A history of the hemp industry in Missouri
No Thumbnail Available
Authors
Meeting name
Sponsors
Date
Journal Title
Format
Thesis
Subject
Abstract
Hemp, one of the oldest known fiber plants was cultivated in China and India as early as 500 A. D. With the rise of civilization and the development of those activities that create a demand for this fiber, the hemp culture spread to other parts of the world. By the seventeenth and eighteenth centuries, it was grown extensively in Russia, France, and Italy. Russia was considered the leading hemp producing country of the world at that time. The hemp plant yields a strong and durable fiber. Consequently, its fiber proved useful in the manufacture of rough fabric commodities. Then transportation on the high seas became an important factor in the commerce of the world, this fiber found another important use in the manufacture of riggings for sailing vessels. The plant was even grown for narcotic purposes at an early date in China and India. The hemp plant was first introduced into North America soon after the colonial settlements were established. It was grown in New England on a small scale, but considerable attention was given to its cultivation in Maryland and Virginia. Both the British government and the colonial legislatures attempted to promote the industry of hemp by offering bounties for its production in the latter part of the seventeenth and the early part of the eighteenth centuries. However, the industry did not assume any great importance in North America until the urgent need for it arose in the cotton industry. Kentucky grew hemp on a small scale by 1800. With the deinand for raw hemp for manufacture into cordage, bagging, and canvas, the industry expanded greatly in Kentucky, and began to extend to other western states, particularly to Missouri.--Introduction.