farm . The museum is dedicated to preserving the unique history of the dairy industry in Montgomery County .
“ My grandparents worked hard , and they did really well during World War I , so much so that they were able to pay off their farm mortgage and get full title to it in 1922 ,” Duvall explained during a recent tour of the museum .
Dairy farming was hard work , he continued . Farmers had to milk their cows by hand twice a day , feed all the animals , muck out the barns , and grow and store enough food to feed both their family and their animals . “ That is one of the reasons farm families had so many children — because there was so much work .”
Duvall remembers a story the late Stanley ( Sam ) Stiles , the youngest of six boys , once told him . “ His father , Nathan Stiles , would get his boys up before the sun and send them out to the barn to milk the cows before school . He would then go out to check on them and find the kids fast asleep on their milk stools , leaning up against the cows .”
The sizes of dairy herds — mainly Holsteins and Jerseys — varied around the county , with some farmers only milking 8-10 , while others had over 100 . Many farmers began home delivery businesses featuring milk in distinctive bottles bearing the farm ’ s name . A horse-drawn dairy wagon would make the rounds to deliver milk to customers ’ doors .
When the B & O Railroad arrived in Montgomery County , farmers could suddenly transport their milk to the new commercial dairies being built in Washington ,
Top : The King Barn Dairy MOOseum makes its home a former dairy barn in Boyds ; above : one of three milk delivery vehicles in the MOOseum ’ s collection , this 1919 Model T Ford is often on display during special events .
D . C . The train would stop at each pikes have been designated Rustic town ’ s train station and pick up Roads and stand as a tribute to the 10-gallon cans of milk from the county ’ s agricultural history . local farmers , before transporting The MOOseum has a restored them to the District .
Dairy Maid Milk Wagon on display ,
“ During the Roosevelt administration ,” Duvall said , “ we started private label milk bottles from local
as well as an extensive collection of
getting the milk pikes . They were Montgomery County farms . A variety of milking equipment is also on nine-feet-wide concrete roads that replaced dirt roads running from display , allowing you to learn about the farms to the train stations , the evolution of the milk production process over the years . making it easier to get milk to the train .” Today , some of these milk
The museum ’ s volunteers have
plenty I spring sowing 2024 39