place

Cooksville Cheese Factory

1875 establishments in WisconsinBuildings and structures in Rock County, WisconsinCheesemakersDairy products companies of the United StatesFood and drink companies based in Wisconsin
Industrial buildings and structures on the National Register of Historic Places in WisconsinIndustrial buildings completed in 1875National Register of Historic Places in Rock County, WisconsinUse mdy dates from August 2023
Cheese factory
Cheese factory

The Cooksville Cheese Factory in Evansville is a remnant of Wisconsin's early dairy industry. It was added to the National Register of Historic Places in 1980.In 1875 Benjamin Hoxie started a business in Cooksville to buy milk from local farmers and make cheese. The enterprise was an agricultural cooperative, with the patrons (farmers) sharing ownership and Hoxie the proprietor of the factory. It could process the milk of 600 cows. The business did not last many years, selling the cheese-making equipment in 1884.The factory is a simple 2-story frame building on a limestone basement, with a one-story wing to the side. The design is simple and utilitarian, other than short cornice returns.In addition to making cheese, the building was a social hub, a place where farmers met, and possibly the Good Templars. By 1894 it was used as housing.

Excerpt from the Wikipedia article Cooksville Cheese Factory (License: CC BY-SA 3.0, Authors, Images).

Cooksville Cheese Factory
State Highway 59, Town of Porter

Geographical coordinates (GPS) Address Nearby Places
placeShow on map

Wikipedia: Cooksville Cheese FactoryContinue reading on Wikipedia

Geographical coordinates (GPS)

Latitude Longitude
N 42.83487 ° E -89.24328 °
placeShow on map

Address

State Highway 59 12226
53536 Town of Porter
Wisconsin, United States
mapOpen on Google Maps

Cheese factory
Cheese factory
Share experience

Nearby Places

Stoughton Universalist Church
Stoughton Universalist Church

The Stoughton Universalist Church is a Greek Revival-styled church built in Stoughton, Wisconsin in 1858. It was added to the National Register of Historic Places in 1982.The community of Stoughton was founded in 1847 when Vermont-born Luke Stoughton built a dam on the Yahara River to power his sawmill and gristmill. A settlement grew around that enterprise and in 1858 the first Christian congregation formed - a congregation of the Universalist Church in America. Luke and his family were among the 35 charter members, and he donated a lot for the church building.Architect Stephen Vaughan Shipman designed a Greek Revival-styled church building - a typical style for that early date. P.J. Hynes supervised the construction, which was done by E.E. Warren, John H. Warren, and finish masonry by J.H. Harvey. The thrifty congregation expected each male member to donate one work-day per week. The building's footprint is a 51 x 31 foot rectangle. The walls are built of cream brick hauled from Milwaukee by oxen. Brick pilasters divide the walls into panels which frame tall windows. The gable ends are framed into pediments. The roof has a moderate pitch typical for Greek Revival. Centered on the front roof peak is a large white square steeple, with two tower stages and then a spire at the top. Inside, the decorations were simple, fitting the Universalist approach to worship.Shipman went on to design the rotunda and dome of the capitol in Madison.The church building was shared with the community. Other denominations held services there. Public meetings were held in the basement. The local schools used the building.The Universalist congregation itself was progressive, calling a woman pastor already in 1869. Another woman ministered around 1883 and another from 1890 to 1892. But the congregation eventually dwindled and stopped using the church in 1938.In 1960 the Stoughton Historical Society took ownership. They have adapted the interior as a museum while preserving the exterior much as it was.