The Beet Sugar Boom Comes to Prosser
Investors eye the Yakima Valley for a massive industrial plant, expecting to import a colony of beet farmers to transform the regional economy.
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.
Prosser—The erection of a beet sugar factory is practically assured for this city. A deal has been made with some prominent owners of the sugar works in Utah and Oregon for the building of a mammoth plant. The promoters will also bring a colony of practical irrigators and beet growers from the vicinity of Lehi, Utah. It is estimated that at least 10,000 acres will be devoted to beet culture to supply the demand for the factory. A large area of the Yakima Indian reservation has been leased for planting the new crop. Those interested in the industry state that full 2,000 new citizens will be added to the population of Prosser and vicinity by the building of the sugar factory. The classes of people to be located on the lands are said to be industrious, sober and honest laborers. Their trade will come to this city and make it one of the most important commercial points in Eastern Washington.
“Those interested in the industry state that full 2,000 new citizens will be added to the population.”
This article highlights the historical 'growth machine' mentality of early 20th-century Washington, where promoters sold the promise of industry—and the influx of specific 'types' of workers—to guarantee town prosperity. The reference to leasing the Yakima Indian Reservation lands serves as a grim reminder of how Indigenous territory was often utilized for industrial expansion.
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