Back then....

Next September, we are going to be hosting the 98th anniversary of the first Cheese Days here in Monroe. There's going to be lines of people, thirty deep at some points, clamoring to get a greasy bag full of the deep fried cheese curds that have made this festival famous.   The sounds of alphorns will fill the balmy air and endless rows of vendors will sell all their wares in different shapes and sizes of cheese.   While all of us cheese lovers will pack the small town square, it will be hard to imagine what it was like the first time this kind of gathering took place.   Nearly 140 years ago, the first store owner in Monroe was in the midst of and economic downturn, much like is being experienced today.   Dairy farmers and town folks alike were doing what they could to stay afloat, and since frustration only gets worse when the senses are attacked, the feelings of despair grew exponentially as the cheese factory kept sending the wagons stuffed with smelly, Limburger cheese through town on their way to the train stations.   Faced with almost certain anarchy, this man got the wagons to amass on the square, gathered all of the grumbling farmers and residents together,  and told them that these shipments of the stinky cheese would one day ensure their town's survival.  

Today, Arabut Ludlow's passionate call-to-arms for cheese making is evident in that the only Limburger factory in North America is here in Monroe.   While the official Cheese Days would not happen for nearly 40 years later, he is considered to be the founding father of that gathering based on his cunning marketing ploy for the large event he planned on our courthouse steps in 1873.   In the city's cemetery stands a large marker for the Ludlow family plot, which is what I decided to photograph for today's blog.   Memories of him linger throughout the city with buildings, streets, and houses named for him.   But next year, amidst the cow milking contests, art tents, and cheese curd over-eating, it won't be hard to forget what his legacy meant to the survival of our city and the bi-annual festival to the dairy delectable.