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As a girl (1960s-early 1970s), I remember driving into southern Virginia to visit my grandfather. In the autumn, you could smell the tobacco in the drying houses, and in the spring, you could smell the tobacco flowers. They have a gorgeous scent.

My Grandad farmed tobacco. You could get hail insurance on your tobacco crop. If you had a claim, the adjuster pulled a number of leaves and counted the holes to settle your claim.

Helped my uncle cut and hang tobacco from mid 70’s til the early 90’s. Hot,humid,sticky work. Dad had me grow just a 1/4 acre of burley like he and my grandfather did in the 30’s. Hand plant with a peg is back breaking. Suckering and pulling tobacco worms the size of hotdogs. Cutting,spiking,hanging,drying,and sorting for auction. If you’ve never been to a tobacco auction it’s a whole other world. Made $350 and suddenly it was all worth it.

Here at Ft. Vancouver, back during the fur trade days, Tobacco was grown for not just smoking and chewing, but to interleave between the furs in a bale to kill the pest that could ruin the quality of the pelts.

I'm so glad that it had changed by the 1950's when I worked in it. It was hard work but easier that that period of time. Here in the south the extremely hot summers made for tacky skin after a long day of cropping. I disliked cropping what we called the sand lugs which were the bottom 4-5 leaves due to the sand on them. We strung the leaves on a stick and then hung them in tobacco barns. Working in tobacco for others earned me the money to but my school clothes until I was 18 and left home and the farm. Thanks for the memories evoked by watching your video.

As a pipe smoker I loved this. I really really wish there could be a video that goes in depth on flavoring tobacco the old way. I bet those recipes are really interesting if there are any.

Even tho I was addicted to smoking cigarettes at one point in my life, I still have respect for the tobacco plant. It's a huge part of why our country was successful.

My family ( father' side) farmed tobacco from late 1600 until late 1990. When I was a boy, (1950's) I help my father plant tobacco seedlings using an L shape pointed stick, mounding the dirt up and planting the plants. Later in the season we often walked through the fields and picked tobacco worms off the plants. My Father's family farmed tobacco in Middle Tennessee packing the tobacco into hogshead barrels and flat boating it New Orleans. in the early 1800s. My late great aunt was still striping tobacco leaves in 1990 for $35 a day. Thanks for the memories.

2017 was the first time tobacco had not been grown on our farm since the 1830's. It is very labor intensive and backbreaking work with much of it still done by hand.

Can you do a fishing video? And possibly a shaving video? You have an amazing channel and it is very unique! Keep it up

As an American history teacher and pipe smoker, I absolutely loved this video! Thanks for all your interesting and informative content!

Anyone wanting to go to the Whiskey and Cigar night needs to get there reservations in as soon as it is announced. They sell out right away. Might be worth a membership to get the info.

Even though smoking is harmful, there’s no better smell than aged tobacco leaves

All of my ancestors worked in 'tobacca' in eastern NC. Both my parents put in tobacco in the summers as high schoolers, and my grandmama who would have been in her 90's today did it her whole life, her daddy was a share cropper. She remembered being a little girl as her daddy would put it in the barns her ma would do all the canning for the year in jars, she would pack them and line them up and leave them for days by the furnace in the barn. I remember at family reunions in september as a kid playing tag between the rows of huge yellow tobacco.

When he was discussing flavoring you failed to ask if they ever made nutmeg flavored tobacco. Smh

Thank you for another great video as always Jon. This one was of special interest to me as my grandmother picked and processed tobacco as a child-young adult in Georgia. She would always say the leaves use to make her fingers a tint of yellow after working with them so much. Fascinating to find out a little more about the processes involved during president Washington's day. :)

thank you, I love you channel to get away from the daily grind and learn in an easy peasy way. I love your channel.

Thank you for making these videos☺️

Wow! Great discussion! I don't smoke except at Civil War Reenactments and only during visitor hours, so that they get the sights and the smells of that time. Now, thanks to this episode I can speak to the process and it's history and the amount of intense work it took to produce.

Hi Jion, How are you? Could you cover the distillery at Mt. Vernon in a future program? We here at Historic Schaefferstown, PA are working to restore the stills used in the 18th century in the cellar of the Schaeffer Homestead. The archeology is almost finished. Thanks!

18:50 "Come to Mount Vernon... check out this tobacco problem." lol Freudian slip!

I love this episode. Great replay!

Super cool, literally answered all my questions! God bless

Thank you so much for this delightful video. And thank you for making a video that celebrates a plant that was crucial to our history instead of demonizing it as so many do these days.

Fascinating! I love it. Tobacco farming was a way of life in the upper south from this time well up into the 20th century, it is only the last few decades that things have changed. My grandfather farmed tobacco here in Guilford County, NC like his forefathers did from the 1920s until his death in 1984. My mother took a different route, and became a teacher, but I grew up hearing all the stories about life on the farm. Wonderful work!

loved this video...tobacco is actually an important crop for America...in congress there are pillars carved with the tobacco leaves

Thank you for re uploading this

Thank you for a very interesting segment. It's nice to see something about tobacco particularly in light of all the negativity associated with big tobacco companies these days. Clearly it was a huge part of 18th century life.

