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Needed to look this up, so thought I'd share. Was at an event where the topics of both cotton and Illinois came up occasionally, and several times I mentioned that you could grow cotton in southern Illinois. It was one of those things I thought that "everyone knew," but each time, I was met by disbelief, until finally I doubted myself, since I hadn't actually looked it up recently. So needless to say, when I got home, I checked. Yep, you can, though not of the best quality, but there were hopeful early-war attempts to revive the cultivation.
Looks like it was more common 25 years before the war, then faded as other crops were found to be more profitable, but in the fall of 1861 the Illinois Central Railroad promoted cotton-growing there, to compete with now less-available southern cotton, and articles about it started showing up in agricultural reports. Some people predicted success, others failure.
The Prairie Farmer, November 21, 1861 reported on some examples and pronounced it not good enough, though acknowledge the pressure to try:
The Ohio Cultivator, February 1862, gave a similar report, though suggested the crop might be as high as a bale an acre based on past experience, as good as the deep south, and added:
Another article reported that the 1840 census said southern Illinois produced 200,000 pounds of cotton that year.
In 1863, the Illinois Central did provide "over one hundred tons of cotton seed... and all this was purchased or distributed, to be planted this season."
Another magazine said in 1863 that a group of wealthy Cincinnatians had planted 7,000 acres in cotton in southern Illinois and "have several large cotton-gins and warehouses... It is the short staple or upland cotton, and is worked by East Tennessee and Georgia refugees..."
An 1864 retrospective reported the plan didn't go as well as hoped:
Hank Trent
hanktrent@gmail.com
Looks like it was more common 25 years before the war, then faded as other crops were found to be more profitable, but in the fall of 1861 the Illinois Central Railroad promoted cotton-growing there, to compete with now less-available southern cotton, and articles about it started showing up in agricultural reports. Some people predicted success, others failure.
The Prairie Farmer, November 21, 1861 reported on some examples and pronounced it not good enough, though acknowledge the pressure to try:
Strenuous efforts are being made in some quarters to reinstate (?) cotton on Illinois soil, as one of our farm products.
It is well known that when Southern Cotton was worth in this State 30 to 35 cents per lb., and the demand moderate, that it was grown to supply principally the wants of Central and Southern Illinois; (which wants were few at that time) as facilities for the transportation increased and prices receded, the cultivation very soon gave way for the finer, better and cheaper staple, or rather the goods made from it, which could much easier be paid for by raising something else to exchange for it. There have, however, still remained instances where it has continuously been grown for the supply of some families in the manufacture of their clothing. We have ourselves seen it grown in this, Cook Co., but the staple was not very long or fine. We also received samples from Christian Co., which we submitted to a good judge of the staple, pronouncing it fair. We would not discourage any enterprise that looked towards diversifying our products from the monotonous Corn and Hog of the Central part of our State,if there is any prospect of its being done with profit and advantage; but from all the investigation, we have been able to make so far, we are not inclined to the belief that it can be grown, harvested and marketed to compete with other and better cotton growing districts.
It is well known that when Southern Cotton was worth in this State 30 to 35 cents per lb., and the demand moderate, that it was grown to supply principally the wants of Central and Southern Illinois; (which wants were few at that time) as facilities for the transportation increased and prices receded, the cultivation very soon gave way for the finer, better and cheaper staple, or rather the goods made from it, which could much easier be paid for by raising something else to exchange for it. There have, however, still remained instances where it has continuously been grown for the supply of some families in the manufacture of their clothing. We have ourselves seen it grown in this, Cook Co., but the staple was not very long or fine. We also received samples from Christian Co., which we submitted to a good judge of the staple, pronouncing it fair. We would not discourage any enterprise that looked towards diversifying our products from the monotonous Corn and Hog of the Central part of our State,if there is any prospect of its being done with profit and advantage; but from all the investigation, we have been able to make so far, we are not inclined to the belief that it can be grown, harvested and marketed to compete with other and better cotton growing districts.
The railroad company have assurances from Secretary Seward and others at Washington, that every necessary effort will be made to procure a sufficient supply of seed, which will probably be distributed free through the Patent Office and by the railroad company.
In 1863, the Illinois Central did provide "over one hundred tons of cotton seed... and all this was purchased or distributed, to be planted this season."
Another magazine said in 1863 that a group of wealthy Cincinnatians had planted 7,000 acres in cotton in southern Illinois and "have several large cotton-gins and warehouses... It is the short staple or upland cotton, and is worked by East Tennessee and Georgia refugees..."
An 1864 retrospective reported the plan didn't go as well as hoped:
The scarcity of cotton led to the attempt to raise it in Southern Illinois, Indiana, and Missouri, as well as in Kentucky. The frosts, already noted, affected this crops severely, and the yield was not more than one half an average one.
hanktrent@gmail.com
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