Labor Day and harvest time coincide and back in the day, the two events were celebrated at about the same time. Labor Day efforts began in the late 1800sinvolving struggles about workers rights but it wasn’t until 1894 that congress officially declared the first Monday of September as a day to honor workers.
According to the late Dr. Wendell Hutchinson, for many years Labor Day was celebrated primarily among the hard rock miners but later it became more of a harvest event.
Head Lettuce Day in Buena Vista was first observed in 1922 to celebrate the end of a successful growing season. About that time, Buena Vista became known as the Head Lettuce Capital of the World. Thanks to Suzy Kelly and Buena Vista Heritage for much of this information.
Head lettuce was also a major crop in Salida in those days but it was Buena Vista that really celebrated the harvest which eventually evolved into the rodeo and Gold Rush Days.
Lettuce needed a lot of water and it seems strange now that head lettuce ever grew in Chaffee County because it’s so dry here, but apparently at that time irrigation made growing lettuce more feasible. The high altitude and cool nights also contributed to the success of lettuce growers.
Shipping lettuce to all parts of the country was enabled by the close proximity of the railroad. Slabs of ice were cut from Ice Lake near Buena Vista during the winter and stored in an ice house near the railroad. When the crates of lettuce arrived they were packed in box cars filled with ice to keep them fresh.
According to historian, Suzy Kelly, the ice shed was the size of a gymnasium and the sawdust was between two and three feet thick to insulate the ice until it was needed in the summer.
For the end of summer celebration, ranchers contributed the beef and lettuce growers added a wedge of fresh lettuce to the menu. The name “iceberg lettuce” originated from those early day lettuce growers.
Rikki Swedhin’s grandparents, Gus and Mary Swedhin were among the growers in the 1920s and 30s.
“The lettuce days were over before I was born,” she said, “but I do know they made a meager living growing lettuce. My dad, Lloyd Swedhin, said they went out of business when the town put in a new water line that crossed their property disrupted the irrigation.”
About 300 crates of lettuce could be harvested from a one acre field and it took about 315 crates to fill a boxcar. For some it was a very lucrative business that provided employment during the planting, weeding and harvesting. Ice cutting employed people during the winter – hence the connection with the lettuce and ice business to Labor day.
The head lettuce business lasted from 1917 until about 1951. By then refrigerated box cars were available which enabled lettuce to be shipped from California year round and Buena Vista’s claim to fame as the head lettuce capital of the world faded into history.
