Lithuanian cheese press

Top view of the cheese press frame. A large heart shaped wodden paddle is attached to the fram with a spring. It is hinged to a smaller, fixed paddle so that cheese may be squeezed between the two.

 

One of the traditions that immigrant families brought to Canada was the making of Lithuanian cheese. This handcrafted wooden cheese press with adjustment knots, was made to preserve the distinctive shape of the cheese. The original craftsman is unknown but Magdalena Stankaitis was using it in the early 1960’s on her farm in Delhi, Ontario.

This region drew many Lithuanian immigrants, as early as the 1930’s, initially to work as farm hands in the tobacco fields and later as owners of their own tobacco farms.

Wooden frame with legs. in the centre are two paddles used to squeeze the cheese. The larger paddle is attached to the frame with a spring.
A heart shaped cheese from the cheese press

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