ABSTRACT
Distinct breeds of cattle and the commercial production of milk were slow to be established in the United States. Although utility cows were kept on most farms, their milk and milk products were consumed locally. Calves were permitted to suckle much longer than the modern dairyman would allow much milk was made into butter and cheese for household use and for commercial sale, and some was fed to hogs. Farmers close to cities were the first to introduce milk breeds. Prior to the building of the railroads and the running of the milk trains, most farm-produced milk was consumed as sweet milk on the farm or made into butter and cheese, the sour, skim, or butter milk being fed to the hogs. Cheese making was a trade that required careful attention to details, an art that had to be cultivated with long-continued practice.
