 Historical Society of Michigan Apples in the Upper Peninsula A Unique Michigan Crop By Russell M. Magnaghi

A History of U.P. Fruit Farming A watercolor of a Michigan-grown Duchess Although geographer Henry R. Schoolcraft promoted of Oldenburg apple. (Photo agriculture throughout Michigan as early as the 1830s, courtesy of the U.S. National farming in the Upper Peninsula—and fruit-growing Agricultural Library.) especially—has largely been ignored by history. Nonetheless, research shows that in areas such as Menominee, Chippewa, The Upper Peninsula of Michigan and Delta SocietyCounties, farming has flourished over the years. Apples, in particular, have been part of the Upper Peninsula is historically known for copper2019 since the arrival of the French in the seventeenth century. and iron mining, lumbering, While crab apples—cousins of the domestic apple—are fishing, and tourism, all of which native to North America and were used by the Indigenous overshadow the region’s agricultural peoples of the Great Lakes region, the domestic apple © (Malus domestica) was an import from Europe. Jesuit advancements. But, for hundreds of missionaries, fur traders, and early settlers scattered apple years, the Upper Peninsula has been seeds across the landscape. Only the hardy flourished. Two home to many kinds of vegetables of the better-known variants of Canadian apples were the Gray and Snow apples. and fruits—including the apple, The center of apple growing during Michigan’s colonial which remains a cultural staple in Michiganperiod was at the Straits of Mackinac, where the French Michigan today. introduced both apples and pears. Englishmen developed small apple orchards south of Fort Michilimackinac in the 1760s. Later, in the early nineteenth century, apple of culture flourished on Mackinac Island, and by 1827, there were about 50 apple trees growing in the vicinity of Fort HistoricalMackinac. Author Henry David Thoreau wrote of “apples in bloom” on the island in the early summer of 1861. Catholic and Protestant missionaries in the Great Lakes region sought to encourage Native Americans—who were seminomadic hunters, fishers, and gatherers—to settle in

Frequently spraying apple trees during the summer was essential for a successful autumn harvest. (All photos courtesy of Superior Views, unless otherwise noted.)  12  Chronicle Summer 2019 

Society Apple picking in the Upper Peninsula was quite2019 the production during the late nineteenth and early twentieth centuries. Both boxes and barrels were used to transport the fruit, and long ladders were needed for harvesting apples. Later, the introduction of dwarf trees made the job easier.

Michigan’s Upper Peninsula by introducing© new forms of and apples to see what would grow in the area, and he later agriculture to them. Apple trees soon appeared in Sault Ste. reported that the different apples under cultivation were Marie and L’Anse, while others were found on Grand Island. doing well. In 1904, the station won a bronze medal at the St. Louis World’s Fair for a Duchess of Oldenburg apple. With the development of copper and iron mines in Geismar was excited about the award and hoped that it Houghton and Marquette Counties during the mid- would promote further apple culture. nineteenth century, people seeking the flavor of apples had to first rely on imported barrels of dried fruit. Because of a MichiganMany Scandinavian and German immigrants to Michigan growing demand, farmers quickly realized that apples had a brushed aside concerns that fruit trees would not grow home in the Upper Peninsula. in the Upper Peninsula and experimented with apple Farming families typically tried to plant three or four cultivation. Meanwhile, French-Canadian farmers brought varieties of apples so that they had apples throughof the entire their knowledge of apple growing from Québec. harvest, with some varieties storing well into March. Today, Magnus Nelson, a Swedish immigrant, gave up mining and one can see the remainsHistorical of that apple culture by observing was encouraged by a Chicago & North Western Railway the apple trees flourishing in the middle of wilderness areas, agent to develop an apple orchard. Studying on his own, he on Isle Royale, and in Fayette Historic State Park. improved apple cultivation in the Upper Peninsula. When he retired in 1905, Nelson’s net worth was valued at more Cultivating Apples in the than $100,000—or $2.5 million in today’s buying power. Upper Peninsula Robert Blemhuber, a German immigrant, became known for the variety of fruit he was able to grow on the shores of Michigan’s State Agricultural College—known today as Lake Superior in Marquette. Michigan State University—established the U.P. agricultural substation in Chatham, near Munising, in 1899. Its first Many of the apples produced through the 1920s were superintendent, Leo Geismar, planted numerous grains adapted to the Upper Peninsula. Those varieties included  13   Historical Society of Michigan

Modern Demand for U.P. Apples In the twentieth century, there was one attempt to cultivate apples on the temperate Garden Peninsula, which is warmed by Lake Michigan. The Mawby family from Leelanau County bought 160 acres on the peninsula and planted between 4,000 and 5,000 apple trees, all northern varieties created by the University of Minnesota. The attempt was a success. The unique apples were sold locally, peddled by a New York dealer as expensive Christmas gifts, and made into fresh apple cider that was available across the Upper Peninsula. When old age and retirement eventually set in, the Mawby orchard was sold. Production continued under the new owner, John Thill, Proper grading and packing were critical to the successful sale of apples. until his retirement prompted the orchard to be sold to an Illinois man who wanted the land, but not the trees. To fill the demand for apples in the Upper Peninsula during the twentieth century, the Cohodas brothers came on the scene. Immigrants from Belarus, the brothers grew apples in their orchards around Manistee and Empire in Michigan’s Lower Peninsula and in Washington State. They supplied U.P. markets with apples into the 1970s, when they retired. Sam Cohodas, an authority on apple cultivation, pointed out that an apple grower in the Upper Peninsula had to deal with a difficultSociety climate that could be devastating to crops. Because of that reality, he never developed an orchard in the 2019Upper Peninsula and grew his fruit south of the Mackinac Bridge. Cohodas concluded that U.P. apple growers had to be hobbyists who were not worried about making their annual incomes from their crop yields. Several women pick apples in an orchard in© the Upper Peninsula. Today, most apples are brought to the Upper Peninsula the Duchess of Oldenburg, Yellow Transparent, Wealthy, by major distributors, but some continue to be grown on a limited basis in the region. Some apples flourish in the Northwestern Greening, Pewaukee, Snow, Wolf River, wild, while others are cultivated for their spring beauty. Alexander, North Star, Ben Davis, and the Tetofsky, as well Two apple growers who are prominent in the central Upper as a few other Russian varieties. Peninsula today own flourishing orchards with more than However, there were several pitfalls for U.P. apple growers. Michigan600 trees between them. Proper soil had to be identified, and farmers faced Wild apples in the Upper Peninsula are also available by environmental problems such as spring frosts that could seeking out trees growing around old buildings. While the wipe out blossoms and the crop for the year. Then there apples are small, they make excellent applesauce. Larger were struggles with insects and fungi that attacked the of heirloom trees can be found in Fayette Historic State Park trees and fruit, which resulted in the demand for frequent on the Garden Peninsula and in Negaunee. Encountering spraying. Finally, farmersHistorical throughout the region had to deal apples across the Upper Peninsula allows alert travelers to with bears and deer that not only ate their apples but also experience Michigan’s history through the red fruit they destroyed their trees. hold in their hands. U During the heyday of apple growing in the 1920s and Russell M. Magnaghi is the history professor emeritus 1930s, theft of apples was common. At one point, the and research associate for the Center for Upper Michigan State Constabulary—now known as the Michigan Peninsula Studies at Northern Michigan University. State Police—made intercepting apple thieves one of He has written numerous books and articles dealing its chief missions. In Negaunee, a woman took matters with the Upper Peninsula. into her own hands when she chased off boys in her trees with a shotgun.  14 