UC Riverside UC Riverside Electronic Theses and Dissertations Title America's Arabia: The Date Industry and the Cultivation of Middle Eastern Fantasies in the Deserts of Southern California Permalink https://escholarship.org/uc/item/02r8x22x Author Seekatz, Sarah Publication Date 2014 Peer reviewed|Thesis/dissertation eScholarship.org Powered by the California Digital Library University of California UNIVERSITY OF CALIFORNIA RIVERSIDE America’s Arabia: The Date Industry and the Cultivation of Middle Eastern Fantasies in the Deserts of Southern California A Dissertation submitted in partial satisfaction of the requirements for the degree of Doctor of Philosophy in History by Sarah Anne Seekatz December 2014 Dissertation Committee: Dr. Molly McGarry, Chairperson Dr. Catherine Gudis Dr. Vicki Ruiz Copyright by Sarah Anne Seekatz 2014 The Dissertation of Sarah Anne Seekatz is approved: Committee Chairperson University of California, Riverside ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS Good dates do not simply appear. The palms from which they grow are nourished, nurtured, and cultivated by many hands before they reach your plate. So too was this dissertation: nourished, nurtured, and cultivated by many hands along the way. I am grateful to all those who helped me plant, propagate, and harvest this little crop of mine. I am deeply indebted to the faculty of the University of California, Riverside for their continued support and guidance during my tenure there. My advisor, Professor Molly McGarry, not only asked the important questions that set me on the path of this research but proved a wonderful mentor and guide. I appreciated her good humor, steadfast encouragement, and endless patience, especially when reviewing drafts. Professor Catherine Guids pushed me to explore the role of landscape in ways I had never considered, no small task when one turns to the places of childhood memories. As an undergrad one professor opened up a whole new world for me, encouraging me to connect with my Mexican American roots and introducing me to the phrase “public history.” I am honored that Professor Vicki Ruiz at the University of California, Irvine continued to be a part of my graduate experience and am grateful for her editorial hand. I must also thank Professors Devra Weber and Jennifer Doyle who provided early feedback and suggestions as well as Professor Steven Hackel, who I hope by now knows that dates and figs are two very different fruits. This project would not have been possible without the generous funding I received along the way. I am grateful to the University of California, Riverside for the Dean’s Distinguished Fellowship, the Graduate Research Mentorship Fellowship, and the iv Dissertation Year Fellowship as well as the UCR’s Alumni Association’s Neumann Scholarship. My research also benefited from the University of California’s California Studies Consortium Research Travel Grant. The Huntington Library and Western History Association’s Martin Ridge Fellowship and the Jonathan Club Fellowship from the Autry National Center brought the rich collections of these respected institutions to my fingertips and I am very thankful for these gifts. The feedback from professors and peers alike at the 2010 Huntington-University of Southern California Institute on California and the West Graduate Student Workshop helped shape this work as well. I am convinced that archivists are proof that the universe loves us historians and wants us to be happy. There are so many archivists, public historians, and librarians who have helped me along the way, but I must thank a few here not only for their assistance but for their friendship. Erica Ward, Janice Woodside, Sue Karr, and Bob Tyler welcomed me back to the Coachella Valley History Museum after a long absence with open arms and lots of work to do. Speaking of the museum I must thank the Mexican American Pioneer Project volunteers who became my dear friends and shared their hearts and their stories with me. Pat Laflin & Louise Neeley also assisted my endless quest for dates and paved the way for me with their histories. The many librarians at the California History Room of the California State Library made me feel right at home; I am thankful for their help but moreover for their smiles. Liza Posas and Manola Madrid truly became friends during my time at the Autry. Not only did they produce a seemingly endless collection of wonderful desert materials, they continued to send gems my way even after my fellowship ended. Thank you also to Laura Sorvetti at Cal Poly San Luis Obispo’s v Special Collections, Nancy Korber at the Fairchild Tropical Botanic Garden who helped me from afar, and staffs at the Huntington Library and the University of California, Riverside’s Special Collections. Sharing this research with the public has been an incredible experience and I am grateful to those who have helped me share the date’s story. Bettye Miller with UCR’s Office of Strategic Communications provided