History AND DEVELOPMENT 23 
investigations by scientists, and while simultaneously with the 
commencement of operations of this company, several other com- 
panies experimented on this form of condensed milk, the Helvetia 
Milk Condensing Company was the first organization that suc- 
ceeded in producing a marketable unsweetened condensed milk 
that was sterile and would keep indefinitely, 
The rudiments of the 
process of evaporated, steril- 
ized milk were introduced by 
Mr. John B. Meyenberg, a 
native of Switzerland, who 
formerly was operator in the 
mother plant of the Anglo- 
Swiss Condensed Milk Co. at 
Cham, Switzerland. Mr. Mey- 
enberg, being a man with an 
inventive turn of mind, ex- 
perimented on the evapora- 
tion and sterilization of milk, 
during the years 1880 to 1883. 
As the result of these exper- 
ments he decided that it was 
possible to preserve milk. 
without the aid of sugar. 
Migratine to this country, he 
applied for, and was granted 
a patent on his idea of pre- 
serving milk by sterilization. 
by the United States Govern- 
ment in 1884 (Patent No. 
Fig. 6. John B. Meyenberg 308,422), and again in 1887 
(Patent No. 358,213). Mr. 
Meyenberg was also granted patent rights (Patent No. 308,421) 
on apparatus for preserving milk. 
Attracted to Highland, Hlinois, by reason of its large Swiss 
population, on the representations of Mr. A. J. Pagan, a leading 
Highland citizen, who brought Mr. Meyenberg to Highland and 
introduced him to the community, Mr. Meyenberg associated 
himself with Mr. John Wildi, then a merchant of Highland, who 
