Joe T. Sheehy - Floresville, TX USA
N 29° 08.004 W 098° 09.464
14R E 581932 N 3223058
On the lawn of the Wilson County Courthouse in Floresville, TX is mounted an oversized peanut with a plaque next to it honoring the man who made peanuts a viable and profitable crop in Southwest Texas.
Waymark Code: WM13NK7
Location: Texas, United States
Date Posted: 01/16/2021
Views: 2
In the early 1900s, Joe T. Sheehy began experimenting with faming peanuts in various places within the Southwest part of Texas. He tested various kinds of peanuts over several years and pioneered the use of the Spanish peanut, which gave the best results of other types also tested. By 1916, Sheehy moved to Floresville and continued promoting Spanish peanuts as a viable cash crop. Over the years since then, Sheehy has been proven correct about peanuts being a commodity in demand by the marketplace. In 1938, the city decided to begin holding a Peanut Festival. It was a popular attraction from the beginning and each year, a Peanut King and Peanut Queen were and still are chosen as honorary leaders of the festival.
A giant replica of a peanut shell is mounted in the Wilson County Courthouse Square lawn with a plaque placed next to the model peanut that honors Joe T. Sheehy as the "The Peanut King." The plaque was sponsored by the Mr. Sheehy's descendants. The plaque in combination with the oversized peanut commemorates both the man and his pioneering of the peanut! The plaque reads as follows:
"In Loving Memory of
"The Peanut King"
Joe T. Sheehy
1887 - 1967
Who in 1916
experimented with peanut farming
and introduced it as a viable crop
to the farmers of Wilson County.
The descendants of Joe T. Sheehy"
Link to the Roadsideamerica web page about Joe Sheehy being The Peanut King and the peanut festival celebration:
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visit link)