Rattray Cheese Factory

I came across this location the same day as the McFadden House. It was right off the side of the road. I had no idea what it was until I got home and looked it up. The address posted is approximate as it no longer has a registered address according to Google Maps.

Like I said I did a little bit of research on this property and found out it was actually the Rattray Cheese Factory. Dairy Farming on Wolfe Island was once a booming industry with 5 cheese factories all in operation at the same time. The Original Cheese Factory that sat here was the St Lawrence Cheese Factory which opened around 1897 and was owned by Harold Burke who employed George Jones as Cheesemaker. A fire cause by a boiler blowing destroyed this building on July 26th, 1924. Apparently remnants of this factory may still be found North of the current building (I couldn't find any through the tall grass and weeds). The new St Lawrence Cheese Factory was built on George Rattrays land and opened in 1929 (henceforth named Rattrays Cheese Factory). Many locals bought stakes in the company for 10$ each. With many years running his own cheese business George Rattray also sold cheese for Cold Springs Factory, was a cheese buyer on the Kingston Cheese Board for 54 years and operated the Marysville General Store (Fargos) in the 1920's. The factory has sat idle since 1944 at which time local milk was shipped to the Gilt Edge Cheese Factory.

There is still the main building of the Rattray Cheese Factory standing but the doors are quite hard to open. I'm not sure they might have been locked even and the windows were beyond filthy (I was too busy trying to avoid the bees that were chasing me around). There was also some farm equipment to the Northern side of the building. I walked around most of the property but didn't find much of anything else. I would love to see what the inside looks like and to find the remains of the original St Lawrence Cheese Factory.

Please if visiting this property please be kind and leave it the way you found it. Do not cause any damage to something that isn't yours so others can also enjoy it :)