Restored photo of a family of migrant workers, somewhere in Steuben, 1944-1947
From the Steuben County Historical Society
Our Wednesday “On the Farm” mini-series turns to potatoes, grown especially in Steuben’s northwest corner, with its rich “muck” soil. The 1860 gazetteer reports Steuben County to be producing more than a quarter-million bushels a year… by 1900 we were reported as the America’s second-most productive county for potatoes.
Three decades later, during the Great Depression, our crop was pretty meager… county agent Bill Stempfle brought in Maine and Long Island farmers, with more up-to-date practices, to revive the business.
Photos are from the Prattsburgh area, around 1940.
