Cheese Factory??

[Sierra Echo]

According to my A.T guide, situated between Tray Mountain and Indian Grave Gap in Georgia, there is a a small blue blazed trail that leads to the former site of a cheese factory? Has anyone seen this and is it worth the side trip to go there?

[Trailweaver]

The key word here is "site" of the old Cheese Factory. It is nothing more now than a clearing suitable for a delightful lunch break or good campsite (flat and shady). When I first saw it years ago I was so disappointed. . . I'd hiked for miles looking forward to seeing stone ruins of a building, maybe old equipment, a sign. . . but I do remember fondly removing my boots for two hours and having a great lunch, cool drink, and good conversation.

[Skidsteer]

According to my A.T guide, situated between Tray Mountain and Indian Grave Gap in Georgia, there is a a small blue blazed trail that leads to the former site of a cheese factory? Has anyone seen this and is it worth the side trip to go there?

The AT goes directly through the site. The blue blaze leads to a spring @ 70 yards to the left.

Good place to camp. The spring is quite often dry in Summer.

[Cookerhiker]

Camped there on my Georgia section hike in March '04. Nice place to camp as long as the spring is flowing.

[aaronthebugbuffet]

Some scouts were cooking cheeseburgers there once when I passed through.
The spirit of cheese lives.

[FritztheCat]

Great place to camp! If you go through the patches of Rhodeddendron (don't know how to spell that), there are a few smaller spots that are simply beautiful.

[Sierra Echo]

But I wanted a building to run screaming around in like a 5 yr old! How disappointing! *sniff*

[CrumbSnatcher]

camped at the cheese factory 3 times in my life, great tenting & good water

[Skidsteer]

But I wanted a building to run screaming around in like a 5 yr old! How disappointing! *sniff*

That pretty much describes how thru-hikers behave in shelters.

[Sly]

According to my A.T guide.....

See what you're missing...


Cheese Factory Site—In the mid-1800s, an eccentric New Englander established a dairy
near Tray Mountain, about 15 miles from the nearest farmhouse. Other Georgians,
who received parcels in the mountains after a government survey of former Indian
lands in the 1830s, opted to sell their land to speculators rather than attempt to tame
the untamable. For several years, the man ran his dairy successfully and reportedly
produced a superior cheese that won several awards at state agricultural fairs. Little
evidence of the dairy remains today, although the spot is a designated campsite with
a spring.

[Sierra Echo]

See what you're missing...

Thanks for the background info Sly!! I wonder why the dairy was closed if the cheese was that good. Or they just renamed the cheese "kraft singles" and made it somewhere else! LOL

[Skidsteer]

Thanks for the background info Sly!! I wonder why the dairy was closed if the cheese was that good. Or they just renamed the cheese "kraft singles" and made it somewhere else! LOL

You can get all that background info in the Companion.

Best way to get the Companion is to join ALDHA and you'll get the soft copy free.

It's a good cause with good bennies.

[Blissful]

When I passed by, I only wished there was cheese there...like a good smoked variety. And cheese curds

[Skidsteer]

Right?....

[Sly]

You can get all that background info in the Companion.

Best way to get the Companion is to join ALDHA and you'll get the soft copy free.

It's a good cause with good bennies.

Heh, heh... speaking of bennies, your check is in the mail. ;)

[Skidsteer]

Heh, heh... speaking of bennies, your check is in the mail. ;)

Woot! ....

[ChinMusic]

Skids - How easy is it to just walk by the Cheese Factory and miss it? I've only done that section once and wanted to at least stop there for awhile. Once I thought about it I realized I had passed it already.

[Skidsteer]

Skids - How easy is it to just walk by the Cheese Factory and miss it? I've only done that section once and wanted to at least stop there for awhile. Once I thought about it I realized I had passed it already.

Pretty easy if you're in the zone and bebopping along. It's a grassy area maybe 100' x 150' with trees dotted around.

One of those places that you would say, "Oh, what a nice place to camp" but continue on unless you were ready to stop for a break or at the end of the day.

I've camped there several times by myself and had a wonderful time. There is a decent Winter season view about 200 yards South with a nice little campsite as well. Saw a bear at that one once.

