Could Tobacco be the Sound's Next Great Crop?
An experimental harvest in Jefferson County sparks hope that Puget Sound could replace hops with lucrative tobacco farming.
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.
That tobacco can be successfully grown on Puget Sound has been again demonstrated by C. W. Holcomb, who brought to the POST-INTELLIGENCER office two sample bunches grown by J. V. Rex on his farm at Centre, in Jefferson County. Mr. Holcomb has been convinced that the soil and climate are well adapted for tobacco culture. He furnished Mr. Rex with Havana seed and Wilson hybrid for testing. Mr. Rex found about three and one-half acres planted, mostly with Wilson hybrid. The tobacco is pronounced to be fully equal to that grown in Pennsylvania. Speaking of the subject, Mr. Holcomb said: 'Tobacco would make a much better and surer crop than hops. From 1,500 to 2,000 pounds an acre can be raised and will sell at 8 to 10 cents a pound. If a number of farmers would grow one or two acres each, it would diversify their crops and attract leaf buyers.'
“Tobacco would make a much better and surer crop than hops, and the longer it is grown in any soil the better it becomes.”
This article captures the era's boosterism and the desperate search for stable cash crops in the Pacific Northwest. While tobacco never replaced hops or timber, the dream of diversifying the agricultural economy remains a permanent fixture of regional discourse.
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