C. G. Patten Comments

Mr. Patten Comments

Bayfield County Press – September 6, 1907

Headlines on this date rang out, Fruit Raiser Here; C. G. Patten of Charles City, Iowa Looks over Bayfield Peninsula; Thinks Well of Country; Has Been in Fruit Raising Business in Iowa or 40 Years.

Excerpt: C. G. Patten has been in the city the past two weeks a guest of N.E. Carver of the Carver-Quayle-Nourse Land Company. Mr. Patten states, “I have been in the fruit raising business for the past 40 years and during that time I have been located some 150 miles south of Minneapolis, in the state of Iowa”. I started in the fruit raising business in that section of the country when the county in which I now reside was organized but 10 years before I came. The country around there and then was a great deal like the country on the Bayfield peninsula with one exception, that being we did not have the hills there that you have here. When I went to Charles City and announced my intention of engaging in the fruit raising business, I was considerably laughed at, but believing I understood the advantages of the country offered for such a business, I went ahead with the work and now have a very excellent and paying fruit farm. In my course of studies on the fruit raising problem, I ran across many things which lead me to believe that the same things can be accomplished on this peninsula, as I accomplished in Iowa.

One thing I can say, which speaks to my mind very highly for this section, is that the variety of apples grown around your little city is much heartier than that which we raise in Iowa. I have been in the habit of shipping carloads of apples daily from my food farm and am considerably interested in the struggle some of your resident’s on-going efforts to make this a fruit section. I notice that those who have fruit trees in this section observe a tree with branches almost touching the ground as the result of a large amount of fruit and make a great deal of the fact. In Iowa we think nothing of this. But one thing which has attracted my attention and has impressed me with the idea that this is a coming fruits region, is the fact that the fruit trees bear fruit so young. This is quite unusual in our part of the country.

In my experience as a fruit grower, I have had great opportunities for developing different varieties of apples and have originated several varieties, among them being the Patten Greening. This variety is a very hearty one and I should say peculiarly adapted to the section. In looking over the different places on your peninsula were fruit is grown I visited the farm of A. Turnquist, west of your little city. Here I found some of the finest fruit trees and heartiest Wealthy apples I have ever seen. The apples grown on this farm are of an excellent variety, and only wish you had more extensive orchards of the same kind.

Mr. Carver, who has been trying to get Mr. Patten to visit this section for the past two years, is a very old friend of his, these two gentlemen having attended school together some 60 odd years ago in the St. Lawrence River country.

This history brief was written by Robert J. Nelson. Generously sharing our local history through his research and writing.