Washington & Cranberries

When you enjoy cranberries or jellied cranberry sauce this Thanksgiving would you guess that your treat came from Washington state??



On December 5, 1914, the Ilwaco Cranberry Company incorporates under the laws of the State of Washington. The firm sought to capitalize upon the available bogland and climate in the vicinity of the Pacific County town to turn otherwise economically useless land into cash crops. Ilwaco Cranberry Company will not last long but the bogs will eventually be turned into the state's major cranberry producing region and one of the few places outside New England where cranberries are grown commercially.

Commercial cranberry harvesting on the Long Beach Peninsula began in 1883 using vines imported from New Jersey. Cranberries grow in marsh environments, requiring acid peat soil and a moist climate. The fruit flourishes in only a few areas of the United States, primarily in Massachusetts, New Jersey, Wisconsin, Washington, and Oregon. Native peoples consumed wild cranberries both as food and as medicine.  

As of 2010, the state's cranberry crop value was $6,720,000. Read the complete story by clicking on  (or copying/pasting) the link below:

http://www.historylink.org/index.cfm?DisplayPage=output.cfm&file_id=10058