Excerpt from The Potato in British Columbia
The potato was introduced, probably in the latter half of the sixteenth century, into that part of the United States now known as Virgina and North Carolina. It was imported into Europe between 1580 and 1585, first by the Spaniards and after wards by the English, at the time of Sir Walter Raleigh’s voyages to Virginia.
It is believed that the potato was first introduced into Ireland in 1586 by colonists sent out by Sir Walter Raleigh, and was at first cultivated on Sir Walter’s estate near Cork. The cultivation of potatoes then extended from this place to the poorer Irish classes and later into England. The cultivation of the potato in England made little progress and potatoes were scarce for many years.
In 1769 the grain-crops Of France were a failure, threatening a national famine. Parmentier, a chemist, recommended the use of potatoes to supplement the grain crops. These were tested out and found to be so palatable that they soon became a staple food of the French people.
In 1772 the potato was used to supplement the grain-crop of Germany also.
In 1663 the Royal Society of London recommended the introduction of the potato into Ireland, as a safeguard against famine. By 1840 it had become the staple food of the Irish people. In 1845 the so-called late-blight disease was beginning to attract widespread attention, and it caused great loss in this year, both in North America and Western Europe. In 1846 it destroyed the potato-crop in Ireland, giving rise to a famine.
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