Conn. tobacco crop was once a big deal, if cancerous
Tobacco field with shade tents in East Windsor, Conn.
Field workers, all children, at the Goodrich Tobacco Farm near Gildersleeve, Conn., in 1917.
Text excerpted from a New England Historical Society report.
“The billowing white tents, once a feature of the northern Connecticut landscape, have almost disappeared, replaced by condos, parking lots and an Amazon warehouse. The vast acres of Connecticut Shade tobacco, 30,000 at their peak, have shrunk to just over 2,000.
“Cigar markers use Connecticut Shade as a wrapper – the outside of the cigar. It makes the finest wrapper in the world. As unlikely as it seems, Connecticut Shade ranks up there with tobacco from Cuba, Dominican Republic, Honduras, Mexico and Cameroon. Silky and golden, it looks good on a cigar.
“The highly prized tobacco is one of the priciest agricultural commodities on the planet. The leaves must be perfect – no holes or imperfections – for the ultimate appeal to the cigar smoker. It therefore requires more labor than other kinds of tobacco.
“The work begins in May, with weeding and transplanting seedlings. Then field workers fasten the plants to guide wires and spread cloth tents over them. As the plants grow, workers pick off shoots and tobacco worms. They harvest the leaves and bring them to sheds, where workers used to sew the leaves together and string them on wooden lathes. They’re hung up in the rafters where they cure, then they go to sorting sheds and warehouses.’’
Editor’s note: By the way, there’s a campy 1961 movie titled Parrish that’s set in the Connecticut tobacco country.