Milk Man Toronto History (2024)

FAQs

Milk Man Toronto History? ›

Delivery was common starting in the mid-1800s and into the first half of the 20^th century. Milk and other goods like eggs, meat, and bread were delivered in the early morning by horse-drawn carriage around Toronto, which were used up until the 1950s in places like Toronto and in Britain and the USA.

The origins of the milkman

The very first milk home deliveries happened in Vermont in 1785, where the milkman would visit each house with a barrel full of milk. Residents would then bring out their own containers, jugs, pails and jars, and the milkman would fill them with milk.

By the '90s, the number of milk deliveries dropped to less than 1%. Truly contemporary times meant, at least in the 20th century, that the era of the milkman had come to an end.

By the 1930s and 1940s, almost every home had a refrigerator. Fridges replaced iceboxes- the first step in the decline of milk delivery. The invention of refrigeration meant that people didn't need milk delivered to their homes as often because they could keep it cold on their own.

Most Toronto households had milk, cream, butter, eggs, bread and even meat delivered – and all by horse-drawn wagon, a vehicle that some Toronto milkmen used until the late 1950s.

Milk delivery in the United States began with industrialization. People moving to more urban areas found no space for a family cow. To satisfy their thirst for milk, people began to buy milk from local dairy farmers ready for delivery. And the need for the milkman began.

Did you know home milk delivery still exists in California and the rest of North America? Yep, that's right! Farm fresh milk is becoming more and more easy to retrieve with the help of home milk delivery services!

But as it became easier and cheaper to buy milk at the grocery store, and as processes were developed to extend milk's shelf life, the milkman began to fade into the past. The earliest survey from the Department of Agriculture on home milk delivery was in 1963, when nearly 29.7 percent of consumers had milk delivered.

It is probably something about the purity of the white of milk and the bleached whiteness of the smock frock that the garment came to be associated with milk men during the nineteenth century.

Did milk men make good money? ›

How much does a Milkman make? The average Milkman in the US makes $26,514. Milkmen make the most in Los Angeles, CA at $26,514, averaging total compensation 0% greater than the US average.

How long does milk from the milkman last? Once open milk will generally last for 10 days depending on fridge temperatures and the way the milk is treated. To ensure you get the best from your milk return it to the fridge each time you use it.

Successive lockdowns during 2020/21 brought about a resurgence in people using milkmen to get their milk delivered. According to Kantar, the number of customers rose to a peak of 670,000 in July 2020 from a low point of 503,000 pre-pandemic.

Horsecar #16, as it's called, was built by the Stephenson Coach Company in 1874. It was used on the streets of Toronto to transport humans until around 1893, after which point all horse-drawn vehicles were either converted to electric streetcars, phased out of service or turned into trailers.

As the story goes, DuPont, a Canadian food and packaging company, unveiled thin, plastic bags that could be used to store and sell milk in 1967. Gradually, the dairy industry began ditching glass bottles and adopting this newfangled plastic pouch, which was far more practical and cost-efficient.

Bagged milk in Canada dates back to the 1960s

In an attempt to lower the cost, a Canadian food and packaging company called DuPont created plastic bags in 1967 that could store milk. Another factor that led to the change from glass to plastic involves Canada's measurement system change.

Early Origins of Milk Delivery

However, the modern milkman as we know it today can be traced back to the early 19th century in the United States. Milk delivery was initially done by farmers who brought their fresh milk to local households, but it was not until the 1850s that dedicated milkmen began to emerge.

Speaking to Express.co.uk Simon Mellin, CEO and founder of the app-based grocery delivery service Modern Milkman explained.

Named by the town gossip because his mother, Ruth, nursed him at her breast far longer than considered socially acceptable, Milkman's real name is Macon Dead III.

The simple answer is no one knows who the first person to milk a cow was, a plausible theory was that our ancestors saw offspring feeding and copied the behaviour.