HISTORY OF
CAMPBELL’S PIONEER DAIRY
(website created by Sarah Campbell ~ Newton's great granddaughter)
Newton Campbell was the only child of James and Jennie Campbell. He was born on July 28, 1842 in Cherry Valley in Butler County, Pennsylvania. The Campbells and Allisons lived on neighboring farms. Newton married Eliza Nancy Allison on June 5, 1862. Their grand-daughter recalls seeing photographs of them saying they were a very handsome couple. During their ten years of married life, they had four children:
Lowrie Curtis 1863 - 1865
Emma Verlinda 1864 - 1942
Howard 1866 - 1955
Norman Robert 1869 - 1953
Eliza died on October 29, 1872. In the year following her death, Newton started courting the eldest daughter of Franklin and Anne Kuhn Jamison, but the beauty and personality of her younger sister, Mary, caught and held his attention. Newton and Mary Emma Jamison were married on September 30, 1873. They had thirteen children:
James Franklin 1874 – 1952
Walter Lowrie 1876 – 1939
Jennie 1877 – 1923
Ella 1879 – 1947
James Garfield 1881 – 1956
John Jamison 1882 – 1971
William Porter 1884 - 1904
Ralph Emerson 1885 – 1967
Harriet 1887 – 1914
Thomas Parks 1890 – 1974
Sarah Catharine 1892 – 1962
Jay Porter 1895 – 1968
Mary Alice 1898 – 1972
As the family grew, it became apparent that either farming or education would need to be provided for the children. Newton decided to purchase a large 640-acre farm in Kansas, known for its rich farmland. Newton had needed to stay over in Kansas because of the train schedule and on the Sabbath day he observed all of the farmers working out in the fields. He refused to raise a family in such an ungodly land, sold at a loss and returned home. As the story goes, Newton had shaved off his beard while in Kansas. When he returned home, his family (and the dog) did not recognize him so he grew the beard back and never shaved it off again.
In 1880 Newton and his family moved to Grove City, Pennsylvania in Mercer County. At that time, Newton was reported to have $17,000 cash, a relatively large amount in those days. He bought the farm where the IOOF (Independent Order of Odd Fellows) home was later built, as well as much of what is now the upper part of the Grove City College campus. He moved his wife and seven children into a log cabin located on the property. The children went to country school, helped with the chores, and kept the Sabbath Day. Norman, at age ten, hammered out tools in the small blacksmith shop on the farm while he was learning the blacksmith trade in town. In the spring of 1890 Mary gave birth to their thirteenth child, Thomas Parks. The log cabin had begun to settle and the walls were cracking due to undermining. In the fall of that year, the family moved into the house Newton built on a farm he had purchased from O. P. McCoy. This farm consisted of 66 acres primarily supporting some 90 sheep in small paddocks. The land was poor and drainage was a problem, sheep having eaten all but the roots. It was on this farm in 1910 the Campbell milk business started when neighbors, after seeing the cows were turned out for evening pasture, would come with their own small containers for their dairy milk. Newton believed that the sale of any milk except from a Jersey cow was un-Christian and dishonest. He kept a fine herd of all Jersey cows and high grade work horses.
(excerpt from the Newton Campbell Family History, written by Harold and Martha Campbell): “It was decided to improve the land through tiling and liming. Limestone had to be quarried, hauled by wagon and burned. Tile was hauled from Hilliards in Butler County. Manure was provided from the local livery stable for the removing. Apple, peach, pear orchards and small fruits were planted. Very early, six cows provided extra milk which was delivered by the older children in half-gallon buckets across the pasture. Early customers remember Newton Campbell delivering milk by buggy in milk bottles before the turn of the century. Strawberries were picked by a crew of women and girls at 1½ ¢ per quart and sold, along with other produce, at 3 quarts for 25¢. Newton Campbell cradled the grain and the boys raked and tied it by hand to be threshed later. Hay was cut by horse-drawn mowing machine, cured in the cock and pitched by hand. With at least 10 mouths to feed, times were hard and required early acquaintance with work rather than the leisurely diversions of today’s young people. At 8 years of age the boys carried coal for grates, cookstove, and lifted ashes. At 10 years, they were promoted to feeding the calves and pigs. At 12 years, they were cleaning cow stables, feeding cows corn fodder and ½ bushel of cut up pumpkins per cow. By 14 years, they were men, feeding, carrying, harnessing the horses for the day’s work, as well as cleaning horse stalls. By 16 years, they would take the team out and work all day long behind the plow or fitting the soil and planting crops.”
