Calhoun County, located between the Illinois and Mississippi rivers in southwestern Illinois, is known as "The Land of the Big Red Apple" or "Apple Kingdom." Apples are not just located in certain parts of the county, they are grown throughout the county. Scientists believe the apples' especially good flavor is due to the soil. Limestone rock furnishes perfect soil to make the big, juicy apples that many people love. The rich flavor of the apples seems to be unique to Calhoun County and cannot be duplicated in other areas. Another factor contributing to the apples is the mist from the rivers that makes moist dew form on the trees at night. This helps the apple to form a perfect size. Also, the county is rich with big, fast-running streams that irrigate the trees. Calhoun County's most popular varieties of apples are Jonathan, Golden Delicious, Red Delicious, and Stamen Winesap.

Calhoun County, the "Apple Kingdom" is special to me because my grandfather is a farmer there. He has lived his whole life there because his father was a farmer, too. My grandfather raises corn, beans, cows, pumpkins, and apples. His apple

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This artist's rendering depicts harvest season in the apple orchard.

industry seems to catch my attention. Ever since I can remember I helped grandfather, or at least I thought I did. Picking apples, riding tractors to transport apples, grading apples, sorting apples, selling apples, and eating apples were just a few of the ways I helped my grandparents. I can say from first-hand experience that the flavor of Calhoun County's apples is distinct. Maybe I have been spoiled but I rarely eat a store-bought apple. Grandfather's apples are more crisp and luscious.

Calhoun County developed much faster than the rest of the state during its earlier years. From 1889 to 1926, Calhoun County produced about one-third of the commercial apple crop of the entire state of Illinois. These apples found their way to the market despite the fact that there was no railroad or bridge to transport the apples east or west. Practically all apples went out by boat, transfer barges, or ferry.

Farmers in Calhoun County who raise apple orchards follow a basic procedure. The farmers prune the trees in the winter, fertilize the trees in the spring, and spray the trees for protection about thirteen times during the summer. It is hard to realize that the fresh apples we enjoy in the fall are nurtured the whole year. Farmers are kept very busy especially when they have other crops to tend.

Something especially influential in the area was the Great Flood of 1993. Calhoun County's crops were under water. My grandfather was fortunate because his apple trees were up on a hill. But all his corn and beans were destroyed. For him and many of the other farmers in the area there was no way of transporting the crops out of the county. There was no ferryboat because the water was too high, and people that had to work out of the county were stranded.

My grandfather did not work in the apple orchard, but rather operated boats and generally assisting others to leave town. My grandparents'-house turned into a harbor. My grandfather transported people out of the county by riding a John boat from his house across the river to Marquette Park. I was amazed at the fact that when I rode the boat into the county there was a street deep beneath me. In fact, we had to be careful to stay between the tips of the telephone poles on the street so we would not run the boat over a telephone wire.

Farmers were raised with the knowledge to fight floods, but in 1993 this was a farming practice farmers acquired. The sad part is that all the crops were destroyed or wasted because of the lack of transportation. Orchards full of apples cannot be taken out of the county on small John boats. My grandfather was already making three trips a day transporting people. It was also a sad time for the miners in Calhoun County.

Since I have been helping my grandfather, a bushel of apples has sold for ten dollars, a half bushel for five dollars, and a peck for three dollars. When people come into the shed to buy apples, they simply will not pay any more for the apples. People do not realize what they pay for apples by the pound in a grocery. If weighed, the apples would cost them thirty to forty dollars a bushel. Financially it is difficult to break even when considering the costs of equipment, labor, and operations. The compensation simply does not pay the bills. Many farmers have been forced to give up their orchards. How long will Calhoun County remain the "Apple Kingdom?"—[From Mildred Barry, The Apple Industry of Calhoun County; Calhoun County: A New Geography; Calhoun County Illinois: "The Land of the Big Red Apple."]

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