(From the 1908 Business Supplement to the Wicomico Advertiser)
FARMERS AND PLANTERS COMPANY
FERTILIZERS, COAL, LIME, HAIR, FARM IMPLEMENTS,
SEEDS, SHINGLES, BRICKS, ETC.
Among the many big enterprises of Salisbury, there is none that stands higher in her business life or keeps in closer touch with the builders and planters of the Eastern Shore than the Farmers’ and Planters’ Company, of which Mr. Glen Perdue is manager. For many years this company has been supplying the needs of thousands of patrons and they are familiar with the requirements of every kind of soil, and of every locality. The goods handled by them are of the very best and especially adapted to the Eastern Shore. Their fertilizers are manufactured from formulas that years of experimenting have brought the best results in the products peculiar to the Peninsula, and these include “Truckers’ Mixture”, “Special Fish”, “Fish Mixture”, “General Crop Grower”, “Bone and Potash”, “Standard Mixture”, “Special Wheat”, Dry Fish, Dissolved Bone, Raw Bone Meal, High Grade Tankage, Muriate Potage, Nitrate Soda, Dissolved S.C. Rock, and Kamit. In farm implements, they are agents for the world famous Deering Harvesting Machinery, Ideal Binders, Ideal Mowers, Ideal Steel Rakes, Deering Sicle (sic) Grinders, Deering Binding Twine, Imperial Chilled Plows, Imperial Disc Harrows, Hallock Success Weeders, Tiger Corn Planters, Tiger Transplanters, Tiger Disc Harrows, Tiger Riding and Walking Cultivators, McWhorter Fertilizer Distributors, Keystone One-Horse Corn and Pea Planters, Keystone Fertilizer Distributors, Superior Single and Double Disc Drills, Superior Disc One-Horse Corn and Pea Planters. The building materials comprise Lump Lime, Texas Alum lime, Cements, plaster hair, long coat, and winter cow hair, and the company are also selling agents for the Peninsula Brick Company’s red, arch, salmon, and paving bricks. It will be seen from this partial list of specialties handled that the business conducted is very extensive. No contract is too great or too small for this company to undertake, and the trade extends throughout the Eastern Shore country, Delaware and Virginia. The business was established many years ago, and in 1898 Mr. Perdue became the sole proprietor, and under his able direction it has won a place of distinction unexcelled by any enterprise of its kind in this section of Maryland.
Even though this was written 101 years ago, the business is still thriving and is one of the few businesses still around in 2009 performing basically the same service. The ad pictured is from the First Great Fair in Salisbury in 1909. The Fair was held on the SE corner of Pemberton Drive and Parsons Road.)
Just a thought , maybe if the farmers would switch back to some of these old methods of fertilizers the bay would recover ,
ReplyDeleteput that in your pipe and smoke it Judy Stribling.
I spend my money with them in spring. They are top notch in customer service and knowledgeable when presented questions or problems. Long live the local owned and operated businesses.
ReplyDeleteThey have a great selection of native grass seed. They analyzed my soil samples for free and gave expert advice. I planted 10 acres of their Potomac Orchardgrass seed and use it for hay and winter pasture. I love their slogan, "Quality is remembered long after price is forgotten." I've bought hayseed that was less expensive elsewhere and been dissapointed in the results.
ReplyDeleteOK. 9:54, so the past has had no bearing on the present condition of the Bay?
ReplyDeletethe farmers on this side of the bay cannot take all the blame for the condition of the bay. they just want to blame it on the farmrers around here. go to google earth and take a good look at the water around baltimore and look how black it is. look at the shores around that area and you can planely see why they are the ones who are the cause of the condition the bay is in. they just want to blame it on the farmers over here for some reason!!!!!
ReplyDeleteMr. Chevallier,
ReplyDeleteI would love to find out what you know about the building located right next door to Farmers and Planters. I have heard that the groves in the bricks around the large door is the result of the pullies and horses used to hoist the elevator. Do you know if this is true? All I have ever found is that it use to be a grocery warehouse. It is a very interesting looking building inside.
To 3:45
ReplyDeleteI have never researched that building, but I will and if there is a story, you will get it here.
I don't think the local agraculture farmers are destorying the environment, Now the chicken farms and hog farms around here are definately a problem and need to clean up their act! The waters on the other side of the bay are the worst, from baltimore and heading south, the potomac the anacostia are open sewers, just like the wicomico! the james river is so polluted it reminds me of the hudson river and baltimore habor looks like NYC's harbor! disgusting!
ReplyDeleteand to think the bay is marylands treasure and the state doesn't even care! they cut the funding for the cleanup!
8:04 PM
ReplyDeleteWhere are the hog farms that are left on the Peninsula? This is also a thing of the past.
Two main companies monopolized the hog industry and they squeezed out the individual farmers. Integration and contract production squeezed the small producers out.
It would be interesting to know what the dollar percentage is chicken related on the Peninsula. Due to the chicken industry, we have jobs for truckers, supply companies, millwright companies and the individuals who work directly for the poultry companies. Chickens and hogs carried the mortgages on the Peninsula for many years. I remember growing up this area to be thriving, now businesses are leaving or closing their doors altogether. And then, we have the charity donations given by the poultry companies to organizations and individuals that the normal citizen would not even know or hear about.
3:45 are you speaking of the red brick building owned by the Holloways? I love that building and the old wooden floors.
ReplyDeleteYes, it was originally purchased by Ronald C Holloway Sr. in the mid 1970's. His son Ronald C Holloway Jr. inherited it and is now running it.
ReplyDelete