In 1939, in an attempt to give the people waiting something to do, Walter and Cordelia’s daughter, Virginia, set up a card table with small gift items for sale. Cordelia’s little Tea Room had become a full-fledged restaurant and when they expanded to seat 350 they figured people would no longer have to wait, but they did! The small dining room originally sat 20, and in 1935 they expanded it to 40, only to have to expand it again the following year to accommodate 70. Word spread of this delicious fried chicken and soon people were flocking to the little farm and Tea Room in Buena Park. Walter recalled the moment was “the turning point in our economic life.” It was really the turning point that would transform a farm into a theme park. Served alongside salad with rhubarb, biscuits, vegetables, mashed potatoes with gravy, and berry pie on the family’s wedding china, the dinner cost 65 cents. On a June evening, Cordelia made eight fried chicken dinners for her Tea Room guests. The Knott family struggled through the Great Depression, but in 1934 Cordelia had an idea that would change everything. The berries, jams, and pies were an instant hit! This new berry had no name and, while Walter’s friends said he should name it after himself, he opted instead to honor the berry’s creator and dubbed it the boysenberry. One year later Walter had a welcome surprise - massive berries! In 1934, Walter had enough cuttings and berries to introduce the new boysenberry as a commercial product and Cordelia incorporated the new berry into her tea room menu. After securing permission from the new owners, Walter took cuttings back to Buena Park to plant and cultivate. Boysen said the plant was a cross between a red raspberry, blackberry, and loganberry.
Together the three men found Boysen’s long-forgotten berry plant in a ditch covered in weeds and without berries. Boysen admitted to experimenting with berries, but left them behind on his previous property. This led them to Rudolph Boysen in Anaheim.
Boysen due to their mutual interest in berries, however Walter admitted he did not, but suggested they look up Boysen in the phonebook. Boysen.” Darrow figured Walter would know this Mr. Darrow heard about a superior berry that was said to be created by a “Mr. The Great Depression took hold of America in 1929, which caused land prices to drop, and even though the Knott family was barely making ends meet, Walter doubled down, buying more land to expand his farm.Īmid the Great Depression, Walter was making a name for himself with his berries, and in 1932 a man named George M. Along with the market there was a nursery to sell plants and even a little Tea Room where Walter’s wife, Cordelia, sold sandwiches, jams and pies made from the Farm’s berries. Through hard work, the Knott family was able to buy their land in 1927 and build a home the following year along with a permanent Berry Market which replaced the simple roadside stand. Coughran and Walter began farming berries.ĭespite a frost killing Walter’s first crop, he persisted, and in 1923 was able to build a roadside stand on Grand Avenue, selling his berries. Together, they leased land from William H. In December of 1920, the Knott family drove their Model T Ford from central California to Buena Park for a fresh start with Walter Knott’s cousin Jim Preston, an experienced berry farmer. It’s an incredible story of hard work and happy accidents that resulted in America’s first theme park. This year marks the 100th anniversary of Knott’s Berry Farm and it is a perfect time to reflect on the Farm’s unique history.
0 kommentar(er)
