My brother Duane (Osborn) and I were talking about some of the items being offered for sale at a recent auction, and that’s how we got to talking about cream separators. They were household “machines” used years ago to separate cream off of the “fresh-from-the-cow” milk. 

​It’s hard for me to remember “what was what” as to the makeup of the separator. It’s been a long time since I operated one as a kid so my description may not be very accurate, but here goes.

Our cream separator stood by the door in the kitchen. It was a burgundy/purple color with a base and a metal bowl on top for the milk. Duane, who is much younger than I am, remembers that the separator seemed to be about 10 feet tall, but it was really about 4 feet tall and real heavy. Duane remembers Dad and Mom warning him not to fool with the separator because it might fall on him. That could have happened because it wasn’t attached to the floor. 

​Somewhere on the separator were several discs that probably were responsible for separating the cream off the milk. There was also a “float” and a lever for letting the milk and cream down. A platform held a bowl for collecting the cream. A handle or crank was what we turned to get the process going. 

​We put a bucket of milk in the bowl the top and got started cranking. I remember putting one foot on the base of the machine so it wouldn’t rock. We cranked faster and faster until the signs (which I can’t remember) were right for turning the lever to let the milk and cream down. The cream went into its container and the skim milk ended up in a bucket. The process was finished when there no more milk in the bowl.

​Sometimes something went wrong, and milk went all over the floor. My sister Charlotte (Allum) remembers that the discs had to be assembled just right, and I seem to recall that the float sometimes got stuck. Whatever the reason, cleaning up spilled milk was something we avoided at all costs. There is nothing worse than the stinky odor of milk if not cleaned up properly.

​I remember the chore of washing up the metal discs after separating. There were several of them, and they had to be pulled apart and washed thoroughly in soapy water. The soap-milk consistency left the water feeling sticky. Once washed, the discs were rinsed with boiling water from the teakettle and then dried. Everything was put back together for the next time. I know that we washed the separator bowl, but I can’t remember doing it.

​The cream was used for cooking and making butter. The skim milk went to the pigs, if we were feeding any, or to the chickens. The milk for the bottle calf (the milk cow’s calf) was taken out from the bucket right after milking.

Nothing ever went to waste on the ranch.