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Puyallup River Valley

Tour winds among trellised berry fields and hop lands, where, during the picking season, single persons and families once crowded the highway in nondescript cars, seeking farms where they could pick. During the berry season, as many as 3,000 transient workers were employed for picking. Hops were formerly a big crop in the valley, but farmers have largely abandoned them for the more profitable berry growing. The cost of harvesting and cultivating the hops was made greater by the necessity of fighting pests that infested the hop fields.

Images

Ca. 1950 image of daffodil fields in the Puyallup Valley, with girls in Dutch costumes.

Source: Washington State Archives

1906 view of Klaber’s hop farm in the Puyallup Valley, with hop kiln barns in background.

Source: Washington State Historical Society