The History of Grandpa’s Cheesebarn
Grandpa at his store in West Salem, Ohio in 1977
In the early 1900’s, Grandpa Yarman sold his only possession, a portable RCA radio, for his first wheel of Ohio Swiss, and started his own cheese house, “Yarman’s” in West Salem, Ohio.
Soon he started to smoke his own country hams and bacon and enlarged his store. His unique way of smoking meats and his reputation for quality spread throughout Ohio.
In the thirties, Grandpa Yarman became a source for high quality meat and cheese, at a fair price. It was during this time that Grandpa Yarman took sick. His store, with no one to help smoke the meet or to get the cheese, fell on hard times. His daughter, Vera, now Grandma, met Grandpa and the two of them started to reconstruct what Grandma’s father had built.
Grandpa Baum followed the same trials to the best cheese makers in Ohio and explored new areas in Ohio to obtain the best Colby, Baby Swiss, and many other types of Ohio cheeses.
In 1978 Grandpa & Grandma Baum along with their daughter Ronda & her husband Dick opened Grandpa's Cheesebarn. In 1991 Grandpa Baum sold his store "Wonderland of Food" in West Salem & joined Ronda & Dick full time working at Grandpa's Cheesebarn. In 2001, Ronda & Dick's eldest son Pappy, left teaching & joined his wife Brice (who had been working at Grandpa's Cheesebarn since she was 16) & made Grandpa's Cheesebarn a third generation family business.
As the years went on, the quality as well as the business grew, under the watchful eye of the new Grandpa & Grandma along with Pappy & Brice. The tradition of quality in home somed meats, superior Ohio cheeses, the best available candies & ice cream can be found at Grandpa's Cheesebarn, located at the intersection of I71 & US Route 250 in Ashland, Ohio.