A Long Overlooked Part of Farming Lore

Remembering the days when Bull Durham and Prince Albert tobacco were farm staples.

By Clell G. Ballard
Published on December 3, 2021
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by Clell G. Ballard
The famous Prince Albert tobacco can (with tight-fitting lid) is recognized by most older people from farming areas. The paper stuck to either side of the top is the remains of a state tax document that once covered the lid.

Some incidental objects – like the stethoscope, for instance – are understood by all to be related to a specific occupation. Other items can be identified with multiple occupations. In most cases, they played a part for a period of time and were later forgotten.

Then there were those items that came to be associated with a particular way of life that was far from the original reason they existed. The focus of this article is Prince Albert pipe and cigarette tobacco. Since a good share of men who farmed or worked on farms in the early days used tobacco, Prince Albert tobacco was a staple.

a faded prince albert tobacco can with rust around the edges

As a 13-year-old being introduced to farm work for the first time, much of what I experienced has stuck with me for a lifetime. For example, on the first day I was taken out to the field to drive a huge 1953 John Deere Model R diesel tractor pulling a double disc on a dryland grain farm, I was told, in a matter-of-fact voice, that no farmer should hire a farmhand who had one of three negatives.

First, no man who wore a straw hat should be hired. As no tractors of that era had cabs, it was explained that he would always be chasing it after the wind blew it off. Second, no one who rolled his own cigarettes should be hired. He would constantly be taking his mind off his work as he took time to roll a cigarette. Third, a man who chewed tobacco had a habit that would result in the farmer’s equipment being messed up as the wind blew his regular spitting around. I was wide-eyed about everything new I was expected to do and was confused as to why I was being told all that.

the back of a prince albert tobacco can with a large spot of rust on…
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