This is a collection covering the four western Canadian provinces. It includes the following:

• Milk Bottles
• Milk bottle tops
• Dairy tokens

These three types of material are commonly sought after by collectors.

To be of Interest to collectors, milk bottles must have embossed or applied colour labels on them. Typically such labels will have the name of the dairy or creamery on the front and a promotional slogan on the reverse. Embossed bottles are the older ones with coloured labels coming in to vogue in the mid to late 30s.

Some collectors prefer milk bottle tops or dairy tokens. They are much easier to store and display. Tops came in a wide variety of colours and designs, some generic and some with the dairy or creamery name. Dairy Tokens come in a wide variety of shapes, sizes and colours and are made of a wide variety of metals, fibre or plastic.

Dairies & Creameries were large and small and individual operators chose to use (or not use) plain or labeled bottles, generic or specific tops or tokens, as their finances or market conditions may have dictated.

There are also numerous other elements of dairyana collectables as follows:

• Dairy & creamery calendars
• Dairy & creamery advertising & promotional items
• Cream cans
• Dairy milk bottle crates
• Dairy & creamery butter, cottage cheese boxes
• “Ice cream” clocks
• Milkman’s carry baskets
• Bottle wrappers & ice cream containers
• Dairy “paper”, price lists & correspondence