At haying with a hay cock on a pitch for two men, the six foot husky sons filled the air with huge forkfuls of hay.
With such a large family, the farm provided an abundance of good food for all. Dozens of loaves of bread were baked in the old brick dutch oven out in the back yard which was heated by a roaring wood fire. The huge copper kettle bubbled with gallons of applebutter. The hogs were butchered and “head meat” hash was the treat along with the buckwheat cakes served year round from the great crock of batter.
Mary Campbell died on June 5, 1920. Newton’s son, Tom, married Charlotte Reed on July 14 that same year. He purchased the farm from his father and maintained the dairy herd and the buggy and wagon delivery route. Newton and the rest of the family moved into town at this point in time.
The milk wagons were drawn by Old Maud or Pete and delivery was done in sections in and around Grove City. Trade was increased through rich milk and cream for which Campbell’s Pioneer Dairy became known. Stanchions and silos were added to the new barn. The original barn had burned down in 1914.
Milk bottles were washed by hand in the kitchen and later in the cellar until 1921 when they first started sterilizing by machine. They purchased their first milking machine in 1923. Milk sold for 8¢ a quart during the depression.
Tom’s children, born in 1923 (Reed), 1925 (Harold), 1926 (William), and 1929 (Frances Anne) started with chores early in life, following in the footsteps of their father, aunts and uncles. By then, the farm had hired help so the sense of responsibility was not as keen as it was for the earlier generation. At the age of three, Reed recalls riding on the high horse and wagon, seated next to his father as Old Maud pulled them through the delivery route. At about 11 or 12 years of age, the boys were helping with milk delivery, rising at 3 a.m. in the summer. Reed remembers Pete (the horse) knowing the way, not needing any guidance at all.
(excerpt from the Newton Campbell Family History, written by Harold and Martha Campbell): "Training was mostly by example. One watched to see how to do a job and then tried to guess whether it had been done right or appreciated. The pressure of work and lack of adequate rest left no time for companionship between father and sons. The boys were given a free hand in learning and operating tractors and field equipment. Things mechanical seemed to come naturally and held more attraction than working with animals. The least attractive job was hoeing corn or pulling weeds in oats or hayfields. We seemed to have more than our share, probably due to the livery stable manure that had been used earlier. We were taught to hate weeds, and with good reason, too. For it took several weeks per spring rooting out the yellow weed which spread over the countryside in the 40’s.”
Bill bought the farm from his father in 1960, but his father continued to work the farm as he had for so many years. Harold wrote in 1965, “Father now is in his seventies, still carries on with the duties of the farm. The cows, which still provide much milk for the customers of Pioneer Dairy, take a great many working hours of each day. But as we look in the barn we see long hours of work raising many of these animals for production and high hopes for the coming years.”
Thomas Parks Campbell died on November 11, 1974 (Veteran’s Day)
Campbell’s Pioneer Dairy ceased processing milk in 1976.
Bill Campbell sold the dairy to Turner Dairy in 1987.
* * * * *
From Tom Campbell’s obituary:
Mr. Campbell, owner of Campbell’s Pioneer Dairy for more than 45 years, retired from his lifetime farming career in 1966, after serving five generations of area residents.
