Era's Over For Large Dairy Farms in Transylvania County

In the early 1940s Transylvania County’s two commercial dairies, Eastview and Sunnyside, both sold to larger dairies that operated in southwestern North Carolina.

Pet Dairy Products Company, which was one of the largest dairy companies in the world, had purchased and expanded Western Carolina Creamery in Waynesville in 1936.  In March 1941 Pet Dairy bought the Eastview Dairy including their equipment and business interests from Frank and Lewis Osborne.  They bought milk from local farmers, storing it at the Brevard facility, then trucked it to the Waynesville plant for pasteurization.   Pet Dairy products, including their popular ice cream, were sold throughout the region.  Frank Osborne continue to serve as the dairy’s manager.

Also in 1941 A.B. Slagle, owner of the Nantahala Creamery in Franklin, purchased the Sunnyside Dairy from W. Davis Glazener and sons.  A few months later, Slagle announced that he would construct a pasteurizing plant on the north side of Brevard across from Brevard College.  The new facility, named Transylvania Dairies, opened in the Spring of 1942. 

Transylvania Dairies purchased Grade “A” raw milk from local dairy farmers for pasteurized milk and a variety of other dairy products, including butter, buttermilk and cream.  Their products were sold at dozens of grocery stores and used in restaurants and soda shops throughout the county. 

In September 1942, Pet Dairy announced that the cost of gasoline and tires was making it unprofitable to transport milk to their Waynesville plant and therefore they had sold their milk business in Transylvania County to Transylvania Dairies.  Transylvania Dairies continued to distribute the popular Pet Ice Cream.

The Southern Dairies facility located across from Brevard College,
near the intersection of Caldwell & Broad streets, 1947.

In December 1945 Slagle sold the facility to Southern Dairies who introduced paper containers for milk, cream and buttermilk to the Brevard market.  This eliminated the need to pay a deposit for bottles or to wash and return bottles.  Southern Dairies continued to purchase milk from local farmers to be processed at their Brevard facility. 

A Southern Dairies Sealtest truck
collects milk from a Little River farm in 1957.

A June 1962 list of dairymen who sold their milk to Southern Dairies included Howard Gosnell, J.W. McGuire, Frank Merrill, Charles and Lewis Osborne, Heyward Ramsey, W.T. Whitmire, Shipman Whitmire, J.C. and N.B. Wood and Freeman Nicholson.

Southern Dairies operated the Brevard business through the late 1960s.  Ralph Parrish served as the manager of Transylvania Dairies and Southern Dairies for about 30 years.

Photographs and information for this column are provided by the Rowell Bosse North Carolina Room, Transylvania County Library. Visit the NC Room during regular library hours (Monday-Friday) to learn more about our history and see additional photographs. For more information, comments, or suggestions contact Marcy at marcy.thompson@transylvaniacounty.org or 828-884-1820.