With the Fourth of July weekend in full swing, I can’t help but reflect on how vital hemp was to the success of this country. There was obviously the goods that were made from it such as rope, clothing fabric, paper, etc. Where would America have been without hemp? Would the literature that hyped up the masses have been as widely distributed? Would the Revolutionary army have been able to use supplies made out of other materials and still won the war? I did some browsing around the internet and found some items that I have included in this article. If you have anything else to add, please do, and let others benefit from your research!
Below is a page from George Washington’s diary, where he gives instructions to his gardener for growing hemp:
Look at day 7 (August 7, 1765), it clearly reads “began to separate the male form the female .. bit to late”
Another famous George Washington quote is:
“Make the most you can of the Indian Hemp seed and sow it everywhere.”
Famous Thomas Jefferson quotes include:
“Hemp is of first necessity to the wealth & protection of the country.” -Thomas Jefferson
“Some of my finest hours have been spent sitting on my back veranda, smoking hemp and observing as far as my eye can see.”
-Thomas Jefferson
Of course, Thomas Jefferson also drafted the Declaration of Independence on hemp paper as well.
Benjamin Franklin started the first Hemp paper mill. This allowed America to have its own supply of paper (not from England) for the colonial press. Thomas Paine’s patriotic literature, which helped spark the revolution, was printed on hemp.
