Types and Market Classes of Live Stock 359 



experienced a similar slump in prices during 1920 and 1921 following 

 the World War can testify that history repeats itself. 



In early times Cincinnati was especially favored as a pork-packing 

 center because of its shipping facilities, large quantities of cured pork 

 being shipped to southern points in flat boats via the Ohio and Mis- 

 sissippi rivers. The South took most of the product, though New 

 England and eastern points took a considerable share. Lard was 

 exported to the West Indies, England, and France. Cincinnati was 

 also favored in that prior to the Civil War it was the center of the 

 finest hog-raising region in the world, including the states of Kentucky, 

 Ohio, and Indiana. It was in this favorable environment and under 

 the stimulus afforded by a large, near-by market that the Poland- 

 China breed originated during the period mentioned. Although 

 Chicago took the lead in the number of hogs packed following the war, 

 Cincinnati continued to hold first place for a considerable time so far 

 as the quality of hogs packed was concerned. In 1866 there were 15 

 slaughter houses at Cincinnati, some of which employed as many as 

 100 hands. One concern slaughtered 60,000 hogs during that year. 

 Measured by the standards of the time, these Cincinnati packing es- 

 tablishments were considered to be gigantic in proportions. In 1866 

 Cincinnati produced 180,000 barrels of pork, 25,000,000 pounds of 

 bacon, and 16,500,000 pounds of lard. 



Development of packing at Chicago.^ — The earliest packing or 

 slaughtering done in Chicago was in 1827; in that year Archibald 

 Clyboum erected a slaughter house for the special purpose of supplying 

 the garrison at Fort Dearborn. The trade was mostly local until 1833, 

 when immigration set westward quite strongly, creating a larger de- 

 mand. During 1835, Mr. Clyboum packed about 3,000 hogs, besides 

 considerable beef, for which a ready market was at hand. This stock 

 had to be picked up at long distances from Chicago and driven on foot 

 to the city. Other men soon engaged in the business which took on 

 larger proportions, the surplus product finding a market in the East. 

 The slaughter houses were mostly located on the south branch of the 

 Chicago river, and into it the offal and filth were drained, which in 

 later years became a nuisance and was prohibited by the city. In 1863 

 there were 58 different establishments in Chicago doing a general pack- 

 ing business. During the winter of 1853-'54, Chicago packed 52,849 

 hogs, and in 1860-'61 the number packed was 231,335. 



During the winter packing season of 1863-'64, the rank of the 

 largest packing centers and the number of hogs packed by each vvas as 

 follows: (1) Chicago, 904,159; (2) Cincinnati, 400,000; (3) St. Louis, 

 200,000; (4) Louisville, 103,996. 



lU. S. Dept. Agr. An. Rpt., 1863, pp. 207-209. 



