The Patriotic Strawberry Farmer
A Richland grower contributes half of his town's Liberty Loan total, demonstrating his support for the Great War effort.
The story, cleaned up
A cleaned-up reading of the newspaper page: spelling and layout repaired, one story lifted off a crowded page. It follows the original closely but it is not a transcription. The original page is below; read it if a detail matters.
Richland’s subscription to the second Liberty Loan totalled $7,500.00, of which $4,000 was subscribed by J. E. Mowrey, a prominent strawberry grower of the district. Mr. Mowrey recently sold some land in the East and felt that he could not put his money to a better use than in helping Uncle Sam finance the war. Inasmuch as his sons were too young to join the colors, Mr. Mowrey felt that this was a satisfactory way to do his bit and show his patriotism. A number of ranchers who had not yet received returns on their season’s work were desirous of helping along the cause, but did not have the money in hand at this time. However, they are in hopes thru the good offices of Cashier A. L. Nelson to persuade the bank to allow them to take over part of its subscription when their crop returns come in.
“Inasmuch as his sons were too young to join the colors, Mr. Mowrey felt that this was a satisfactory way to do his bit and show his patriotism.”
During World War I, local farmers were deeply integrated into the federal war finance apparatus, a level of civic participation that contrasts with the more detached nature of modern investment. It serves as a reminder of how the Richland-Kennewick area shifted from rural agricultural independence to being part of a national mobilization project.
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