2019 Burrell Seed Catalog

119 YEARS OF QUALITY SEEDS Honorable George Washington Swink, founder of Rocky Ford, CO, held the rst Watermelon Day in 1878. “It was just two years a er the admission of Colorado as a state that G.W. Swink, a pioneer of the Arkansas Valley, had such a good crop of melons on his ranch that he thought it wouldn't be a bad thing to give his less fortunate neighbors a taste of them. So he hauled a couple of dozen melons to the nearest rendezvous, the railway station, and he cut them up for his waiting guests

140 YEARS OF WATERMELON DAY

upon the dismantled door of an old freight car.” 1 About 25 people were present. e number of excursion trains and the size of the crowds steadily increased up to 1892 when the Arkansas Valley Fair was started. e Fair and Watermelon Day has several years been honored with the presence of the Governor and other distinguished citizens. By 1891, with 8,000 visitors and 10,000 melons, the feast had reached such proportions that it took place in a large cottonwnod grove on the edge of town. “...in 1895 the grounds for the melon pile had to be enlarged - some forty wagon teams hauled 20,000 melons and 60,000 cantaloupes to feed

the multitudes, who came by prairie schooners, bicycles and in seventy- ve coaches on the Santa Fe Railroad.” 1 GW Swink exclaimed, “Eat the heart out and we’ll save the seeds!” Here you can see the A ermath and men with buckets to “Save the Seeds”. is year’s 141st Watermelon Day will be held Saturday, August 17th. More info at www.arkvalleyfair.com. 1 Colorado Magazine, 1953

DV & Maude Burrell with son James “Harold” Burrell at the A ermath of 1903 Watermelon Day

GENEROUS SEED PACKETS We recently had a phone call inquiring if we were the company with twice as much seed in our packets. In most cases, we are. Our scoop sizes catered to large farming families 119 years ago and contain the same amount today. majority of our corn, bean and pea packets contain 1/4 cup or 1/3 cup of seeds!

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