He also knew he could not build such a facility alone.
So he approached neighboring farmers.
He proposed pooling resources.
A cream-separation and milk-processing facility that could purchase local production, chill it, and transport finished goods to markets farther east.
Several families supported the idea.
Others called it foolish.
The country was suffering through an economic depression.
Banks were cautious.
Equipment was expensive.
And nobody could promise the factory would survive.
But the farmers persisted.
They contributed labor.
Materials.
Small amounts of money.
And equipment that could be used during construction.
The great-great-grandfather contributed land.
Two hundred and forty acres, including the proposed factory site, surrounding pasture, and a spring-fed water source.
The factory opened in 1936.
Its brick smokestack rose above the fields.
Milk trucks arrived before sunrise.
Workers carried metal containers into the processing room.
Boilers hissed.
Pumps ran.
And the little rural valley filled with sounds that, for years, represented steady employment.
At its height, the operation purchased milk from more than sixty farms.
It employed mechanics, drivers, office clerks, cleaners, and equipment operators.
Several families relied upon it for most of their income.
The business was never exceptionally profitable.
But it mattered.
The founding farmer believed it could become something that outlived him.
He also understood that land ownership and business operations were not necessarily the same thing.
He wanted the dairy to use the land.
He did not want a future commercial operator to obtain unrestricted ownership simply because the cooperative encountered financial trouble.
So the original agreements separated certain rights.
A family-owned landholding arrangement retained title while the dairy cooperative received long-term rights to occupy and operate the processing site.
The exact details were complicated.
The documents had been revised as the business expanded.
But one principle appeared repeatedly.
The cooperative could use the property for agreed dairy and agricultural purposes.
Permanent transfer of the underlying land required additional written authorization and proper payment.
That distinction would become the center of the future dispute.
In 1947, the cooperative needed substantial capital.
New equipment was required.
The old cooling system was inadequate.
Competitors were building larger facilities.
A local finance company approached the founders with an offer.
It would supply funding and arrange for a larger processor to take over operations.