Historical information

This stool appears to have been home-made. It was used in the days (first half of the 20th century) when cows were mostly milked by hand. It was most likely to have been used to milk a house cow, perhaps in Warrnambool or a nearby town. The cow would have been kept during the day time on the town common and brought back to the home for milking and returned to the common the next day. The production of milk, cheese and butter has been an important industry in the Warrnambool district since the second half of the 19th century, with the Warrnambool Cheese and Butter Factory at Allansford being established in 1888. It is the oldest surviving dairy company in Australia.

Significance

This stool is of considerable interest as an example of the stools used when cows were hand milked and when many households in the towns and outer areas had a house cow to supply milk for the household.

Physical description

This is a hand-made wooden milking stool with a rectangular piece of wood for the seat and four rounded legs that taper slightly outwards. The legs have been inserted into four holes on the top seating part. The seat has a small circular hole in the middle. The stool is well-worn.