In 1871 [Peter Henderson] established a seed company called Peter Henderson & Company. The company developed vegetables and flowers suited to American conditions. He began a new era of seed trade merchandising by using a five-color lithograph in his catalog. Continue reading from Smithsonian Library
Nellis Sherwood in Southport's onion fields. Photo courtesy of Fairfield Museum and History Center
While the manufactories, as they were called then, grew faster than anyone could have imagined, farming continued to thrive - especially after onion growing became a craze around 1840. The market for crop onions was lucrative; first there was a great demand for onions in New York City, and then during the Civil War the army purchased thousands of barrels of pickled onions to combat scurvy. Demand continued until the end of the century, especially the white, yellow, and red varieties grown in Westport. New York wholesalers provided a ready market, paying as much as $10 a barrel for white and form $1.50 a barrel for red and yellow onions. Ships carrying the onions would travel to New York weekly. The business became so important to the area that young boys would miss their spring and early fall school terms to help with the harvest. The onion industry reached its peak in 1860-1890. However, at the end of the nineteenth century, the crop died a quick death because of a cutworm plague that was eating the onion just above the ground. It swept the eastern seaboard and the South, wiping out the industry because nobody knew how to deal with it. Continue reading from Klein, Westport, Connecticut: The Story of a New England Town's Rise to Prominence, 97
During the high tide of the onion industry, two market boats from Southport and one from Westport made weekly trips to New York during the fall and winter season each carrying from 1500 to 2000 barrels of produce, mostly onions. The railroad also shipped an amount equal to one or two boat loads each week. On shipping days the streets were jammed with teams waiting to unload or returning home with piled up loads of empty barrels. Continue reading from Birge, Westport Connecticut: The Making of a Yankee Township, 86
Gallogly, Frances D. If It's Spring, It's Onion Time (1983, Apr 03). New York Times (1923-) (Proquest)
Liebenson, Bess Long Ago When Ships Set Sail from Fairfield (1999, Apr 25). New York Times Late Edition (East Coast) (Proquest)