I really like reading the comments...this video seems to remind people about their childhood memories

... Sounds like Washington knew the most important rule of narcotics trade - Never take it your self.

I spent one fall of my late teens harvesting tobacco in Kentucky. The plants are gigantic, so tall that there is almost no air movement when you are in the field. We worked without shirts so the nicotine would absorb right into our skin. By the end of the day I would be woozy, both from the heat and the nicotine. I had to be careful to keep my mouth closed when I'd take a shower or the bitter taste would turn my stomach. I know it sounds like there wasn't anything enjoyable about the experience and that was probably true at the time but now I look back on it fondly and am glad I did it. I can assure you that it convinced me to pursue an easier line of work.

This was amazing, thank you. Could you do an episode on Indigo, another important early crop?

I'd love to see this type of discussion about the hemp that was grown before 1839ish... Thanks again for bringing history to LIFE!!💚

Good questions and good answers. Quality!

I remember when I was around 7 in the early 70's. They still grew tobacco in South Carolina, though not as much as North Carolina. You could smell the bundles in the tobacco barns.

Next episode: Everything about historical hemp/marijuana! It's place in society, who planted hemp, what it was used for, legal status, medicinal purposes?, financial situation (cost, profitability, free because everyone grew it?, etc), etc.

Grew up in Maryland and my family were tobacco growers, I remember being in the fields sun up to sun down and spending my nights in the winter stripping tobacco leaves from the stalks ,packing in hacks for market and in the spring selling it. Lot of good memories but very hard work beginning to end.

Very nice interview Jon. The fellow seemed well versed in the history of the tobacco grown there and the trade as well. I would have very much liked to have seen the tobacco drying barns and some of the packing barrels. I did research some years ago on Virginia tobacco barns, and those of the Dutch & German tobacco barns built in Maryland. The difference in construction is quite marked. The Dutch and German barns, being much more sturdily built, seemed to have stood the test of time better, which is why I was very curious to see Washington's barns, and doubly curious as to who designed and built them?! Could you ever do a video on different type's of barn construction in the 18th century? Or an interview with someone who still builds them in the old way?

Great video.Hope you do an. Episode on music and musicians

Very interesting, great interview. Thanks

What a very intersting insight about the production of tobacco in that period. Thanks for this!

Great interview!

Always so informative and entertaining.

I discovered while doing genealogy on my family my 5th great grandfather owned a tobacco plantation in north Carolina then in Virginia in the 1700`s. The 1790 census listed him as such. Not bad for an Irishman who came to the Colonies in 1750. His brother is listed as a Tatter of lace. Thank you for all your informative videos showing how my ancestors lived!

LOVE YOUR WORK & VIDEO'S JON !!! THANKS !!!

The flower on top should have been removed. This sends the nutrients to the leaves, not the flower. This is called topping.

Good video! Enjoyed.

Thank you for this!

Incredible how much was going on in those times - we think of history as stale and boring, but stuff like this really makes it seem interesting. I wish I was on the east coast where I could visit these places.

I grew up on a tobacco farm. Tobacco remained a very important farm commodity until the 1990s when the government essentially killed the industry. I also lived for a time in Dumfries Va just south of Mount Vernon. Located there was Port Tobacco on the Potomac River where planters in the region would ship their tobacco. Thanks for the video. It’s very accurate. With a few exceptions that was the way Tobacco was processed into the 90s.

I'm from Rhode Island, and the Gilbert Stuart Museum is a great historical site. Coggeshell Farm Museum in Bristol RI is also amazing

Was the tobacco Nutmeg flavored?

I still remember when this first came out

Awesome and very thorough history!

Great video! As a pipe smoker, I'm interested how our ancestors made the crops and refined them for selling. If possible in the future, I think it would be great to see how the tobacco was blended by the tobacconists of the 17-18th century.

Fantastic video alot of information packed in. Its sure special to me seing my family had a 600 acre platation near Leedstown VA IN LATE 1600'S AND 1700'S. Havnt learned much about it as well not many records seem to have been kept maybe destroyed. So this gives alot of insight thank you.

Jon, i read a book called 'The Glorious Cause: The American Revolution' by Robert Middlekauff. It deals primarly with the political and major issues of the time period, and i know how we all feel about politics, but you might find the book interesting because it actually does a decent job of describing day-to-day life of the colonial people and soldiers of that day. Based on the book, which is all i have to go on, Tobacco was the form of payment which would ultimately make its way to england to be turned into real money. One of the issues they described was that the churches were pastored by men who were raised and educated in England, were essentially an advocate for the King and the people were required to pay a specified amount to them in Tobacco. When there became an issue with tobacco prices becoming so low, and for whatever reason, the Tobacco crops became thin, then the requirements of payment to the Clergy couldnt be met. This became one of the issues of separating Church and State because of all the legal issues steming from this. There was so much more and i know that a large portion of the book may not be interesting to you but there were alot of things that may tie some things together for your own research. Keep doing what you do and thanks for all the information :) Wayne

I manged a watershed project for Quantico Creek back in 2000 for USDA NRCS. During the research I did for the project, I discovered that the town of Dumfries had so much erosion surrounding it from tobacco production, the ships could no longer access the harbor due to all the soil erosion that filled in the harbor. The year was 1790.

