Stoked

Realizing tobacco was at one time an important crop for many farmers in this area, I decided to do a little Googling since Natureman mentioned that the area tobacco was used as the outer wrapping for cigars.

I didn't even have to go as far away as La Crosse as the little town of Stoddard 3 miles down the road from the End of the Rainbow Valley used to have a cigar factory.  In fact it was north of the old school (a pickle factory replaced it in later years).  

It turns out manufacturing cigars was a big business with 26 cigar factories employing  more than 250 cigar makers just in the city of La Crosse.

Down on 2nd street the PAMPERIN & WIGGENHORN CIGAR FACTORY (1866-1986) was the largest. By the early1900's they had 100 employees. Of course once machinery came along many of the area businesses closed. The Wiggenhorns took over cigar box making from the Pamperins, later bought out by a grandson of the founder. Today the building houses one of my favorite places to visit, KicK, an upscale shoe store. Wow, so that's the building's history.

Gee to think we could have been celebrating a Heritage City Cigar Festival just like Tampa Florida's Ybor City (alias Little Havana) if the tobacco industry had continued to prosper.  Who knew?