From the Morgue: End of an era: Sunny Hill Dairy sold

For nearly 60 years, Girardeans enjoyed milk products provided by the Blattner family, delivered right to your door.

But in the fall of 1974, the end of the family’s business was announced on the front page of the Southeast Missourian.

Sunny Hill Dairy Farms Co. at 45 S. West End Blvd. in Cape Girardeau shows off its fleet of trucks in January 1956.G.D. Fronabarger ~ Southeast Missourian archive

Published Nov. 5, 1974:

Dairy era ends for Blattners

An era of almost 60 years of operation in the dairy business ended for the Blattner family of Cape Girardeau with the acquiral of the milk processing and sales service of Sunny Hill Dairy Farms Co., 45 S. (West End) Blvd, to Prairie Farms Dairy Inc. of Olney, Illinois.

Louis C. Blattner Jr., son of the founder of Sunny Hill and president of the company, said that Dairy Farms will continue to package milk and sell it under the Sunny Hill label. He said the local processing plant will discontinue operations but the storage and cooler facilities here will be used by the Illinois company for local distribution.

Delivery

All milk and products processing will be done at Carbondale, Illinois. Delivery will continue as at present to about 3,000 residential customers in Cape Girardeau, Jackson, Lutesville, Marble Hill, Delta, Scott City, Chaffee and Advance, and retail routes in the Kennett, Malden and Paragould, Arkansas, areas.

The family business was begun almost 60 years ago when the late Louis C. Blattner began operations in 1915 on his dairy farm here, the start of Sunny Hill Farms Dairy Co.

In 1931, he opened a milk processing plant in Cape Girardeau and in 1941 moved the plant from 245 S. Frederick to its present location on South Boulevard. The business was then known as Sunny Hill Dairy Bar.

Louis C. Blattner Jr. joined his father in business in 1941 and was connected with operation of the Sunny Hill Restaurant ad Motor Inn. The elder Blattner died March 3, 1970, at his home here.

Keep jobs

A nephew of the the founder, Robert Blattner, will continue here as local plant manager for the new owners. Other personnel, except about nine in the processing division, will be retained in their present jobs.

The Blattner family will continue to operate the restaurant and motor inn.

Producers who have provided milk for Sunny Hill over the years are members of the Mid America Producers Association, a cooperative which acts as agent for the producers and will find another buyer in the area for the raw milk.

The Blattner family and its many business ventures generated a lot of stories in the Southeast Missourian over the years. I found that not all of the details in later stories were accurate. So, in an effort to set the facts straight, here are some of the highlights of the history of Sunny Hill Dairy Farms.

1915

Louis C. “L.C.” Blattner founded Sunny Hill Dairy Farms on Bloomfield Road, west of Cape Girardeau. He was the oldest son of Charles Blattner, a native of Switzerland, and Anna Keller. His brothers were Charles F. and Albert W. Blattner. His sisters were Augusta Laura and Alma Blattner.

1916


L.C. Blattner purchased five registered Holsteins in Wisconsin. They were part of a group bought by several dairy farmers in this area.

Aug. 11, 1930

L.C. Blattner of Sunny Hill Dairy Farms Co. opened a milk pasteurizing plant at 426 S. Middle St. The plant included modern equipment for handling high-grade milk, pasteurized milk, buttermilk, cream and cottage cheese. He also supplied raw Holstein milk to private customers.

Jan. 29, 1931

Sunny Hill Dairy Pasteurized Milk Co., relocated to 245 S. Frederick St. The brick building formerly was occupied by a pool hall. In addition to pasteurized milk, the company also manufactured and sold Bulgarian buttermilk, cottage cheese and chocolate milk.

July 1933

Sunny Hill Dairy, along with two other local dairies — Midwest Dairy Products and I. Ben Miller (Lila-Drew) Dairy — began donating 75 quarts of milk per day to a milk depot opened by the Salvation Army in Cape Girardeau. The milk was given to needy and undernourished children of the town.

Dec. 31, 1933

Fire damaged the joists and flooring between the first and second floors of the Sunny Hill Dairy building at 245 S. Frederick St.

Sept. 7, 1940

Sunny Hill Dairy Farms Co. purchased a one-story brick building at the northwest corner of West End Boulevard and Merriwether Street from J.A. Rigdon. The building had been constructed in 1927 as the home of Bryan Laundries. For a time during the Great Depression, it was used as a meat-canning plant. And just prior to its sale to Sunny Hill, it had served as the armory for the local unit of the Missouri National Guard.

After remodeling the West End property, including the installation of a new, ornamental front, the equipment was moved from its Frederick Street plant to the new location. New equipment was also added, allowing the company to expand its offerings, including the manufacture of ice cream. The old plant became the outlet for the company’s feed and seed division – Sunny Hill Farms Feed Store.

