Fall harvests in Effingham long ago

One of the principal crops of the early 1900s in the county was sugar cane. Most farmers usually planted several acres, sold some and kept the remainder for personal use. At harvest the cane was stripped, loaded on a wagon and hauled to a sugar cane mill. The cane was hand fed into a mill powered by a pair of mules and the juice was squeezed from the cane. The juice was cooked in a huge pot in a furnace until it thickened to the right consistency for syrup. It was packed in gallon cans or bottles for later use. The late Lawson Exley is feeding the mill. Biscuits or bread and syrup were meal staples along with ham, meat or sausage on the farm. - photo by Photo provided

Cane Grinding Lawson Exley — One of the principal crops of the early 1900s in the county was sugar cane. Most farmers usually planted several acres, sold some and kept the remainder for personal use. At harvest the cane was stripped, loaded on a wagon and hauled to a sugar cane mill. The cane was hand fed into a mill powered by a pair of mules and the juice was squeezed from the cane. The juice was cooked in a huge pot in a furnace until it thickened to the right consistency for syrup. It was packed in gallon cans or bottles for later use. The late Lawson Exley is feeding the mill. Biscuits or bread and syrup were meal staples along with ham, meat or sausage on the farm. - photo by Photo provided

This article was compiled by Susan Exley of Historic Effingham Society from “Images of America-Effingham County.” If you have comments, photos or information to share contact her at 754-6681 or e-mail: susanexley@historiceffinghamsociety.org.

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