A Collinsville farmer pictured here with a sample of his horseradish crop.
Horseradish thrives in the fertile Mississippi River valley.

Horseradish "Rooted" in History

Paul Foppe
All Saints Academy, Breese

American farmers today lead vastly different lives than their predecessors. Inventions such as the plow by John Deere and the reaper by Cyrus McCormick changed farming forever. However, horseradish, because it is a root crop and must be planted by hand, has its own place in history. The new technology was no help to the farmers of horseradish.

Horseradish is a native crop to southeastern Europe, but it can be found in the southern part of Illinois as well. Since Collinsville, Illinois, produced two-thirds of the nation's horseradish, it has become known as the "other" capital in Illinois.

Horseradish was brought to the United States from Europe and was popular in gardens around the New England states in the early 1800s. It was brought to Chicago in 1856 by the Sell family, immigrants from Germany. They gave the horseradish plants to the Sass family, and from that gift the horseradish industry developed in Chicago. Horseradish was grown in the Collinsville area in the late 1800s and sold commercially.

Nearly all the acreage of horseradish in Southern Illinois is grown in the fertile soil of the Mississippi Valley. Even though horseradish is planted and suckered by hand, it, like the crops that were farmed with equipment, increased drastically in acreage. In 1909 Illinois only had 120 acres planted in horseradish, while today 1,200 acres of horseradish are farmed.

Collinsville is the horseradish capital of the world. Chicago also plays a big part in its production. The roots from the horseradish plant are shipped to Chicago where they are processed, manufactured into horseradish sauce, and then sold throughout the world.

Horseradish has many different uses. Before the sixteenth century its primary use was for medicine. Today the peeled roots are grated and prepared with vinegar to make various sauces. The recent interest in seafood has given the product a boost, since horseradish is a major ingredient in cocktail sauce.— [From Allan G. Bogue, From Prairie to Cornbelt; J. W. Couter and A. M. Rhodes, "Historic Notes on Horseradish," Economic Botany (Ap.-June 1969); student's interview of John Kemp, Sept. 1, 1992; Don Phillips, "Retired Growers Rooting for Horseradish," Farmweek (Ap. 27, 1992).]

ILLINOIS HISTORY / DECEMBER 1992

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