The Impact Of Famous Americans On The American Native Nut Tree, The Pecan, Carya Illinoinensis

Historically, the native American pecan nut treePresident Thomas Jefferson was an important
was one of the most significant plant discoveriespromoter and planter of agricultural crops, plants,
that positively influenced U.S. agriculture andshrubs, and trees. When Thomas Jefferson was
commercial food production to provide a nutappointed as the chief American representative in
product, highly nutritious, inexpensive to produce,France, he understood that to become a great
and with a delicate distinctive flavor, unrivaled bynation, the young American republic must
any other nut. The pecan nut was well known byresearch and develop colonial agriculture. Thomas
the early American Indian tribes as a food sourceJefferson introduced many at the time unknown
for the American Indian families, and the Indiancrops in the United States, such as grains,
hunters knew that during the fall and winter, whenvegetables, fruit trees, berry bushes, nut trees,
the pecan nuts fell to the ground, this collectiblegrapevines, and a host of perennial bushes, trees,
food source also attracted hungry wildlife, such asand flower bulbs. Not only did President Thomas
duck, deer, squirrels, and a host of other animalsJefferson develop his personal garden and
that were hunted and eaten by the Indians.orchard, but he arranged for shipments to be
Although the pecan nut tree is native to the floodreceived by colonists and planters along the
plains along the Mississippi River, and normally didEastern Seaboard. President Jefferson created
not occur as a native tree in the Eastern Unitedmuch good will in European capitals by supplying
States, the American Indians soon learned thatthem with exports of tobacco seed, citrus trees,
seedling (wild) pecan nuts would sprout and formAmerican native nut trees, and native grapevines
bearing trees, when they explored and visitedsuch as the muscadine and scuppernong grape
tribes further East. There are gigantic notablevines.
seedling trees of pecan that presumably wereJefferson left extensive records in writings of his
planted by the American Indians that today arefrom the State of Virginia: "Note on the State of
hundreds of years old, predating the arrival of theVirginia, Thomas Jefferson 1787, #VI, A notice of
early American pioneers. Archaeologicalthe mines and other subterranean riches; its
excavations from Baker's Cave, near Val Verdetrees, plants, fruit, etc." Thomas Jefferson noted
County, Texas, reveal that pecan nuts and pecanthat in his orchard he had planted pecan trees,
leaves were discovered in association with humanCarya illinoinensis.
relics that date to at least 3000 B.C., and perhapsIt is very interesting that Thomas Jefferson
as old as 6000 B.C. This American archaeologicalreferred to the pecan, Carya illinoinensis, as
evidence strongly suggests that the pecan nut"Paccan, or Illinois nut. Not described by Linnaeus
was one of nature's earliest sources of recordedMillar or Clayton. Were I to venture to describe
food use by Native Americans Indians. –this speaking of the fruit from memory, and of
that may even predate recorded food use bythe leaf from plants of two years growth, I
Europe, Asia, or even at the ancient Egyptianshould specify it as the Juglans alba, foliolis
pyramids.lanceolatis, acuminatis, serratis, tomentosis, fructu
Early American historical records show that pecanminore, ovato, compresso, vix insculpto, dulci,
nut trees were offered for sale at America's firstputamine, tenerrimo. It grows on the on the
nursery that was established in Flushing, NewIllinois, Wabash, Ohio, and Mississippi. It is spoken
York, in 1737, by the founder, Robert Prince. It isof by Don Ulloa under the name of Pacanos, in his
well known that General George WashingtonNoticias Americanas. Entret. 6."
visited this nursery, and that the famousJefferson referenced Dr. Clayton of Virginia as
explorers, Lewis and Clark, brought back seed"our great botanist whose published book, Flora
and collected plants from their WesternVirginiea, by Gronovius press at Leyden in the
explorations, to supply future shrubs and trees toyear 1762." Thomas Jefferson praised Dr. Clayton
the Prince Nursery in New York.as spending his life describing and exploring plants.
John Bartram, an associate of Benjamin Franklin,"Dr Clayton enlarged the botanical catalog almost
both from Philadelphia, Penn., collected pecan nutas much as any man that had lived, including
trees for their personal nut and fruit treeLinaeus."
orchards. The famous American explorer andThomas Jefferson had a great interest in other
botanist, William Bartram, son of John Bartram,nuts and nut trees besides the pecan nut trees,
set out in 1773, financed by English noblemen, toCarya illinoinensis, that he recorded.
collect plants and to write a book, Travels,"Black walnut, Juglans nigra, White walnut, Juglans
concerning the native trees and plants, and toalba, Chestnut, Fagus cestaneas, Chinquapin, Fagus
research the habitat of the American Indians inpumila, Hazlenut, Corylus avellana, almonds."
the abandoned territories of the Spaniards, after"Scaly bark hiccory, Juglans alba cortice
Spain was defeated by the English warships. Insquamose, Clayton, common hiccory, Juglans alba,
William Bartram's book, Travels, he noted, pagefructu minore rancido, Clayton."
437, that two large pecan nut trees wereA few great American forefathers had a
observed by him to be growing in a garden atpermanent influence on the development of nut
Mobile, Alabama. Bartram in his Travels book alsotree commerce enriching the farmers and the
wrote prolifically about various other nuts and nutworld of agriculture. The names of Robert Prince,
trees such as chestnut trees native to America.Benjamin Franklin, Lewis and Clark, George
Castanea, "Hiccory" (Hickory Trees), "JuglansWashington, John and William Bartram, and
exaltata" (Hazelnut American), Corylus, also calledThomas Jefferson, reside in the annals of
the American filbert, "Juglans hickory" (Blackagricultural fame of the United States.
Walnut), "Juglans nigra."