Black Diamond Miners Invest in Benton Hops
A group of investors from the coal mining town of Black Diamond have purchased 67 acres of land near Benton to establish a massive hop yard, signaling a shift toward diversified agriculture in the valley.
Dr. McCormick, Mr. Lutze, Mr. Krontz and Mr. Stone of Black Diamond, who have been here the past week looking over the county, yesterday purchased 67 acres of land from H. S. Amon, near Benton, and will plant it to hops. This will be one of the largest hop yards in the valley, and as that part of the country is especially adapted to hop raising, this will be quite an addition to the valley industries.
“This will be one of the largest hop yards in the valley and as that part of the country is especially adapted to hop raising, this will be quite an addition to the valley industries.”
This item captures the classic Washington 'boom' era, where capital from established industrial centers like Black Diamond flowed into the burgeoning agricultural frontier of the Yakima Valley. The transition to intensive cash crops like hops is a precursor to the modern, highly mechanized viticulture and agriculture that define the Benton area today.
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