constructed as a marvel of technology and efficiency.
Built along the East Branch of the Croton River at a mill site once owned by Zenas and Demas Doane, (now the intersection of Routes 6 and 22). The Borden factory site had a source of waterpower, proximity to productive dairy land, and a railroad link to a major distribution center. These attributes lent to the factory’s productivity and efficiency.
The new plant utilized 80,000 quarts of fresh milk a day producing 20,000 quarts of condensed milk. The Borden plant purchased milk from about 200 farmers who owned approximately 5,000 cows. This enormous demand led to a dramatic increase in the number of dairy herds kept in Southeast, Carmel, and nearby Connecticut. Farmers had to adhere to Borden’s strict sanitary standards. A farmer’s milk house; equipment and cows were subject to inspection by Borden officials. These standards became the basis of sanitation law in the modern milk industry.
The mid-nineteenth century was a time of unique invention amidst turbulent times. Food preservation consisted of salting, drying, and smoking. Knowledge of the spread of disease and germs was limited. The lack of well-preserved food made traveling precarious. Prospect gold miners heading to California often arrived malnourished and weak. Families traveling westward searching for new opportunities faced the same perils. Children and infants suffered from the lack of fresh pure milk often developing aliments that would follow them their adult life. Into this world came Gail Borden with his invention for condensed milk which gave strength and nourishment to thousands of Union Soldiers during the Civil War and provided a healthy diet for infants and children. Gail Borden started a revolutionary process in the food industry.
During the return voyage from England, Borden witnessed babies dying from impure milk. Confident he could save victims from impure milk; Borden experimented for many years. The problem lay in preserving milk from impurities while keeping its taste. The years of experimenting were filled with failure and debt. Borden’s break came while he was experimenting at the Shaker Colony laboratory in Lebanon, New York. He discovered evaporating milk in a vacuum at low temperature protected the milk from air and impurities while avoiding scalding the milk. Borden learned by trail and error that extreme cleanliness was necessary to preserve food.
Eager to start mass-producing his new product Borden encountered three years of bureaucratic red tape at the United States Patent Office. Describing the need for concentrated milk Borden wrote, “Like blood milk is a living fluid, and as soon as drawn from the cow begins to die, change and decompose.” He ended his patent with,” My process will cause milk to become in as general and common use as sugar.” Finally proving the validity of his process, Borden received his first patent in August 1856. With his patent and determination Borden opened his first Condensed Milk factory in Wolcottville Connecticut (now Torrington) in 1856. Unable to secure financial stability the Wolcotville plant was forced to close in the same year.
New York Condensed Milk Company
One day on a chance railroad journey, Borden met New York City merchant Jeremiah Milbank. Borden explained his invention and financial troubles to Milbank. Soon the two became partners; Milbank supplied the necessary capital and shared in the company’s responsibilities. The partners changed the company name in 1858 to the New York Condensed Milk Company and opened a factory in Burville, Connecticut. A marketing campaign to inform the public about the purity of Borden’s condensed milk was initiated. Borden placed the company’s first advertisement in Leslie’s Illustrated, a popular magazine of the era. Even with advertisements in popular papers, introducing consumers to this new milk product proved difficult. Then the outbreak of the Civil War created a massive demand for condensed milk and sales rocketed. In 1861 the United States government ordered 500 pounds of condensed milk to feed the Union soldiers. As public demand for this “safe milk” increased new factories were built. These early plants were small and inefficient. In order to meet the Union army demands Borden allowed other milk companies to use his patent and trademark. In 1863 two companies began producing condensed milk using the Borden trademark; the Rokomeka Company in Livermore Falls, Maine and the Baltimore Condensed Milk Company in York, Pennsylvania. Borden and Milbank opened a factory in Brewster, New York in 1863. Brewster was the ideal location with good diary land and a short four-hour rail link to New York City. Gail Borden referred to the Brewster factory as his “perfect plant.”
The Brewster factory produced both Borden’s Condensed and Eagle Brand Milk. The plant was Borden’s first completely successful condensery laying the foundation for his company’s growth. As a major supplier for the Union Army during the war the Brewster factory was constructed as a marvel of technology and efficiency.
Built along the East Branch of the Croton River at a mill site once owned by Zenas and Demas Doane, (now the intersection of Routes 6 and 22). The Borden factory site had a source of waterpower, proximity to productive dairy land, and a railroad link to a major distribution center. These attributes lent to the factory’s productivity and efficiency.
The new plant utilized 80,000 quarts of fresh milk a day producing 20,000 quarts of condensed milk. The Borden plant purchased milk from about 200 farmers who owned approximately 5,000 cows. This enormous demand led to a dramatic increase in the number of dairy herds kept in Southeast, Carmel, and nearby Connecticut. Farmers had to adhere to Borden’s strict sanitary standards. A farmer’s milk house; equipment and cows were subject to inspection by Borden officials. These standards became the basis of sanitation law in the modern milk industry.
The need to rid people of sickness was Gail Borden’s inspiration for pursuing food preservation. After years of failed attempts, Borden succeeded in Brewster, New York. The impact of Borden’s factory on the local economy was tremendous. The factory supported the dairy industry; the railroads as well as the one hundred employees, fifty of these workers being women.
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