much guidance and many connections. Hillary Muskin’s invitation to write for Incendiary Traces led to a photographic essay on the subjects of dates and Arabian fantasies published on KCET’s Artbound; it was an honor to participate in this incredible collective of scholars and artists. Lisa Morehouse opened up the door to public radio for me and I am grateful for her continued friendship. The Kitchen Sisters, whom I admired for several years, made my public radio nerd dreams come true by including my research and I in their Hidden Kitchens piece. My colleagues at the University of California, Riverside not only enriched my mind with their own work, but also provided deep friendships. My thanks go especially to Susan Hall Nguyen for leading the way and playing endless round of the word game with me, Emily McEwen for her encouragement and donut runs, and Vanessa Stout for late night milkshakes. Thank you also to Jamie Green, Chelsea Vaughn, Rebecca Wrenn, Michael Cox, and Jason Sampson for their camaraderie. Claire Schulz and Ana Chirino Godoy provided friendship that sustained me through graduate school. The Wales family encouraged me and became my family long ago. I hope they know that watching their two girls grow up is a true joy in my life. Mike always joked that he wanted a dedication in my first book, but I hope this heartfelt thanks will suffice. vi More than anything, I am grateful for the support of my amazing family. Nellie Moreno-Carlisle and Lyle and Peggy McCormick were not able to see me finish this dream of mine but I felt them with me along the way. My late grandfather, Richard Ligman, was never far as I uncovered so much about the Coachella Valley’s history, a topic dear to his heart. My Aunt Ruth McCormick is the rare breed who is not only friend and family but librarian as well. She has been sending me materials from the start and her help at the Riverside Library was priceless, as was her company. I am thankful for the support of my fantastic in-laws, Peter, Suzanne, and Laura Seekatz and my brother Zach. Finding a photo of my grandmother, Patricia Salcido Ligman’s, dressed as a Date Festival dancer was the highlight of my research, but sharing it with her was even sweeter. I am thankful for her hugs, lunches, calls, love, and of course, bbq sauce. During the course of this work Amanda McCormick has gone from little sister to dear friend; my beautiful AP, many thanks, especially for the waffles. My dad, Patrick McCormick taught me the patience I needed to finish this dissertation and provided me with so many laughs along the way. When I was a child I watched my mother, Margo McCormick, go after her dreams of earning a bachelor’s degree and then a master’s; she showed me what was possible and reminded me often that I could do this. I am forever grateful to have such wonderful parents who loved me unconditionally and encouraged a passion for learning. My wonderful husband, Scott, is the only reason this dissertation is here. So long ago, when my path was unclear, he took my hands and said, “You’re going to be doctor!” And because of that, along with his love, encouragement, and kindness along the way, here it is. You, dear Scott, are my very favorite date. vii DEDICATION For Scott viii ABSTRACT OF THE DISSERTATION America’s Arabia: The Date Industry and the Cultivation of Middle Eastern Fantasies in the Deserts of Southern California by Sarah Anne Seekatz Doctor of Philosophy, Graduate Program in History University of California, Riverside, December 2014 Dr. Molly McGarry, Chairperson This dissertation explores the creation of “America’s Arabia” in the Coachella Valley, California and the date industry that grew there. Importantly, it profiles United States Department of Agriculture agricultural explorers, scientists who traveled the globe looking for new crops at the turn of the twentieth century. When these agricultural explorers ventured to the Greater Middle East to bring back date offshoots, they took with them a popular understanding of the Orient that shaped their views of the date palms and the people who grew them. Such views of the Orient, as a backwards, dangerous, and yet deeply romantic place, were passed from agricultural explorer to Californian date grower, reinforcing long established American understandings of the region. Date growers and importers, in turn, marketed their dates via this Oriental romance as well as new scientific understandings. Coachella Valley growers highlighted dirt, disease, and unsanitary conditions in foreign date packing while emphasizing the power of American science, particularly pasteurization, a “white” labor force, and fumigation. Despite the perceived benefits, these practices proved dangerous for workers. ix Importantly, the romance surrounding the Greater Middle East in Western imagination provided the Coachella Valley with inspiration to create its own fantasies of the Orient, tying the two regions through the renaming of places and Moorish inspired architecture.