Late 19th Century, Green County, Wisconsin - Dairy farming and cheesemaking had for several decades replaced wheat farming. Emmentaler (Swiss) and Limburger were the major varieties produced.
Northern Green County had been settled by Swiss immigrants, primarily from Canton Glarus. Hard times in Switzerland, combined with opportunities for employment and the chance to someday acquire land in the New World, attracted immigrants from across Switzerland to Green County.
Monroe had originally been settled by Yankees from New England. Arabut Ludlow was born in Burlington, Vt. in 1918. He moved to Lyons, Mich., then Chicago where he got a job delivering goods to Green Bay. In 1846 he settled in Monroe, opening its first general merchandise store, and later got into banking. He well understood the regional economy.
In 1873 Monroe's economy was going through hard times. But cheesemaking, primarily Limburger, was going strong. Some recalcitrant citizens were complaining about the wagon loads of Limburger hauled through town en route to the railroad.
Ludlow, the Yankee, along with a couple of Schweitzers, J. Regez and J. Karlen, decided to enlighten the complainants. Ludlow gathered cheese-producing farmers together on his farm. (Incidentally, Ludlow's "Idle Hour Farm" bordered the south side of the east 60 acres of the farm my grandfather, Johann Waelti, would purchase in 1902.)
Ludlow paraded the wagon loads of Limburger to the Courthouse Square - the aroma and commotion attracting a crowd. Ludlow made a speech that had significant historical implications. He declared that Limburger was the smell of money, it was here to stay, and it would make Green County famous. The complaining was put to rest.
Some 40 years later, 1913, Monroe citizen H.G. Leuenberger attended a "Sauerkraut Day" in Forreston, Ill. The next year, October 1914, a group of Monroe businessmen followed his suggestion and visited the Forreston event. If Forreston could have a Sauerkraut Day, why couldn't Monroe have a Cheese Day?
With only 19 days to prepare, the first Cheese Day was held Oct. 28, 1914, attended by some 3,000 to 4,000 people. With that success behind them, the second one was held Oct. 12, 1915, attended by some 20,000 people.
The third Cheese Day was held Oct. 10, 1916, attended by some 25,000 people. The 2-mile long parade was led by the New Glarus band, and by cows adorned with imported cow bells.
The fourth Cheese Day, Oct. 9, 1917, was dampened by snow and rain, and the draft board conscripting young men for war. It was nevertheless attended by several thousand people.
The war interrupted the sequence and the next Cheese Day was not held until 1923. The parade was enlarged, Swiss entertainment expanded, and new attendance records set.
With the decision to hold the celebration every five years, the Oct. 2, 1928 celebration was bigger and better than ever, breaking attendance records with 40,000 people. The parade had 200 units. An enthusiastic observer counted 1169 motor vehicles, and 40 horse-drawn vehicles coming into town.
The anticipated five-year cycle was interrupted as 1933 saw the depth of the Great Depression. The farming and cheesemaking community was under deep distress, with little to celebrate.
Then the unpredictable occurred. Early 1935, a doctor in Independence, Iowa prescribed Limburger in the diet of a patient. The logical source of Limburger was Green County. The patient ordered it by mail.
The rural carrier out of the Iowa post office claimed that the aroma was "worse than poison gas," and refused to deliver it. That irritated Monroe postmaster, John Burkhard, who took up the challenge. He called for a "cheese-sniffing contest," to be held in Dubuque.
The press was delighted to cover the contest that ended in a draw. The reluctant carrier was ordered to deliver the cheese. Interest was revived and a Cheese Day held Oct. 2, 1935 with 125 units in the parade, and attendance of 50,000.
October 1940 - WWII had started in Europe and war clouds were hovering over the U.S. The date was changed to September. While the nation was uneasy, Cheese Day was once again a success.
The war once again interrupted the five-year intervals. The next Cheese Day was held in 1950, initially lacking enthusiasm. Once again, out-of-state impertinence unintentionally came to the rescue. An obtuse Minneapolis newspaper columnist wrote about a trip "back home" to Ohio where he was delighted to find "real" Swiss cheese, and not the "rubbery stuff made in Wisconsin."
Such blasphemy is deeply offensive to residents of the Swiss Cheese Capital of the USA. The Monroe Evening Times took up the challenge. After an exchange of insults, a Wisconsin vs. Ohio Swiss cheese-tasting contest was arranged to be held in the nation's capitol. The Cheese Day delegation that included Rudy Burkhalter flew to Washington. Wisconsin and Ohio each sent wheels of Swiss to be sampled.
Tasting was to occur in the Speaker's office. There were few spectators until Rudy blew several blasts on his alphorn. The House recessed and congressmen hurried to sample the cheeses.
The contest ended in a draw, but the resulting publicity helped pull over 80,000 people to the 1950 Cheese Days. The celebration was held again in 1955, but not again until 1965. In was held in 1967, and again in 1970. Since 1970, it has been held every two years and is three days in duration.
During the last couple of decades, cheese has made a comeback. Cheese has become a "high end" food featured in gourmet magazines to accompany classic wines and fine dining. An impressive variety of cheeses are produced by our local factories to meet this demand.
Popularity of cheese is symbolized by the familiar cheese wedges worn by Badger and Packer fans prominently displayed on national television - the unofficial symbol of "Wisconsin Cheeseheads."
Thanks to our Green County Tourism office and many dedicated, hard-working volunteers putting in countless hours, the 100th anniversary Cheese Days celebration next week promises to be the best yet.
