MORTON, Ill. – The village of Morton has some back-up in its claim of being the “Pumpkin Capital of the World.”
On Tuesday, Mayor Jeff Kaufman and Chamber of Commerce Executive Director unveiled a marker from the Illinois State Historical Society to help that claim.
The marker tells the history of how Morton became the “Pumpkin Capital of the World.”
The history started with Elijah Dickinson moving to Eureka from Kentucky in 1835 and planting pumpkin seeds, with his sons opening a canning factory in 1898. A second factory was opened in Washington in 1910, and in 1925 in Morton.
Pumpkin production was moved to Eureka after Libby, McNeil, and Libby bought all three facilities in 1929, with all three consolidated into Morton in the 1960s.
Kaufman says the marker gives Morton something to “brag about.”
“We have something extraordinary that started in 1835,” Kaufman said. “When you think about it, 95% of the pumpkins canned in this country come from Morton. So you’ve obviously eaten pumpkin pie from Morton, Illinois.”
The marker also recognizes the first Morton Pumpkin Festival, organized in 1967. The marker was unveiled a day before this year’s festival begins.
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