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The Neese’s were farmers, blacksmiths, horse and cattle traders. They harvested almost everything they ate and prior to 1900 were making sausage for home consumption. By 1917 J.T. Neese was selling sausage and delivering it in a “prairie schooner” covered wagon like the ones used in the country’s great western movement. J.T. (Mr. Thede) began making sausage with a hand grinder and gradually built a trade in town. By 1925 a Dodge screen-sided truck had been acquired. Sausage was made and packaged at night and by daybreak, Mr. Thede was delivering sausage in Greensboro and High Point, North Carolina. The “special recipe” for Neese’s Sausage was created by J.T.’s wife, Annie Smith Neese. She developed just the right proportions of ham and other pork cuts, and added just the right seasonings of salt, sage, pepper and a few secret ones that only family members know about. In the 1920s “Miss Annie” stirred up another famous Neese recipe for Liver Pudding. She ground pork livers and other choice pork cuts and seasoned them with herbs and spices. She added just enough corn meal to hold it together. Just like we do it today, she never added chemicals or preservatives to either sausage or liver pudding.
Today the business is run by the fourth generation of Neese’s with plenty of kids coming along to continue the family business of making products that are simply the best tasting people can buy. While you will only find Neese’s in North Carolina, South Carolina and Virginia, we are pleased to let you know that if you’ve moved away and long for that great Neese’s taste, you can now order some from this web site. Remember, it’s a family tradition; fresh has always been better.
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In
1925 Mr. Thede’s son, Tom, graduated from high school and went
into sausage making full-time. In a few years, Mr. Thede turned
the business over to Tom, since he was already an experienced sausage
maker. Tom and his brother, Homer, became partners about 1930.