Campbell’s Pioneer Dairy – symbolized by a covered wagon trademark – dates back to the middle 1800’s when his father, Newton Campbell, came from North Washington, Pa. and bought a farm later purchased by the Grove City Independent Order of Odd Fellows. The Campbell and IOOF farms, along with farms owned by the King and Cornelius families comprise a block of land that was a Revolutionary War grant and later owned by O. P. McCoy .
Lowrie Curtis 1863 - 1865
Emma Verlinda 1864 - 1942
Howard 1866 - 1955
Norman Robert 1869 - 1953
Eliza died on October 29, 1872. In the year following her death, Newton started courting the eldest daughter of Franklin and Anne Kuhn Jamison, but the beauty and personality of her younger sister, Mary, caught and held his attention. Newton and Mary Emma Jamison were married on September 30, 1873. They had thirteen children:
James Franklin 1874 – 1952
Walter Lowrie 1876 – 1939
Jennie 1877 – 1923
Ella 1879 – 1947
James Garfield 1881 – 1956
John Jamison 1882 – 1971
William Porter 1884 - 1904
Ralph Emerson 1885 – 1967
Harriet 1887 – 1914
Thomas Parks 1890 – 1974
Sarah Catharine 1892 – 1962
Jay Porter 1895 – 1968
Mary Alice 1898 – 1972
As the family grew, it became apparent that either farming or education would need to be provided for the children. Newton decided to purchase a large 640-acre farm in Kansas, known for its rich farmland. Newton had needed to stay over in Kansas because of the train schedule and on the Sabbath day he observed all of the farmers working out in the fields. He refused to raise a family in such an ungodly land, sold at a loss and returned home. As the story goes, Newton had shaved off his beard while in Kansas. When he returned home, his family (and the dog) did not recognize him so he grew the beard back and never shaved it off again.
In 1880 Newton and his family moved to Grove City, Pennsylvania in Mercer County. At that time, Newton was reported to have $17,000 cash, a relatively large amount in those days. He bought the farm where the IOOF (Independent Order of Odd Fellows) home was later built, as well as much of what is now the upper part of the Grove City College campus. He moved his wife and seven children into a log cabin located on the property. The children went to country school, helped with the chores, and kept the Sabbath Day. Norman, at age ten, hammered out tools in the small blacksmith shop on the farm while he was learning the blacksmith trade in town. In the spring of 1890 Mary gave birth to their thirteenth child, Thomas Parks. The log cabin had begun to settle and the walls were cracking due to undermining. In the fall of that year, the family moved into the house Newton built on a farm he had purchased from O. P. McCoy. This farm consisted of 66 acres primarily supporting some 90 sheep in small paddocks. The land was poor and drainage was a problem, sheep having eaten all but the roots. It was on this farm in 1910 the Campbell milk business started when neighbors, after seeing the cows were turned out for evening pasture, would come with their own small containers for their dairy milk. Newton believed that the sale of any milk except from a Jersey cow was un-Christian and dishonest. He kept a fine herd of all Jersey cows and high grade work horses.
(excerpt from the Newton Campbell Family History, written by Harold and Martha Campbell): “It was decided to improve the land through tiling and liming. Limestone had to be quarried, hauled by wagon and burned. Tile was hauled from Hilliards in Butler County. Manure was provided from the local livery stable for the removing. Apple, peach, pear orchards and small fruits were planted. Very early, six cows provided extra milk which was delivered by the older children in half-gallon buckets across the pasture. Early customers remember Newton Campbell delivering milk by buggy in milk bottles before the turn of the century. Strawberries were picked by a crew of women and girls at 1½ ¢ per quart and sold, along with other produce, at 3 quarts for 25¢. Newton Campbell cradled the grain and the boys raked and tied it by hand to be threshed later. Hay was cut by horse-drawn mowing machine, cured in the cock and pitched by hand. With at least 10 mouths to feed, times were hard and required early acquaintance with work rather than the leisurely diversions of today’s young people. At 8 years of age the boys carried coal for grates, cookstove, and lifted ashes. At 10 years, they were promoted to feeding the calves and pigs. At 12 years, they were cleaning cow stables, feeding cows corn fodder and ½ bushel of cut up pumpkins per cow. By 14 years, they were men, feeding, carrying, harnessing the horses for the day’s work, as well as cleaning horse stalls. By 16 years, they would take the team out and work all day long behind the plow or fitting the soil and planting crops.”
