September Chapter Meeting -- History of North County Agriculture

Chapter Meeting (Note location/day/time change!)

Saturday, September 21, 9:30am - noon
1730 S. Hill Avenue, Fallbrook, 92028

History of North County Agriculture: 1850 – present, Presented by Tom Sullivan

Since the mid 1800s, the agricultural industry in North County has evolved due to three significant factors; the establishment of a railway system, advances in irrigation technology, and the two world wars. This discussion will begin with a description of the area's agricultural operations around the time of the establishment of Mission San Luis Rey and then highlight the evolution of the industry up to the present day. Beginning with dry goods (hay, beans, grains) and honey, North County's agricultural industry eventually became a large producer of olives, citrus, avocados, various fruits and berries, and cut flowers.

The presentation will be held in a modern barn surrounded by many antique tools and products used in the past 175 years. After the presentation and raffle, the audience is encouraged to explore the agricultural display in the barn, the surrounding property that includes many antique farming implements, and the 2-acre grounds that have a variety of fruit-bearing trees. Volunteer docents - some in period costume - will be available to lead tours of the main Heritage Museum (including a gem and mineral display) and the Pittenger House (a house built in 1895 and occupied by one of the first recipients of the Congressional Medal of Honor).

Thomas Sullivan moved to North County from Santa Monica in 2017. He was recently on the Board of Directors for the Fallbrook Historical Society and curator of their agricultural collection. Originally, from New England, he earned a PhD in Computational Statistics and was formerly a college professor, a research scientist, and worked for several US Government agencies in the Washington DC area and abroad.

Since settling just outside of Fallbrook, he has been gradually building a backyard fruit garden. that started with a single fig tree and now includes various berries, dragon fruit, passion fruit, grapes, sapote and citrus. Tom is a member of the NSD Chapter of CRFG and a former member of the board of directors.