Most hikers plow through there hellbent on Tray Mtn shelter about a mile and a half North.

[CrumbSnatcher]

not a side trip, A.T. rolls straight thru. just a big grassy area a few trees, nearby road & water.

[Maddog]

But I wanted a building to run screaming around in like a 5 yr old! How disappointing! *sniff*I was disappointed too! :(

[WingedMonkey]

I can be a bit of a nerd when it comes to studying history and genealogy in the south. Here are some historical notes from 1848 describing the cheese farm and and how it was set up.
Interesting how they used spring water carried in to chill the dairy, also interesting how the New Englanders used slave labor to make the operation profitable.

Something that caught my attention is the name of "Trail Mountain" instead of "Tray Mountain", and how it got it's original name. Wonder when it was changed.

http://toto.lib.unca.edu/findingaids/books/lanman_charles/letter_vii_trail_mountain.htm

[Chenango]

Camped there in March. A very delightful site.

[ScottP]

I'll second the above. Beautiful site, easy road access, nice spring (in March and April, at least).

[Sierra Echo]

I can be a bit of a nerd when it comes to studying history and genealogy in the south. Here are some historical notes from 1848 describing the cheese farm and and how it was set up.
Interesting how they used spring water carried in to chill the dairy, also interesting how the New Englanders used slave labor to make the operation profitable.

Something that caught my attention is the name of "Trail Mountain" instead of "Tray Mountain", and how it got it's original name. Wonder when it was changed.

http://toto.lib.unca.edu/findingaids/books/lanman_charles/letter_vii_trail_mountain.htm

On the first page he said that he is writing from the "highest mountain in Ga".
That would be Brasstown Bald.

[WingedMonkey]

On the first page he said that he is writing from the "highest mountain in Ga".
That would be Brasstown Bald.

You missed one word:


I now write from near the summit of the highest mountain in Georgia.

I read it to mean he was close to the highest point or could see it. I love the way he describes the area around the cheese factory as almost treeless and what great views in all directions.

[mudhead]

But I wanted a building to run screaming around in like a 5 yr old! How disappointing! *sniff*

Sniff? Sounds like cup o' cheese time.

[G-WALK]

I shot some video up there during my April section hike. Check it out if you want....

http://youtu.be/Hrrwo2HgsSk

[Sierra Echo]

I shot some video up there during my April section hike. Check it out if you want....

http://youtu.be/Hrrwo2HgsSk

Thank you G-walk! That was very pretty :)

[dbrady]

We were coming SO and had warnings from other NO hikers about a large snake in the area. Guess we were too busy on the look out for the snake and proceeding on by the "cheese factory". Before the last gap into Unicoi noticed we missed-it. Guess there's not much to see if we walked right by.

[scope]

...There is a decent Winter season view about 200 yards South with a nice little campsite as well...

Think I camped there the last time I was in that area. Good place to hang. I remember the next morning thinking if I'd just gone a bit farther that day, I could have camped at the cheese factory site, but then the other was better for a hammock. Not much of a view, though, but was some through the trees.

There is that wide open view site that is north of CF, were you thinking of that one?

[Sassafras Lass]

But I wanted a building to run screaming around in like a 5 yr old! How disappointing! *sniff*

LOL! My thoughts exactly - I couldn't believe I'd pushed on from . . . what was it, Low Gap shelter? Met Gordon the AT supporter extraordinaire before Tray Mt., then came to . . . . nothing. Although if you go before the leaves are on the trees, you'll have the best view of the stars, absolutely gorgeous! And plenty of camping amongst the rhodedendrons.

[Sly]

Interesting how they used spring water carried in to chill the dairy, also interesting how the New Englanders used slave labor to make the operation profitable.



Hey Mr Historian, were all "huge negros" in Georgia at the time slaves?

[Skidsteer]

Think I camped there the last time I was in that area. Good place to hang. I remember the next morning thinking if I'd just gone a bit farther that day, I could have camped at the cheese factory site, but then the other was better for a hammock. Not much of a view, though, but was some through the trees.


Yeah, that's the one. Not much of a view, true, but not bad in January or February when all the leaves are down. After dark you can see the lights from the nearby towns of Cleveland and Clarkesville.