Members of the Rotary Club enjoyed the first meal served at Sunny Hill Dairy's facility at 45 S. West End Blvd.Southeast Missourian archive

April 14, 1941

A meeting of the Rotary Club inaugurated Sunny Hill’s “milk bar” at 45 S. West End Blvd. Rotarians were served the first meal prepared in the new establishment.

March 12, 1942

Sunny Hill Dairy and Midwest Dairy Products announced the suspension of milk delivery to retail customers. This was caused by the scarcity of tires during World War II.

January 1943

Brothers Louis C. Blattner and Charles F. Blattner dissolved their business partnership. Louis took over the dairy and the plant on West End Boulevard, while Charles became owner of the feed store on Good Hope Street.

Dec. 25, 1943

Charles F. Blattner, brother of the founder of Sunny Hill Dairy Farms, was killed in an automobile accident on icy Highway 25, one mile south of Appleton. His death came a day after his 50th birthday. He was survived by his wife, the former Helen Kies; sons, Robert C., Paul E, Donald F. and Charles F. Blattner Jr.; daughters, Mrs. Lester I. Sheffield and Jean Helen and Barbara Ann Blattner; his mother, Anna K. Blattner, and brothers, Albert and Louis C. Blattner.

Jan. 29, 1945

Helen Kies Blattner, widow of Charles F. Blattner, sold the Sunny Hill Feed and Seed Store to Paul L. Benbow of Jackson. In November 1945, he sold it to Fred C. McGowan.

Sept. 21, 1951

A dispersal sale was held at Arena Park, with Sunny Hill Dairy selling off its entire herd of 35 registered Holstein cattle. Louis C. Blattner Jr. explained: “When we started pasteurizing milk in Cape in 1930, all the milk we used was produced on our own farm. Now the volume has increased to where we buy milk from 40 producers in Cape and Scott counties. Some have been selling to us for 20 years.” The dairy farm continued to be utilized to grow beef cattle and field crops.

May 28, 1957

Fire caused $200 damage to the boiler room and roof of the plant at 45 S. West End Blvd. The structure was repaired, remodeled and enlarged, reopening Aug. 12.

Aug. 1, 1959

Sunny Hill Dairy Co. purchased the operating equipment, trucks and dairy plant equipment of Schonhoff Bros. Dairy on Gordonville Road. Schonhoff Bros. continued to operate the dairy production unit on North Sprigg Street, which had once been the I. Ben Miller dairy farm.

July 1965

Sunny Hill opened a new, private dining room and bar at its 45 S. West End Blvd. location. At the same time, work was progressing on a new five-story Sunny Hill Motor Inn, just north of the original plant.

Oct. 23, 1969

Albert W. Blattner, brother of Louis C. Blattner, died at his home in Creve Coeur at the age of 73. He was a veteran of World War I, serving in the Navy. Along with his brother, Albert was survived by his wife, the former Ruth Lightner of McClure, Illinois; sons, William and Jack Blattner, and six grandchildren. He was predeceased by a son, Albert Blattner Jr.

March 3, 1970

Louis C. “L.C.” Blattner, 79, founder of Sunny Hill Farms Dairy Co., died at his home in Cape Girardeau. Along with the dairy, Blattner was connected with Blattner Brothers Auction Co., Blattner Brothers Dressed Meat Co., and the operation of Sunny Hill Restaurant and Motor Inn. He was survived by his wife, the former Clara Umbeck; son, Louis C. Blattner Jr.; daughter, Mrs. Irvin J. Richmond; seven grandchildren and four great-grandchildren.

April 16, 1974

Sunny Hill Farm Dairy was awarded $200,259 in damages in an antitrust suit against Kraftco Corp. and Malone and Hyde Inc. The ruling, filed in District Court at St. Louis in 1971, was made by Judge H. Kenneth Wangelin, who ordered the two companies to discontinue price fixing on milk products.

G.D. Fronabarger ~ Southeast Missourian archive

Friday, Oct. 31, 1974

Sunny Hill Dairy Farms ceased operating, selling the business to Prairie Farms Inc. of Olney, Illinois. Prairie Farms continued to produce milk products at the West End Boulevard plant, marketing them under the Sunny Hill name.

March 31, 1980

The Sunny Hill Division of Prairie Farms discontinued home delivery of milk in Cape Girardeau. According to Bob Blattner, manager of the division: “We hung on as long as we could. This is probably the last place in 100 miles that still had home deliveries…” It was estimated that 400 to 500 families would be affected by the stoppage.

Sharon Sanders is the librarian at the Southeast Missourian.