These two postcards show workers unloading bananas in New Orleans, Louisiana. The following information is from the back of the cards:
By the late 1960s New Orleans was no longer the largest banana port in the the United States. Wilmington, Delaware and Gulfport, Mississippi are now the leading banana ports in the U. S.
New Orleans is the world's greatest banana port. More than 700 ships arrive each year loaded with 25,000 to 50,000 bunches of bananas. Each individual bunch is carried from the hold of the ship to the door of the refrigerator on mechanical conveyors.In the mid-twentieth century, New Orleans was the largest banana port in the United States. Twenty to twenty-five per cent of all the bananas imported into the United States were unloaded at the New Orleans docks. The banana docks provided hundreds of jobs in New Orleans and were also a tourist attraction.
By the late 1960s New Orleans was no longer the largest banana port in the the United States. Wilmington, Delaware and Gulfport, Mississippi are now the leading banana ports in the U. S.
18 comments:
I thought I'd slipped on a banana skin when your post didn't come up. I found it by the SS sidebar.
I thought the US grew its own bananas - now I'm not so sure.
It was interesting how specific banana ports developed in each country. over this side of the Atlantic it was Swansea, I believe, that used to handle most of the banana imports. And those are great cards.
Fascinating. We grow a lot of bananas here in the Canary Islands; in fact we’ve just planted two banana trees in our garden, but it may be a while before we see any fruit!
Of course, another cool thing that you have posted that I have never even thought of before! I've heard that tarantulas hide in those banana bunches during picking and transport so they have to spray the skins with posion... that is why you can't eat banana skins if even you have the desire. Don't know how true that is though.
Have a super weekend!
Kathy M.
I love bananas and could have gone all day without reading Kathy M's bit of banana trivia - YIKES!
Very interesting postcards. My father-in-law worked for the United Fruit Company in Guatemala. I'm sure they shipped lots of bananas from there. But they also shipped my husband to the U.S. on a banana boat. He and his 2 sisters came here from Guatemala, maybe through Louisiana, I'm not sure. But they ended up in a tiny Swedish town called Lindsborg, Ks. where they got a great education and even tho dark-skinned Guatemalans they were totally welcomed by the blond Swedes in Lindsborg.
Nancy
I also remember hearing that giant tarantulas were sometimes transported in bunches of bananas, but I didn't know they sprayed against them.
Interesting post - that's an awful lot of bananas!
Interesting history. Have been to New Orleans several times, most recently Feb. but never knew about it's banana history. We were also in Gulfport MS in Feb and saw so many ships in the port--did not spot a banana boat though. Reminds me of the Harry Belafonte song--Dayo, daylite come and we wanna go home! Hear the song?
How interesting to see this. The workers don't seem too concerned about the possibility of tarantulas - no gloves.
Interesting, I didn't know New Orleans was a banana port. Colorful postcards.
I've heard that the bananas people eat in the banana producing places are 100% better than the ones they ship here for us to eat.
The End Of March Already!As A Marxist I Must Say.....Time flies like an arrow; fruit flies like a banana....
Now I can't stop singing "Come mister tally man, tally me bananas. Day ohhhhh. Daaaaaaay oh." In my head I hear Belafonte singing.
I remember the different variety of bananas they used to grow in Hawaii. There was one called the Apple Banana that was pure heaven. We'd always stop at a little stand when driving over the Pali and get a couple bunches. They'd never make it home.
Interesting cards, but now I can't get "Day OOOOOOOOOOh' out of my head.
I used to love Harry Belafonte so it's not such a bad song to have stuck
in my head. I think I''ll go tally me some bananas.
Barbara
I know that tarantulas sometimes turned up in banana crates at the fruit market in Edinburgh. The man who opened the crate wore steel toecapped boots to deal with them, but then that was in the 1970's...
I wonder something: did employees like eating bananas, smelling them all day? I ask because when I was in high school, I had a friend that lived just across the Cadbury factory (chocolate), and if the smell was at first enticing for a few minutes, it eventually became too much [for me at least] and was enough of a deterrent not to touch any of it.
:)~
HUGZ
Those people packing the bananas, I wonder if they still fancied to eat Bananas at home? The postcards are great and interesting.
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