When was it published?

August 16, 1908 in Tombstone Epitaph

Story August 16, 1908

Tombstone Epitaph

Q: What sub-type of article is it?

Personal Triumph, Historical Event, Journey

Q: What keywords are associated?

Date Palms, Sahara Desert, Yuma Arizona, Mecca Planting, Commercial Viability, Plant Transport

Tombstone, Cochise County, Arizona

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What is this article about?

Bernard G. Johnson imported 800 date palms of 25 varieties from the Sahara Desert to Yuma, Arizona, selling specimens to the government and planting the rest in Mecca to prove their commercial profitability in the region.

Merged-components note: Merging image with following story on date palms as sequential reading order and spatially adjacent, likely illustration

Clipping

OCR Quality

85% Good

Full Text

Having dug them with his own hands from the sands of the great Sahara desert and having nursed them all the long miles of land and ocean between with the care he might have given them had they been so many children, Bernard G. Johnson arrived in Yuma with 800 date palms, inclusive of twenty-five varieties.

Specimens of fifteen varieties were sold the government for the experiment station at Yuma.

The rest were taken to Mecca, where, at the cost of a fortune, Mr. Johnson has demonstrated that fruit-bearing date palms are commercially profitable.

Only two species have been cultivated in Arizona and California previous to this time.

What sub-type of article is it?

Personal Triumph Historical Event Journey

What themes does it cover?

Triumph Exploration

What keywords are associated?

Date Palms Sahara Desert Yuma Arizona Mecca Planting Commercial Viability Plant Transport

What entities or persons were involved?

Bernard G. Johnson

Where did it happen?

Sahara Desert, Yuma, Mecca, Arizona, California

Story Details

Key Persons

Bernard G. Johnson

Location

Sahara Desert, Yuma, Mecca, Arizona, California

Story Details

Bernard G. Johnson personally excavated and transported 800 date palms from the Sahara to Yuma, sold fifteen varieties to the government experiment station, and planted the remainder in Mecca, investing a fortune to demonstrate their commercial fruit-bearing potential in Arizona and California, where only two species had been cultivated before.