June is National Dairy Month. Time to enjoy your favorite dairy treat! Prior to electricity arriving on farms, the twice daily chore of milking was done by hand. Most milking stools are three legged so that the person milking the cow could lean forward and not fall over, plus 3 legs are more stable on uneven ground than 4 legs. Often farmers would create their own milking stool from found materials such as tractor seats, milk can lids, table legs, porch pillars, tree branches, or planks. With the advent of dairy sanitation regulations farmers were able to earn Grade A rating, thus receiving higher payments for their milk and cream. With the new sanitation rules, wooden milking stools became a thing of the past. Metal milking stools became available and were easier to keep clean. Mechanical milking devices came with electricity and hand milking too became a relic of history.