SWISSVILLE
The story begins with George H. Page who was born in Palmyra
Township in 1834. It was after the conclusion of the Civil War that
Page would join his brother in Zurich, Switzerland and would become
vice consul for the United State's Department of State. Along with
his brother, they began a process to condense milk and produce the
product. It was in a town called Cham in Switzerland that they
started with a small factory. The brothers first sold their condensed
milk to the U.S. Army and Navy and then distributed it throughout
Europe.
It wasn't long before plants were located in key areas within
Europe and London became the city for the company headquarters. With
the huge market and trade to America, it also became increasingly
hard to make a profit due to the tariffs on the export of their
product. New York would become the next locale for their headquarters
as all of the operations would be moved. During the fall of 1888
George Page started the Anglo-Swiss Condensed Milk Company in Dixon.
William B. Page was the first superintendent and was in charge of the
plant operations. He made his home in the Nachusa House.
With a reported $500,000 spent on the structure and equipment, it
was the largest factory of its kind in the world at the time.
Practically all of the condensing equipment for the new facility was
built in Switzerland and shipped to the Dixon plant. Some 250 men and
women were employed and many were residents of the new area known as
Swissville which Page laid out.
The first group of workers came from the town of Cham in
Switzerland where the Page brothers first opened their factory. They
left their homes on May 18, 1889 and sailed to New York, the trip
taking seven days to cross the Atlantic. From there they traveled by
train to Chicago taking another two days before boarding a train to
their final destination and a new beginning in Dixon.
The 18 newly arrived residents would become the first employees
in the operation of the Condensed Milk Company's new plant, located
just west of the city limits. This small group of workers would form
the nucleus for Swiss citizens who later migrated to this area
establishing the settlement which is still referred to today as
Swissville.
After the arrival in Dixon the group was taken immediately to the
milk plant. In what was known for years as "the barn", then a fine
two story building which was converted into temporary living quarters
for the newly arrived employees. The building was completely
equipped, with beds which were built in readiness with all the linens
and blankets on the second floor. There were three dining rooms and a
well supplied kitchen which were on the first floor. In this building
all of the group lived for weeks. Each Saturday night and on
birthdays, the Swiss settlers enjoyed social gatherings in the dining
quarters. The tables were removed and native dances were enjoyed to
the music of accordions.
Shortly after their arrival, many of the new families started
building homes on what is now known as First Avenue and many of the
residences located in that section were erected and later occupied by
these early Swiss families.
Each day hundreds of farmers would deliver milk to the
Anglo-Swiss Milk Plant for processing. Farmers were without milk
houses or cooling facilities on their farms and the milk was received
at night instead of early morning until the more prosperous could
erect buildings equipped for the cooling and storage of raw milk.
Refrigeration at the Condensed Milk Plant was likewise in a somewhat
crude stage. Cold water from a deep artesian well was piped into the
plant and cooled the milk as it was delivered and again after it had
been condensed.
During 1902 the Borden Company purchased the Page operation. In
the early 1900's over 150,000 pounds of milk per day was being
processed. Area farms now showed more than 10,000 cows which were
milked daily. Swissville at the time evolved around the Borden Milk
Company which processed various grades of condensed milk and along
with their confectionery operation was a major business attraction
and a boost to the economy of Dixon, as well as to the farming
community and would remain as such for many years.
In reminiscing recently with a woman who still resides in the
area about what she remembers in stories that were unique about the
early milk plant, her comment was, "Many of the first employees wore
their wooden shoes at work in the Anglo-Swiss Plant. With the Borden
Plant, well, they had the tastiest ...... caramels."
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