- John Waelti's column appears every Friday in the Times. He gratefully acknowledges the contribution to this column of Sherry Anderegg who has compiled a history of Cheese Days.
Northern Green County had been settled by Swiss immigrants, primarily from Canton Glarus. Hard times in Switzerland, combined with opportunities for employment and the chance to someday acquire land in the New World, attracted immigrants from across Switzerland to Green County.
Monroe had originally been settled by Yankees from New England. Arabut Ludlow was born in Burlington, Vt. in 1918. He moved to Lyons, Mich., then Chicago where he got a job delivering goods to Green Bay. In 1846 he settled in Monroe, opening its first general merchandise store, and later got into banking. He well understood the regional economy.
In 1873 Monroe's economy was going through hard times. But cheesemaking, primarily Limburger, was going strong. Some recalcitrant citizens were complaining about the wagon loads of Limburger hauled through town en route to the railroad.
Ludlow, the Yankee, along with a couple of Schweitzers, J. Regez and J. Karlen, decided to enlighten the complainants. Ludlow gathered cheese-producing farmers together on his farm. (Incidentally, Ludlow's "Idle Hour Farm" bordered the south side of the east 60 acres of the farm my grandfather, Johann Waelti, would purchase in 1902.)
Ludlow paraded the wagon loads of Limburger to the Courthouse Square - the aroma and commotion attracting a crowd. Ludlow made a speech that had significant historical implications. He declared that Limburger was the smell of money, it was here to stay, and it would make Green County famous. The complaining was put to rest.
Some 40 years later, 1913, Monroe citizen H.G. Leuenberger attended a "Sauerkraut Day" in Forreston, Ill. The next year, October 1914, a group of Monroe businessmen followed his suggestion and visited the Forreston event. If Forreston could have a Sauerkraut Day, why couldn't Monroe have a Cheese Day?
With only 19 days to prepare, the first Cheese Day was held Oct. 28, 1914, attended by some 3,000 to 4,000 people. With that success behind them, the second one was held Oct. 12, 1915, attended by some 20,000 people.
The third Cheese Day was held Oct. 10, 1916, attended by some 25,000 people. The 2-mile long parade was led by the New Glarus band, and by cows adorned with imported cow bells.
The fourth Cheese Day, Oct. 9, 1917, was dampened by snow and rain, and the draft board conscripting young men for war. It was nevertheless attended by several thousand people.
The war interrupted the sequence and the next Cheese Day was not held until 1923. The parade was enlarged, Swiss entertainment expanded, and new attendance records set.
With the decision to hold the celebration every five years, the Oct. 2, 1928 celebration was bigger and better than ever, breaking attendance records with 40,000 people. The parade had 200 units. An enthusiastic observer counted 1169 motor vehicles, and 40 horse-drawn vehicles coming into town.
The anticipated five-year cycle was interrupted as 1933 saw the depth of the Great Depression. The farming and cheesemaking community was under deep distress, with little to celebrate.
Then the unpredictable occurred. Early 1935, a doctor in Independence, Iowa prescribed Limburger in the diet of a patient. The logical source of Limburger was Green County. The patient ordered it by mail.
The rural carrier out of the Iowa post office claimed that the aroma was "worse than poison gas," and refused to deliver it. That irritated Monroe postmaster, John Burkhard, who took up the challenge. He called for a "cheese-sniffing contest," to be held in Dubuque.
The press was delighted to cover the contest that ended in a draw. The reluctant carrier was ordered to deliver the cheese. Interest was revived and a Cheese Day held Oct. 2, 1935 with 125 units in the parade, and attendance of 50,000.
October 1940 - WWII had started in Europe and war clouds were hovering over the U.S. The date was changed to September. While the nation was uneasy, Cheese Day was once again a success.
The war once again interrupted the five-year intervals. The next Cheese Day was held in 1950, initially lacking enthusiasm. Once again, out-of-state impertinence unintentionally came to the rescue. An obtuse Minneapolis newspaper columnist wrote about a trip "back home" to Ohio where he was delighted to find "real" Swiss cheese, and not the "rubbery stuff made in Wisconsin."
Such blasphemy is deeply offensive to residents of the Swiss Cheese Capital of the USA. The Monroe Evening Times took up the challenge. After an exchange of insults, a Wisconsin vs. Ohio Swiss cheese-tasting contest was arranged to be held in the nation's capitol. The Cheese Day delegation that included Rudy Burkhalter flew to Washington. Wisconsin and Ohio each sent wheels of Swiss to be sampled.
Tasting was to occur in the Speaker's office. There were few spectators until Rudy blew several blasts on his alphorn. The House recessed and congressmen hurried to sample the cheeses.
The contest ended in a draw, but the resulting publicity helped pull over 80,000 people to the 1950 Cheese Days. The celebration was held again in 1955, but not again until 1965. In was held in 1967, and again in 1970. Since 1970, it has been held every two years and is three days in duration.
During the last couple of decades, cheese has made a comeback. Cheese has become a "high end" food featured in gourmet magazines to accompany classic wines and fine dining. An impressive variety of cheeses are produced by our local factories to meet this demand.
Popularity of cheese is symbolized by the familiar cheese wedges worn by Badger and Packer fans prominently displayed on national television - the unofficial symbol of "Wisconsin Cheeseheads."
Thanks to our Green County Tourism office and many dedicated, hard-working volunteers putting in countless hours, the 100th anniversary Cheese Days celebration next week promises to be the best yet.
- John Waelti's column appears every Friday in the Times. He gratefully acknowledges the contribution to this column of Sherry Anderegg who has compiled a history of Cheese Days.
