The daily journal. (Salem, Or.) 1899-1903, 1903-04-22
STORY Of
SEEDLESS
ORANGES
There was a Woman
in the Case
First We're Brought From
Brazil 80 Years Ago
Considered a Freak Until
TibbettS got Them

NUDoluClVu TITAN Outil
TibbettS got Them
The story of the cultivation of the
seedless orange in the United States
may properly begin with the time
when, over a third OF century ago.
Mrs. Nellie Desmond, OF Syracuse.
~ Y. returned from visit to her
brother in a rubber camp laong the
Amazon. near Bahia. Brazil. She
brought with her TO this country, as
curiositles, several little seedless
oranges which grew upon clump Of
freak orange trees near her brothers
camp The commissioner of agricul
ture Of our government. az that time.
Mr.. Horace Capron, heard Of Mrs.
Desmond's curios. and after some cor.
respondence with her. instructed the
United States consul at Bahia to pro.
cure some of the small orange trees
and send them to the agricultural
department at Washington. This
was done and there, in the expert.
mental garden. they remained for
several years, and whence three were
sent 10 an orange planter In Florida.
These were never heard from.
II is just thirty years ago, that
Luther c. Tibbetts, hearing that fer.
tile government land might be had
free In Southern California by actual
settlement upon II. removed from
Maine and took ND a quarter section
In that part which is now the city OF
Riverside.
Tibbetts Got Three Years.
Among the plants and trees which
Mr. Tibbetts secured from the depart
menU OF agriculture-and he Jared
well in this regard because OF the re-
lationship which his wife bore TO
General Butler. then member Of
congress-were the three remaining
seedless orange trees from Bahia
Mr. Tibbetts was 10 report occasional
ly how his trees and plants Jared in
tho new and untried horticultural
field.
He planted the ORANGE trees along
side OF his cabin. and this marks the
epoch OF the hrst horticultural efforts
In that region OF the state. One OF
the tiny trees was chewod up by a
COW. but Tibbetts watched carefully.
watered and cultivated the remaining
ones. aud I'm 1877, five years later,
each tree bore two oranges--tho nrst
seedlsss or naval" oranges ever
grown outside OF the Amazon fwamps
and two OF which. after having
ripened were cut open In the presence
OF a little company of orange growers
at Riverside. The next year tho haF'
vest OF the two trees increased twenty
fold and, from that time, the name
and fame OF Tibbetts seedless oranges
spread throughout Southern Cali
fornia. though for the most part the
growers believed the seedless fruit 20
be n shOrtlived curiosity.
Ne Budded the Grove.
Mr.. Tibbetts. however had full
faith IN his new variety. and buddod
AN euflrc grove to the seedless. and,
after a year or so sent samples and
buds 10 the fruit growers and horti'
culturists throughout the southern
part OF the state In 1850, the
Lucky" Baldwin grove Of seventy.
i've acres was planted IN the naval
fruit. aud was the first recognition OF
its commercial superiority. by 1856.
over 5000 acres Of sheep and cattle
range had been turned into naval
orange groves. The enormous price
paid for the fruit set the growers
Wild. and by two years later 500 900
trese had been planted. and incredibly
large profts were made. The most
remarkable real estate boom in the
history OF our country was the result
land which had gone begging ten
years before at $40 an acre. sold
readily at $500 and $1,000 an acre
when It's adaptabllity 10 nayGs orange
was shown. Towns
sprang up in a night almost. the rail.
roads taking some 1900 people
10 that section. Everybody
talked nayal orange production and
he immense profits In the business,
and large fortunes were made In a few
Years. A dozen communities Of from
700 20 10000 inhabitants have grown
% from barren tracts because Of the
expansion Of the orange trade brought
,bout BY the cultivation Of the naval
,ranso-called naval" because of
he resemblance Of the blossom end ~
ne fruit 10 the human naval
Crop Worth Miiilons.
The fUO uareHf frfea Of Tibbefts' .