At haying with a hay cock on a pitch for two men, the six foot husky sons filled the air with huge forkfuls of hay.
With such a large family, the farm provided an abundance of good food for all. Dozens of loaves of bread were baked in the old brick dutch oven out in the back yard which was heated by a roaring wood fire. The huge copper kettle bubbled with gallons of applebutter. The hogs were butchered and “head meat” hash was the treat along with the buckwheat cakes served year round from the great crock of batter.
Mary Campbell died on June 5, 1920. Newton’s son, Tom, married Charlotte Reed on July 14 that same year. He purchased the farm from his father and maintained the dairy herd and the buggy and wagon delivery route. Newton and the rest of the family moved into town at this point in time.
The milk wagons were drawn by Old Maud or Pete and delivery was done in sections in and around Grove City. Trade was increased through rich milk and cream for which Campbell’s Pioneer Dairy became known. Stanchions and silos were added to the new barn. The original barn had burned down in 1914.
Milk bottles were washed by hand in the kitchen and later in the cellar until 1921 when they first started sterilizing by machine. They purchased their first milking machine in 1923. Milk sold for 8¢ a quart during the depression.
Tom’s children, born in 1923 (Reed), 1925 (Harold), 1926 (William), and 1929 (Frances Anne) started with chores early in life, following in the footsteps of their father, aunts and uncles. By then, the farm had hired help so the sense of responsibility was not as keen as it was for the earlier generation. At the age of three, Reed recalls riding on the high horse and wagon, seated next to his father as Old Maud pulled them through the delivery route. At about 11 or 12 years of age, the boys were helping with milk delivery, rising at 3 a.m. in the summer. Reed remembers Pete (the horse) knowing the way, not needing any guidance at all.
(excerpt from the Newton Campbell Family History, written by Harold and Martha Campbell): "Training was mostly by example. One watched to see how to do a job and then tried to guess whether it had been done right or appreciated. The pressure of work and lack of adequate rest left no time for companionship between father and sons. The boys were given a free hand in learning and operating tractors and field equipment. Things mechanical seemed to come naturally and held more attraction than working with animals. The least attractive job was hoeing corn or pulling weeds in oats or hayfields. We seemed to have more than our share, probably due to the livery stable manure that had been used earlier. We were taught to hate weeds, and with good reason, too. For it took several weeks per spring rooting out the yellow weed which spread over the countryside in the 40’s.”
Bill bought the farm from his father in 1960, but his father continued to work the farm as he had for so many years. Harold wrote in 1965, “Father now is in his seventies, still carries on with the duties of the farm. The cows, which still provide much milk for the customers of Pioneer Dairy, take a great many working hours of each day. But as we look in the barn we see long hours of work raising many of these animals for production and high hopes for the coming years.”
Thomas Parks Campbell died on November 11, 1974 (Veteran’s Day)
Campbell’s Pioneer Dairy ceased processing milk in 1976.
Bill Campbell sold the dairy to Turner Dairy in 1987.
* * * * *
From Tom Campbell’s obituary:
Mr. Campbell, owner of Campbell’s Pioneer Dairy for more than 45 years, retired from his lifetime farming career in 1966, after serving five generations of area residents.
Campbell’s Pioneer Dairy – symbolized by a covered wagon trademark – dates back to the middle 1800’s when his father, Newton Campbell, came from North Washington, Pa. and bought a farm later purchased by the Grove City Independent Order of Odd Fellows. The Campbell and IOOF farms, along with farms owned by the King and Cornelius families comprise a block of land that was a Revolutionary War grant and later owned by O. P. McCoy .
1989 - barn and silo.