Historical Images of Porter County

Telephone 7. Kouts Creamery & Produce, Martin Walters, Prop. Cash Buyers of Cream Poultry and Eggs. Erie and Pan Handle Railroads.
Kouts, Indiana

Date: 1915
Source Type: Postcard
Publisher, Printer, Photographer: G. B. Company
Postmark: None
Collection: Steven R. Shook
Remark: The original Kouts Creamery was completely destroyed by a tornado on May 26, 1917. The reverse of this postcard is dated November 20, 1915. The reverse is also printed with the following text: "Why churn butter at home when we pay 34 cts. for butterfat this week? Change in price effective every Tuesday morning. Each can of cream paid for as received. We give you correct test. Above price one cts. higher than Elgin. Yours truly, Kouts Creamery & Produce." The following brief history of the Kouts Creamery was published in the Kouts Centennial souvenir program in 1965: "A group of 68 townsmen and farmers led by a better business promoter pooled their resources and built the Kouts Creamery in 1912 with P. O. Norris current bank cashier as secretary-treasurer. It always operated on the brink of broke, never paid dividends and the stockholders finally sold out to Martin Walters whose sons continued the business. They shortly went over the brink and the building was taken over by the Bowman Dairy in 1925. This place hummed with activity and was a "shot in the arm" to both business and the farmer. Farmers hauled milk for a radius of twenty miles to the dairy where it was tested, cooled, and piped into thermos trucks for its journey to Chicago. Dairy managers included Ed Capouch, George Mathews, Harvey Lloyd, Harry Carr, and Ed Knopinski who succeeded each other in that order. Chris Daumer, owner and manager of the thermos trucks, bought and renovated the former Ford garage built by George Knoll. Some of the faithful drivers were Don Rhynard, Clarence Sommers, George Talbutt, Leon Henderson, Vernon (Gangle) Burns, and George Wilson. With newer methods of milk handling, Bowman Dairy closed in November of 1951. Heinhold Elevator bought the building and use it as a storage place."

Return to Kouts Miscellaneous Images Index
Return to Porter County Photographs & Historical Images

Please contact the Porter County GenWeb Coordinator if
you can provide any additional information concerning this image.

Image and related text prepared by Steven R. Shook