[Smile]

And this is the establishment which supplies the people of Georgia with cheese, and the material out of which the scientific caterer manufactures the palatable Welsh Rabbit.

Interesting comment in the last sentence about "Welsh Rabbit", which is a cheese dish now called "Welsh Rarebit", it's yummy and can be found in the frozen foods section - Stouffer's makes it I think. I wonder if this is the kind of cheese they were making???

For the Welsh radio show, see Welsh Rarebit (radio programme) (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Welsh_Rarebit_(radio_programme)).

http://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/en/thumb/a/a9/Welsh_Rarebit_real.jpg/300px-Welsh_Rarebit_real.jpg (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/File:Welsh_Rarebit_real.jpg)
http://bits.wikimedia.org/skins-1.17/common/images/magnify-clip.png (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/File:Welsh_Rarebit_real.jpg)
Welsh Rarebit with tomato and Branston pickle (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Branston_pickle) on top.


Welsh rarebit or Welsh rabbit is a dish (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Dish_(food)) made with a savoury sauce (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Sauce) of melted cheese (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Cheese)and various other ingredients and served hot over toast (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Toast).[1] (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Welsh_rarebit#cite_note-0) The names of the dish originate from 18th century Great Britain.[2] (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Welsh_rarebit#cite_note-oed-1) Welsh rarebit is typically made withCheddar cheese (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Cheddar_cheese), in contrast to the Continental European fondue (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Fondue) which classically depends on Swiss cheeses.
"Eighteenth-century English cookbooks reveal that it was then considered to be a luscious supper or tavern (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Tavern) dish, based on the fine cheddar-type cheeses and the wheat breads […] . Surprisingly, it seems there was not only a Welsh Rabbit, but also an English Rabbit, an Irish and a Scotch Rabbit, but nary (not) a rarebit."[3] (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Welsh_rarebit#cite_note-2)

[WingedMonkey]

Hey Mr Historian, were all "huge negros" in Georgia at the time slaves?

Yes. According to all census records in that part of Georgia all black men where slaves.

[long2bhiking]

We just hiked from Tray Gap to Tesnatee Gap this past weekend and I was hoping to see something at Cheese Factory as well but there was nothing there. In fact we went right by it not knowing and had to go back and look for it. We were disappointed that there was nothing to see :-(

[Sly]

Yes. According to all census records in that part of Georgia all black men where slaves.

OK, it sounded like an exception to the rule. It was normal why point it out?

[WingedMonkey]

OK, it sounded like an exception to the rule. It was normal why point it out?

Because most Americans don't think of New Englanders moving to the south and using slave labor. I find it an interesting historical note, and because the writer of the 1848 story pointed out both that the Dairyman and Col. Edward Williams were from New England and he also pointed out the "huge hegros" doing the work.

In 1850 and 1860 the US government began doing slave counts for some states. The 1850 Slave Schedules for "cheese factory" owner Edward Williams of Habrbersham County, Georgia can be viewed on this page:

https://www.familysearch.org/pal:/MM9.3.1/TH-266-11134-57557-59?cc=1420440

Now... do I expect the Companion to change a paragraph used for 15 years to read "you are passing the site where slaves produced award winning cheese"...or course not since it was not an exception to the rule.

[WILLIAM HAYES]

good place to tent or hammock and a good spring but nothing special

[traildust]

I can be a bit of a nerd when it comes to studying history and genealogy in the south. Here are some historical notes from 1848 describing the cheese farm and and how it was set up.
Interesting how they used spring water carried in to chill the dairy, also interesting how the New Englanders used slave labor to make the operation profitable.

Something that caught my attention is the name of "Trail Mountain" instead of "Tray Mountain", and how it got it's original name. Wonder when it was changed.
http://toto.lib.unca.edu/findingaids/books/lanman_charles/letter_vii_trail_mountain.htmAppreciate your posting this info. Nice to know some of the local history.

[CrumbSnatcher]

good place to tent or hammock and a good spring but nothing specialMr. Hayes i believe your words are scrambled, its hard to make it out? but i think it says
"its always special when you find a good place to tent/hammock that has a good spring. :-)
living the dream, one campsite at a time!