In an early example of successful marketing of its Premium Brand, Cheese & Dairy sold a 10,000-pound wheel of cheese to a California grocery store in 1964. From left: Vern Lucas, George Milne, Bass Tone, and store owners. In the small image, the completed cheese is crated for shipping, and Bass Tone and the co-owner… READ MORE
Here’s a list of the members of Tillamook Cheese and Dairy Association on March 10, 1965. They were a sizeable bloc of farmers who supported change to the structure of Tillamook County Creamery Association. Ackley, Glenn L. or Rhea H. Altherr, John Andrews, Stillman Armstrong, Norman or Nadine Averill, Donald Baumgartner, Fritz & Harriett Beeler,… READ MORE
Judge Bruce Thompson, from Reno, Nevada, heard the antitrust lawsuit filed by Cheese & Dairy against County Creamery. The judge’s complete post-trial statement is provided below. Some highlights: “…It is the present and the future that count. Put away your differences and your bitterness….There isn’t a court in the land or a law that can… READ MORE
Cheese & Dairy reached settlement terms with County Creamery in September 1968, ending the Cheese War. (Credit: Headlight-Herald) READ MORE
In this ad, the front of the Tillamook cheese factory was envisioned with the name of the owner of its cheese-making equipment written along the roof edge. However, the lettering wasn’t added. Inside the factory, Cheese & Dairy produced Premium Brand Cheese. (Credit: Headlight-Herald) READ MORE
In 1964, Cheese & Dairy produced a Premium Brand Cheese sales brochure featuring a drawing of an aerial view of Tillamook County. A portion of the drawing is shown here. READ MORE
In 1965, a Cheese & Dairy leader described a County Creamery audit of its earnings statement as “misleading.” The statement and audit included County Creamery transactions and expenses charged to Cheese & Dairy. (Credit: Oregon Journal, 1.20.65) READ MORE
In 1918, 27 cheese factories operated in Tillamook County, Oregon; by 1928, consolidations and closures reduced the number to 19. Total sales in 1928 were $1,775,950, or $32,992,270 today. (Partial view of then-Tillamook Cheese Factory in 1938. Credit: Headlight-Herald, June 23, 1976) READ MORE
Cheese & Dairy was given permission by Judge William East to use “Tillamook” on its Premium Brand Cheddar Cheese. County Creamery had contested that use, saying that it held an exclusive trademark. County Creamery was instructed not to threaten brokers, distributors or customers over the issue. (Credit: Oregonian, Aug. 7, 1964) READ MORE
In 1964, countering lawsuits were filed by County Creamery and Cheese & Dairy for the right to use “Tillamook” on cheese labels. The judge ruled for Cheese & Dairy, and ordered County Creamery to stop threatening to sue distributors and customers who bought Premium Brand cheese. (Credit: Oregonian, May 23, 1964) READ MORE
