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Charles Lewis Pagin's Sanitary Dairy

  • County: La Porte County
  • Location: La Porte
  • Years Active in the Business: c. 1910s – possibly early 1920s

Charles Lewis Pagin was born on December 16, 1882, in La Porte, Indiana. He married Lucinda Lucie Belle Ullom in December 1907, also in La Porte.

Very little information is available about his dairy business, other than its location at 109 H Street. The 1912 Sanborn map shows a house at that address with a rear structure labeled as a creamery. By 1919, the Sanborn map identifies the site as an ice cream factory. This aligns with a 1913 issue of The Ice Cream Trade Journal, which notes that Charles L. Pagin, a dairyman from La Porte, was constructing an ice cream factory.

It is unclear when the dairy ceased operations, but it appears to have closed sometime between 1919 and 1924. In 1924, he moved to Miami, Florida, where he died on February 5, 1940. He is buried in Patton Cemetery in La Porte alongside his wife, Lucy.

1) Charles Lewis Pagin, 57, retired realtor, of 560 N. W. Forty-fifth street, died Monday at his residence after an illness of two years. He came to Miami in 1924 from LaPorte, Ind. He was a retired sales manager of the W. F. Sheehan Realty Company here. He leaves the widow, Mrs. Lucy B. Pagin; three daughters, Mrs. Grace Patterson and Mrs. Katherine Parrish, both of Miami; Mrs. Marie Jane O’Connell of LaPorte. Funeral services will be conducted at 7:30 p. m. Tuesday in the Combs Funeral Home. The body will be sent to LaPorte for burial. The Miami Herald, February 6, 1940.

1910 – Pagin Chas (Lucy) farmer rural route 6 La Porte

1913 – Pagin Charles L, dairyman, 109 H Street, home the same. (Lucy B)

1913 – Pagin Charles, home at 109 H Street, (Ice Cream Manufacturer & Dairyman).

He is not listed in the 1923 directory.

Bottle Photos

#1

Bottle Type: Pint milk
Embossing: PAGIN’S SANITARY / DAIRY / LAPORTE, IND. 
Glass Maker: 
Other Marks: 5W (on front heel) 
Notes: 
Photo Credit: Indiana Bottle Collectors

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#2

Size: Pint
Plate Embossing: PAGIN’S / SANITARY / DAIRY
Glass Maker: EMPIRE PAT. AUG. 13. 01 (on base)
Other Marks: 
Notes: 
Photo Credit: Indiana Bottle Collectors

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#3

Size: Pint milk
Plate Embossing: PAGANS SANITARY / SAFETY FIRST (inside a cross) / DAIRY
Glass Maker: BLANKE MFG. &  SUP. CO. (on base) 
Other Marks: THIS BOTTLE / NOT TO BE / BOUGHT OR SOLD (on back)
Notes: Embossing error, should be spelled PAGIN’S.
Bowling pin style pint. 
Photo Credit: Indiana Bottle Collectors
Date Added: 6/9/2026

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Maps

#1

1912 Sanborn Fire Insurance Map. Note 109 H Street on the left side. The northern street at the top is 1st Street, and the southern street at the bottom is 2nd Street.

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#2

1919 Sanborn Fire Insurance Map. Note 109 H Street on the left side. The northern street at the top is 1st Street, and the southern street at the bottom is 2nd Street.

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