100 years ago
Orchardist A.A. Quarnberg noted that flower buds were “five to 10 days ahead of normal time.” Despite cold weather earlier in the spring, blooms from Bing cherries and Italian prunes had already started to appear on Quarnberg’s Kauffman Avenue farm in Vancouver. Quarnberg also propagated cottonwood sprigs from a witness tree that had fallen into the Columbia River. He presented the shoots to county commissioners on April 6, 2023.
75 years ago
The Washington Guernsey Cattle Club held its first all-Guernsey heifer sale in Mount Vernon on April 2, 1948. The sale featured three Clark County cows. Bidding on the bovines was restricted to bona fide 4-H and Future Farmers of America members.
50 years ago
On April 3, 1973, the National Farmers Union stated farmers and ranchers were “ ‘the most convenient targets’ when food prices go up,” but often forgotten when costs go down. That year, beef prices soared, causing President Richard Nixon to call for price ceilings, which would “inevitably put the livestock producer again face-to-face with bankruptcy.”
25 years ago
On April 5, 1998, scores of shoppers perused the wares of over 70 vendors at the Vancouver Farmers Market. Local merchants sold crafts, plants, produce, and food to some 4,000 visitors through October, rain or shine. “There’s everything here from smoked salmon to stained glass to hydroponic cucumber and tomatoes and lots of plants,” said Madeleine Dulemba, president of the market board.
Katie Bush is public historian at the Clark County Historical Museum.