This is fantastic!!

Great content! Can you cover the George Washington hemp farm now?

There used to be quite a few tobacco farms in central Connecticut, but most of them were absorbed buy the suburbs in the 70's and 80's. A few are still around due to demand for high-quality cigar wrappers.

Great show really enjoyed it!😉💚👍

A great video. Very informative.

awesome educational videos I love it!!!

My studies of various histories tell me most ancient cities that failed wore out the phosphorus content of their soils. Rome relied on distant imports, and when things got rough the place collapsed.

Really enjoyed this, has a personal resonance

My folks grew up in the Dust Bowl days. According to history, Mt Vernon's soil should be stronger than Washington's best day... Heck, the top soil from the lower Midwest is up there. Take care from Oklahoma Mike and Vee P.S. I enjoy your content and refer people to your channel so they can spend the time to make something special and healthy (compared to fast food) for their family. Like something their grandparents/great grandma made. Some of your recipes I know by heart, some are new. Thank you so much!

Great video. Very educational

I’m a pipe smoker so this video was very informative. I always wondered if they flavored the tobacco back then. Cool!

Great information thanks I've been growing it for a couple years and filtering through a Ton of confusing info 🖐🖐

I live in the Blue Ridge Mountains of Virginia, not far from the former Reynolds plantation in Stuart. The Reynolds are of course famous for their tobacco. I have never seen tobacco growing and never knew how it was processed. This crop had such an important and influential role in our nation's history, I would love to know more about it. Thank you for this presentation. I hope to visit Mount Vernon later this year.

I'm A Tobacco Pipe Smoker & Enjoyed This Video! Thank you & Good Job!

I wonder if this historical complex is exempt from the modern government controls on growing tobacco? From what I understand the government today issues allocations as to the amount of tobacco that can be planted for market to various farm families. I have experienced the whole modern cycle of white burly tobacco, from prepping the seed beds ( usually with anhydrous ammonia ) to the thinning and planting of the seedlings all the way to striping and baling the leaves. What I never had a chance to observe were the tobacco auctions that took place when all was said and done. Another fact is that you can get a nicotine buzz just by cleaning up the plants in the field, seems hot sweaty skin can absorb the nicotine in the sticky residue of the leaves.

It’s good insight into that a lot of folks back then were farmers and with that comes with a very unique mindset and knowledge.

Great historical insight!

great video!

These are really fun and informative videos. I liked your Facebook page, but I had an idea; it would be very cool to see a "Townsends & Friends" sort of Facebook Group. A place where we can get the latest and greatest from you, as well as a place for people living the lifestyles to share and learn.

This is GREAT history!

The hogs heads were rolled to the river or bay port where they were loaded on ships. There are still many roads named Rolling Roads.

Finally!!! I caught a new upload early

the 1st shipment from Jamestown Va in todays dollars was around 800 million

Very nice video.

When I was young we went to Lexington, KY and it was tobacco harvest time. Along one road we found some leaves that must have flown off the truck on the way to the drying Barn. My dad picked a few up and put some in his cheek. Said it gave him a buzz

Thank you.

Awesome thanks!

Spent many many days when I was a teenager working in a tobacco patch

now I have grown my own tobacco I sowed seed transplanted it weeded it cut the tops and suckers of picked the bugs off cut the leaves and yellowed them in the dark cured them in my own propane flue kiln at 90 degrees 80 % humidity with fans blowing sprayed them with my own anise extract shredded them rolled them in paper smoked them until ash great cheap but very labor intensive. my plants where six foot tall my leaves where almost the size of a med throw rug for the front door I had cops stopping asking what kind of plant it was perfectly legal to grow and use you just can't sell it.

great video

I live in Cecil county Maryland , it used to be a huge county in tobacco growing. You can take tours of old tobacco barns (although there aren't many left standing). There's one Amish farm near fair hill nature center and horse track that grows tobacco , I trade with them for dried tobacco for burning offerings each year.

That was extremely interesting.

I think we should see on hemp next.

Great video! Reminded me of a quote by C.S. Lewis “A pipe gives a wise man time to think and a fool something to stick in his mouth."

I grew up in Southern Maryland and tobacco farms were ubiquitous. I knew many boys in high school who worked picking tobacco. In colonial times the tobacco grown in this region was generally shipped from Port Tobacco, MD. Unfortunately, the river silted up in the mid-late 1800s. Interesting video. Thanks.

by 0:30 already thinking of the old Bob Newhart sketch....to-bacc-o!!!! classic xD

"Check out this tobacco problem... program" Legend

Really cool!

Informative video,thank's for sharing.Love your channel!

For a little more perspective on the importance of tobacco to the colony of Virginia, bear in mind that tobacco was Virginia's #1 export to England until the start of the Revolutionary War.

South East Louisiana, specifically the river Parish area was known for producing a unique tobacco called perique. I have a historical text I'd like to send to you guys, covering the early history of the Acadian influx into Louisiana