A mini history of the milkman
Nowadays, milkmen are becoming a rarer sight on UK streets. At Creamline, we still deliver milk the traditional way many of us remember from our childhood – in glass bottles on your doorstep.
Let’s take a step back in time and take a look at how milk delivery has changed over the years.
19th century
While we have evidence of people drinking dairy milk throughout all of human history, the origins of the milkman as we know it started in the 1860s.
The type of two-horse carts used by the first milkmen were known as floats, which is why we still call milk vans ‘floats’ today.
By 1880, British milkmen started delivering milk in glass bottles, borrowing the idea from New York. Before then, they’d just poured the milk from bulk containers into jugs at each house!
20th century
As more households got their own fridges, fresh milk deliveries became less common as the deliveries weren’t needed as often.
Electric milk floats were invented in Britain in the early 1930s. Their quiet motors made them perfect for early morning and late-night deliveries. While some streets still had horse and cart deliveries even up to the 1970s, the majority of towns soon switched to the newly available electric floats.
In 1945, Creamline Dairies was founded by Peter Roe to supply businesses in Trafford Park and Worsley with fresh milk deliveries. Between the 1950s and 80s, Creamline became one of the many milk delivery firms in the UK, supplying households around Manchester with their daily bottle or two. You can find out more about our history here.
The present day
The biggest change for modern milk delivery customers has been the move online. When Creamline launched its online platform back in 2014, it transformed the way our customers ordered their essentials – making it simpler than ever to manage deliveries, add extras, and plan ahead. It also helped us streamline operations, so we could continue offering the reliable, personal service we’ve built our name on.
Another big step forward has been embracing choice. Alongside our traditional whole and semi-skimmed milk, you’ll now find a range of dairy-free alternatives like oat and soya – perfect for those following vegan or lactose-free diets.
We may have swapped horse and cart for electric floats, but our values haven’t changed. Creamline is still about local service, quality produce, and keeping tradition alive in a modern world.
Find out if we deliver to your area by entering your postcode, and sign up today to be part of Creamline’s history.
