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Weekly News May 28, 2018Description
Tobacco: Tobacco use in Europe certainly goes back to the 16th century, if not before. When the European powers got interested in the Western Hemisphere, many areas of the Americas tended themselves well to its production. In the American colonies, large areas of the Carolinas and Virginia were used for growing tobacco, which was the leading cash crop, many slave owners becoming wealthy at the expense of their black slaves. Tobacco was grown successfully in the Jamestown colony in the early 17th century, and John Rolfe, a successful planter, married Princess Pocahontas and took her to England, where she died while still in her 20s.
Scotch snuff, a tobacco product, was manufactured in Auburn (Yorklyn) for over 170 years (1782-1954). The tobacco was grown in the south, and much of the market was in the south. Four generations of the Garrett family made a fortune from their snuff business from the time John Garrett Jr. converted its grist mill on what is now Benge Road. By 1800, he had moved downstream on Red Clay Creek to a larger piece of land, and, although most of the family lived in Philadelphia thereafter, the Garrett mills at Yorklyn were under family control until the last male family member, William E. Garrett Jr., died in 1898.
Usually snuff was made from pulverizing the stems and poorer leaves, mixing with flavors such as mustard and retailing to two widely diverse segments of the population. By the 18th century, society women in Europe “sniffed snuff” at their afternoon and evening parties and kept it in fancy snuff boxes of special design. In America, however, more often it was used by the working population, which could not afford the higher priced chewing tobacco, and until the late 20th century, every country store in the southeast had several brands of snuff on their shelves.
Although there were successful tobacco-growing areas in Lancaster County, Pennsylvania, and in northwestern Connecticut, among others, the Carolinas still grew much of the nation’s tobacco but under completely different conditions after the Civil War. The large tobacco manufacturers, such as the American Tobacco Company (the Duke family), R. J. Reynolds, and P. Lorillard and Company, were headquartered in north central North Carolina. All of them, plus many well advertised smaller tobacco manufacturers with name recognition, were profitable.
There were essentially four types of manufactured tobacco: that used for cigarettes, cigars, pipes, and chewing tobacco. Cigarette smoking was by far the most popular, suggested for sophisticated people of both sexes. In old movies of the 1930s and 1940s, men and women knew just how to light a cigarette for their star of the opposite sex. In fact, a well thought out solution to a problem could not be solved without a cigarette. Although cigarettes were not very popular in America until World War I (army personnel called them “fags”), by the 1930s most young people thought it very popular to smoke, copying what they saw in the movies. Before World War II, Lucky Strike, Camel, Chesterfield, Cool, and Old Gold were the favored brands, and all of these went to the military as the war got underway. Civilians lined up on sidewalks for unknown brands that were available. It is my belief that the tobacco industry began inserting addictives, so that smokers could not quit, and tobacco has been linked with almost certain cancer of the throat or lungs.
Cigar smoking became popular with men of distinction, whether they were industrialists or politicians. Lincoln never smoked cigars, but most of his contemporaries did. The tobacco for high-quality cigars came from Cuba or from the Tampa area of Florida. I never knew whether my grandfather and his brother Elwood were cigar smokers, but I assume they probably were. All four of their sons smoked good cigars for most of their lives. A box of 50 good cigars cost from $10 and up, and my father bought hundreds of boxes during his lifetime. However, cigars were not always inhaled, as were cigarettes. In his later years, my dad’s cigar use was always in his shop or in a car, as my mother complained about the tobacco smell in her carpets and draperies. For the most part, women never smoked cigars, although working men enjoyed a cheaper variety on occasion. Sears sold a box of 100 cigars for $1.
Smoking tobacco for men’s pipes was available in this country under such names as Prince Albert, Union Leader, and several more. Usually, attempts to smoke a pipe were undertaken only by men, although older black women in the south enjoyed their corncobs. Possibly a pleasant diversion, the problem was that you could keep your pipe lighted or do something else, but not both. Pipe smoking in this country was advanced in the 1840s during the mass immigration from Ireland caused by the potato famine.
Finally, there was chewing tobacco, which was never lit. It came in a pouch that fit into the pocket of work clothes and was used by working men and those who worked in a chemical plant where smoking was not allowed. A “chaw” of tobacco was put in the side of your mouth, and it was sucked and the residue spit out (snuff was often used in the same way). It didn’t do much to keep your mouth clean, but was less injurious than smoking tobacco. Mail Pouch, often advertised on the side of barns, was a favorite brand.
If the Steam Team had been in existence 50 years ago, more than half of them would have been smokers. Although there may be some, I don’t know of any today. We have come a long way.
Work Report: On Tuesday, May 22, eight volunteers attended the work session: Steve Bryce, Ted Kamen, Stan Lakey, Francis Luca, Brent McDougall, Bill Scheper, Jay Williams, and Larry Tennity (supervising). The Mountain Wagon was prepped for a trip to Woodside on June 2nd. The boiler was filled, and hexane was added to the fuel tank. The cylinder oil was checked and the nozzles cleaned
The 725 was prepped for the start of driver training. Tires were filled to the proper pressure, the fuel was checked and was ok and the engine casing gear oil depth is ¾". The water tank was checked and the oil socks are brand new. The water tank is empty. The 735 was also prepped for the Kennett Square Memorial Day parade by checking tire pressures, fuel levels (hexane needs to be added), and the linkage for the hook up was lubricated. The operation of the model trains was checked for the next Steamin' Day and the tracks cleaned. Francis Luca received an orientation on operating the model RR.
On Wednesday, the following were in attendance: Richard Bernard (in charge), Gary Fitch, Stan Lakey, Dave Leon, Jerry Lucas, Jerry Novak, Lou Mandich, Bill Schwoebel, John Smoyer, Larry Tennity. Water that had accumulated from the rain was cleaned up in the AVRR shop. The Model T was started and taken on a run to check it out before its use at Steamin' Days. It needed an adjustment to the carburetor.
Work continued on the engine display in the museum with an eye towards getting the superheater correctly oriented above the burner and below the boiler and connecting it to the throttle and engine. The model 740 was fired up and run to check out the new packing in the piston rods which seems to be working well. The left valve rod packing is leaking, however, and all attempts to blow it out or remove it manually failed. The car was returned to the shop for further work.
On Thursday, the work session included Stan Lakey, Steve Bryce, Mark Russell, Larry Tennity, Tim Ward, and Dave Leon (in charge). Work on the 740 packing rings of the engine still not successful. The Mountain Wagon and 735 were cleaned up and polished for the Memorial Day parade. The Rauch & Lang battery water was check and filled.
