Biographical/historical information

Tobacco was the primary cash crop grown in North Carolina. During the Colonial period, most the tobacco crop was grown in the counties bordering Virginia. After the 1840s when Virginia began growing "bright tobacco," counties in Eastern North Carolina began to grow the crop more fervently. Farmers discovered that the sandy soil was well suited to grow tobacco and in 1885 farmers in Pitt County planted experiment crops. After several years, the first tobacco warehouse was opened in 1891. By 1899 the county had produced 10,733,010 pound of tobacco on 12,931 acres.

Scope and arrangement

The Clark-Tripp Papers is a collection made up primarily of the warehouse tickets of W. P. Clark and J. J. Tripp of Greenville, North Carolina. Their receipts for 1893, 1894, and 1918 from a variety of tobacco warehouses in Greenville, N.C., demonstrate the increasing value of tobacco as a cash crop between the years 1893, 1894, and 1918.

Administrative information

Custodial History

June 30, 1978, 26 items; Papers (1893-1918) of Greenville, N.C. tobacconists, including correspondence and warehouse tickets. Gift of Mrs. Jarvis Tripp, Sr., Greenville, N.C.

Source of acquisition

Gift of Mrs. Jarvis Tripp, Sr.

Processing information

Processed by M. Quintanilla, October 1986; Updated by N. Hardison, July 2024

Encoded by Apex Data Services

Copyright notice

Literary rights to specific documents are retained by the authors or their descendants in accordance with U.S. copyright law.

Metadata Rights Declaration

Key terms

Personal Names

Clark, W. P.
Tripp, J. J.

Topical

Tobacco industry--North Carolina--Greenville
Tobacco--Prices--North Carolina--Greenville

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