Jar Paddle Butter Churn

On display is a Jar Paddle Butter Churn from the early to mid-20th century. The Churn consists of a glass jar to hold the butter mixture, dual padded that is connected to a pole that is connected to gears that is further connected to a wooden handle that spins the paddle. The manufacturer and manufacturing dates are unknown. Small glass churns, like the one on display, became popular for home use in the early 1900s, allowing households to produce smaller quantities of butter. However, the demand for such churns saw a sharp decline in the late 1920s and during the Great Depression, and people moved from farms to towns. After World War II, while small hand-crank glass churns were still used for household butter production, they faced competition from electric counterparts and commercial mechanical churns developed in Europe for larger dairy operations.

Firstly, milk was milked from the cows and collected in a pail. Then the milk was set in milk pans in the dairy and left for a day for the cream to rise to the surface. The cream was skimmed off and put in a container in a cold place, like a cellar or pantry. This was done for several days in a row until enough cream had been collected to make butter. The cream was left to sour at that time. This helped the butter to separate from the milk when it was churned. The cream was often left out for a while before churning so that it could reach room temperature. After the butter formed balls, the buttermilk drained off and the butter was rinsed using clean water in the plunger. The butter was scooped out of the churn and put in the butter worker (also called a butter roller). This was a shallow wooden trough with a fluted roller that rolled up and down the trough when the handle was turned. Then water was added to the butter and then squeezed it out using a butter worker. This was done repeatedly until all the buttermilk had been removed. When the water ran clear, the butter was clean. Lastly, the butter was squeezed to get rid of the water and air that could make it go mouldy. Then salt was added and mixed to preserve the butter. Finally, the butter was made into brick shapes using butter pats on a wooden board, and printed with a stamp. Then it was ready to eat or to sell.