By Thomas
R. Bayles
Potato growing In Suffolk County was nearly as important a farming
industry in 1910 as it
is today, according to an article in the Brooklyn Daily Eagle for
May 14, 1910. The farmers planted 12,500 acres that spring,
according to this article, most of which were planted east of
Manorville and with an ordinary harvest it was estimated that at
least 2,500,000 bushels would be harvested that season.
The following is quoted from the article in the Eagle "The Long
island Potato Exchange-will
hold its annual meeting 'early in June and It Is interesting to note
the amount of business done during the past year. The exchange did
a total of $390,000 business on a paid up capital of only $10,000.
There have been increases in all the lines handled by the exchange,
which is a sort of a mutual benefit arrangement for the farmers
holding stock or shipping through it. Much of the good work is due
to the general manager, F.E. Embree and his father, C.E. Embree, who
is assistant manager and also acts
as sort of a "roving missionary" to go about sowing seed among the
farmers to keep them Interested in the work of the exchange. The
exchange looks for a much larger business in all lines for the
coming year, although it must not be inferred that the exchange
expects to handle the entire output from the
12,SW acres of potatoes. There are many independent buyers, who are
really fighting the exchange and who always manage to get hold of
plenty of tubers to ship. Since the exchange has been operating the
price of potatoes has been maintained at a high level during the
active shipping season.
"Of the 1909 potato crop the exchange shipped so far, 560 cars
holding 369,857 bushels brought by the market $277,992. The deal in
old potatoes is practically over and there are but few cars left on
Long Island and not much of a market for them." According to this
article, potatoes were shipped from the following railroad stations:
Riverhead, 98 carloads; Peconic, 99; Aquebogue, 100; Calverton, 38;
Bridgehampton, 41; Southold, 61; East Hampton, 34; Southampton, 24;
Cutchogue, 15; Jamesport,
2; Water Mill, 27; Wainscott, 6; Wading River, 13; Laurel, 2.
This is quite a contrast from the present time when most of the
potatoes are handled by the
giant trailer trucks that roll through the Middle Country road and
south side roads almost day and night to all points east of the
Mississippi River and south to Florida. Many of these truckers haul
citrus fruits from Florida to New York and then come out hereon Long
Island to pick up a return load of potatoes. Long Island potatoes
are sold in the Florida chain stores for the same price as here on
Long Island,
ads recently being noted down there of 10 pounds for 29 cents. The
Long Island Railroad has lost most of this business in recent years,
although the past Fall it put into special service and cut the rates
on potatoes nearly in half, which has brought back some business,
especially, from those supermarket chains that have terminal
warehouses with railroad sidings. The acreage this year was around
15,000
acres, but the yields are way up from what they were in 1910, many
fields reporting 500 to 600
bushels to the acre.