The year 1941 brought many eventful changes to the United States and other countries around the world. In December of 1941, the United States was attacked by the Japanese in the bombing of Pearl Harbor. This tragic event propelled the United States forward and into the second world war. The effects of World War II in small towns such as Sugarcreek, Ohio may appear obscure, however, the consequences of such a large scale conflict were felt at all levels of society. A snapshot of World War II’s influence on daily life in small-town America is demonstrated by the effect it had on Godfrey Lengacher’s wholesale cheese business.
Despite the looming threat turned reality of war, in the little town of Sugarcreek, Godfrey Lengacher copyrighted his method of vacuum packing freshly made swiss cheese into cans. Mr. Lengacher’s journey with swiss cheese manufacturing began in 1938 when he purchased a former Bakery building on Maple Street in the little town of Sugarcreek.
The canned swiss cheese had a valve in the top that permitted natural gases produced by the cheese to escape and simultaneously kept air from entering the can. This method of storage kept the swiss cheese in pristine condition for an indefinite amount of time. Roughly 7,000 pounds of swiss cheese per month was cut into two and four-pound blocks. These blocks were then sliced and packaged using the method developed and patented by Godfrey Lengacher. Most of the swiss cheese produced by Godfrey Lengacher was sold to grocery suppliers at a wholesale price. Thus the commercialization and large scale retail of swiss cheese commenced for Mr. Lengacher in the Little town of Sugarcreek.
As was aforementioned, Mr. Lengacher patented his method of packaging swiss cheese in 1941, however, the looming threat of the second world war became an unfortunate reality for the United States as well as the people of Sugarcreek. When the United States officially entered World War II on December 8, 1941, young men from all over the country joined the armed forces to serve and protect their homes. Community members from Sugarcreek and the surrounding areas sent many of their fathers, husbands, brothers, and sons to protect and defend the nation. However, the effects of World War II were not only present in the absence of immediate family members and friends, but also presented themselves economically. As a result of the second world war, Godfrey Lengacher’s wholesale cheese business ceased during the coarse of conflict starting in 1941, shortly after receiving his patent for packaging swiss cheese in a can. Despite the stifling halt on the retail of wholesale swiss cheese in 1941, Godfrey Lengacher commenced with his production and sale of canned swiss cheese at the end of World War II around 1945.
There is your snapshot of one of the many effects of World War II on the little town of Sugarcreek.
