Cream Separators Paid: Antique Dairy Collectibles Example of Innovation on the Farm

By Leslie C. Mcmanus
Published on April 26, 2010
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Kent Gordon surrounds himself with his favorite dairy collectibles, on permanent display in his home.
Kent Gordon surrounds himself with his favorite dairy collectibles, on permanent display in his home. "I have more than 40 separators in the house," he says. "It's kind of cramped, but we make do."
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Kent Gordon's collection includes all lines, but International Harvester pieces play a leading role.
Kent Gordon's collection includes all lines, but International Harvester pieces play a leading role.
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Kent Gordon with part of his collection of cream separator company signs.
Kent Gordon with part of his collection of cream separator company signs.
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The bulk of Kent Gordon's collection is housed in this barn.
The bulk of Kent Gordon's collection is housed in this barn.
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Part of Kent Gordon's cream separator collection.
Part of Kent Gordon's cream separator collection.
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Soup to nuts: Separators, lye crocks, milker stools and signs.
Soup to nuts: Separators, lye crocks, milker stools and signs.
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The world's largest cream separator, made by DeLaval. Four were built, but because of balancing problems, the unit was never put into production. Two of the four were scrapped, and one was sent to Russia. The lone survivor in the U.S. was given to Kent for his collection. Shown in front: the smallest separator Kent knows of, manufactured by Viking.
The world's largest cream separator, made by DeLaval. Four were built, but because of balancing problems, the unit was never put into production. Two of the four were scrapped, and one was sent to Russia. The lone survivor in the U.S. was given to Kent for his collection. Shown in front: the smallest separator Kent knows of, manufactured by Viking.
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Part of Kent Gordon's collection of dairy collectibles.
Part of Kent Gordon's collection of dairy collectibles.
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Part of Kent Gordon's collection of dairy collectibles.
Part of Kent Gordon's collection of dairy collectibles.
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Kent Gordon's collection of dairy collectibles spills over to his den as well.
Kent Gordon's collection of dairy collectibles spills over to his den as well.
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Kent Gordon's collection of dairy collectibles spills over to his den as well.
Kent Gordon's collection of dairy collectibles spills over to his den as well.
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DeLaval promotional pieces are among the most beautiful examples of commercial art from the early 1900s.
DeLaval promotional pieces are among the most beautiful examples of commercial art from the early 1900s.
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Part of Kent Gordon's collection of dairy collectibles.
Part of Kent Gordon's collection of dairy collectibles.
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Kent Gordon's collection of dairy collectibles spills over to his den as well.
Kent Gordon's collection of dairy collectibles spills over to his den as well.
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A rare die-cut DeLaval sign from Canada.
A rare die-cut DeLaval sign from Canada.
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An array of DeLaval collectibles: milk bottles, parts cabinet, cream separator, separator oilcans and bottles.
An array of DeLaval collectibles: milk bottles, parts cabinet, cream separator, separator oilcans and bottles.
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A separator and an unusual round DeLaval milking machine crate.
A separator and an unusual round DeLaval milking machine crate.
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Separators, oilcans and advertising signs are showcased in Kent Gordon's dining room.
Separators, oilcans and advertising signs are showcased in Kent Gordon's dining room.
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An Albaugh-Dover Butterfly cream separator.
An Albaugh-Dover Butterfly cream separator.
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American Waist Low separator made by American Separator Co., Bainbridge, N.Y., in the 1920s.
American Waist Low separator made by American Separator Co., Bainbridge, N.Y., in the 1920s.

The motivation behind Kent Gordon’s collection of cream separators has nothing to do with the good old days, and everything to do with early technology.

“The mechanics of the cream separator really interest me,” he says, “the fact that something invented in 1878 could spin at 5,000 or 6,000 rpm. To turn that fast, the separator really had to be perfectly balanced. It’d be a real feat to build that, to get the gearing and balance all just right.”

Kent grew up on a farm but it was not a dairy operation. “There wasn’t a cream separator on the place,” he says. After college, he worked for International Harvester. While helping conduct a dealership inventory in the early 1970s, he saw an IHC 3S cream separator, still in the crate, tucked into a dark corner.

“It had never been sold, and at that point, International had been out of the separator business for 20 years,” he says. He wanted it, but the dealer held on to it. Kent walked away telling himself, “one of these days I’m going to own one of those.”

About 10 years later, he dropped in on First Monday Trades Day, a huge swap meet in Canton, Texas, determined to buy an IH separator. The first thing he saw was a DeLaval separator; he bought it. Continuing through the swap meet, he saw a Montgomery Ward table-top model. “I bought it,” he says. Finally he stumbled on to an International separator. “So I bought it too,” he admits. “I bought three separators on the same day!”

Thirty years later, his collection numbers in the hundreds. “Separators are just kind of neat,” he says. “When I started collecting, they were cheap. I didn’t have space for, say, 500 tractors, and I couldn’t afford 500 tractors, but I could make room for 500 separators.”

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