Grayson County TXGenWeb

Knaur Cheese Factory

John Simon Knaur and his son George established the first cheese factory in the Texoma area. In 1928, Knaur built a small brick structure, very similar to his Diamond Ice plant. The building, which still stands,
is located at the south end of the Austin Avenue viaduct, at 809–11 South Austin Avenue. In those days, however, the former viaduct came down behind the building. When the new viaduct was constructed in 1954, it came within a few feet of the front door of the building.

West side of viaduct, 1990s
On the right, the old building that held Simms Candy Company & the first Kraft Cheese plant.
Knaur Cheese preceded Kraft in that building.

South end of Austin Avenue Viaduct, 1990s, looking south.
The viaduct is out front (left), while the west (right) side shows the Kraft Building (far right).
These buildings are still standing.
Knaur Cheese preceded Kraft in that building, & Simms Candy followed it.

There were several large dairy farms in the Denison area. It seems likely that these supplied the raw material from which cheese was made. Perhaps something in the Knaurs' German heritage inspired them to begin manufacturing this product.

Only in 1929 did the Denison City Directory list the Knaur Cheese Manufacturing Company. President was John S. Knaur. S. C. Whitten served as superintendent. In 1929, John Knaur persuaded the Kraft-Phenix Company to take over the small cheese factory.

Kraft-Phenix Cheese Corporation
Postcard postmarked 1941

His obituary says that he was instrumental in bringing Kraft to Denison. The cheese-making operation grew rapidly. Kraft Foods moved it to larger quarters in 1930. The company was a mainstay of the Denison economy during the Great Depression.

When Kraft Foods vacated the Knaur Cheese building, Ashburn’s Dairy used it for many years. The Simms Tobacco Company eventually took it over. Since that firm moved out in the early 1950s, the building has been occupied by many merchants.

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