By Mark Mattmiller, Cynthiana
In the late spring of 1868, an incident took place that was profound in terms of its impact on the history of Kentucky agriculture. The strange event occurred on a small tobacco farm, and to this day, the exact cause has not been explained. George Webb of Brown County, Ohio, was setting out his tobacco beds when he ran out of the tiny seeds. His farm was across the Ohio River from Augusta (Bracken County), and that is where he could purchase more seeds.
He sent two of his helpers to ferry across the river, buy seeds, and return to the farm to finish with the beds. No problems developed. The plants grew, were set out, and at the end of the summer, the finished product was cut and housed in good order. But there was a noticeable difference in the plants that grew from the Kentucky seeds and all the other seeds previously used. That difference was easy to see from when the tiny plants first sprouted until the crop was cut and housed. The plants were light in color, and lighter in weight and texture. The leaves were larger than those normally seen, and like the leaves, the stems and stalks were also light in color and weight. It was the first time the tobacco world had seen the light plants. What followed was a strain of tobacco that eventually was called “white tobacco.”
Webb’s handling of the plants was important. Either by plan, design or just accident, the lighter plants had been set apart from the fields planted with the traditional seedlings. What Webb did know was that he had something new. What he didn’t know was whether it was good and had potential, or if it was bad and a waste of time to pursue. He kept some of the seeds produced by the light tobacco. He planned to set out a field of the new strain in Kentucky far removed from other tobacco so that it couldn’t be cross-pollinated. And that is what he did.
This new variety of tobacco soon spread into the northern counties of Kentucky. In short order, it was discovered that the new strand had an absorptive quality that was far higher than that of any other tobacco type. At that time, almost all tobacco grown went to the manufacture of plug/chewing tobacco. Cigarette production was in its infancy. Plug tobacco was made by indoctrinating cured tobacco with different sugars and syrups and then pressing it into squares. The new white tobacco absorbed more than twice its weight in the liquids. If you cut into a sample of plug tobacco made from the earlier dark types, you would have found the gumminess between the leaves and not incorporated throughout the leaf. The new light leaf soaked up the sugar and syrups. When the absorptive quality of the white tobacco was discovered, it became a must-have product for the plug tobacco industry.
The first cigarettes did not have any white tobacco in them, and they had a harsh and bitter taste. When cigarette makers added white tobacco into the blend, they discovered that cigarettes made with the new tobacco had not only a better taste but also were much milder. Soon, that was all the smokers wanted. It became apparent early on that the white burley tobacco was necessary for cigarette production. If the producers wanted to sell cigarettes, they had to have the white tobacco, and because of soil and climate, it could be raised only in parts of Kentucky.
What we now know is that the small isolated unexplained incident of Webb’s discovery changed the industry. The entire social and business fabric of the 21 Kentucky counties in the burley district became shaped by the strange new leaf.
Without doubt, a tiny event defined a way of life for thousands of Kentuckians.