The only Almquist newspaper update in 1908 is a quick mention of the bumper crop of potatoes Gus Almquist had out on his ranch as seen here. I’ll have to be sure to alert the press when my next crop of asparagus does well :). Apparently potato farming is quite popular in Perris, as there is a potato festival every year in June, where there are events including dressing up your potatoes. By the 1950’s the King Edward variety of potato was preferred, but I wonder what type Gus planted? Update- in the National Register of Historic places I found a mention of White Rose as the early Perris potato of choice. It also talks about the “spudrush“.
I included the ad above to see if you all know what exactly lingerie dresses are? Turns out it is a dress with lots of flair, i.e. embroidery, lace, ribbons, etc. You can see an article on it here.
My grandfather, Frank Michael Beatty, had also been a potato farmer for himself for a short time and had usually worked for other farmers in at least the 1940s and the early 1950s. I don’t remember what kind of potatoes, except they were referred to as the “Idaho” potato. In the 1950s, for the Potato Festival, there were “Potato Men” that fit around the poles of the stop signs downtown. They were made of plaster or a light-weight ceramic-like material, and looked like snowmen, except that they were painted a light brown. The festival had a small traveling carnival with several rides. Love the lingerie dress ad. Cathy Beatty.