Long Island is rooted in potatoes - pun intended. Potato farming on LI dates back to the late 1800s, when Polish and Irish immigrants decided the perfect scenario of sandy soil, ample space, temperate climate, and proximity to the big city served its best purpose in growing potatoes. At one time in the 1940s there were over 70k acres of potato farms here - while we now range between 1k - 3k. We still make good use of the mighty potato. Long Island Spirits and Sagaponack Farm Distillery put their creative genius to work to make craft vodkas, while North Fork Potato Chips utilizes their family farm harvest to make seriously awesome snacks. Pictured below: The Wesnofske family potato farm in 1919, one the very first. Photo courtesy of the Wesnofske family.
Photo: A Long Island Potato truck in the 1940s.
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