Illustration of Ezra Meeker's hop processing plant, 1883 (MOHAI 7012)

Hops are used in flavoring beer. Jacob Meeker began growing hops on his farm near Sumner in 1865, and his son Ezra successfully expanded the business. The crop was grown in many western Washington river valleys until the plants were devastated by an insect infestation in the early 1900s. Eastern Washington is now the state's center for hops growing.
This illustration shows several buildings at Ezra Meeker's hop processing plant in Puyallup. A wagon (right) carries in boxes of hops. The the wood (foreground) is fed to the furnace (far right) which heats the row of chimneyed kilns where the hops are dried. The illustration is taken from Meeker's 1883 book on hop growing.
Full title: Draft and fan-blast hop kilns with movable floors, E. Meeker & Co., Puyallup, Washington Territory.

Originally published: Meeker,Ezra, 1883. Photographed after 1975 by the Museum of History and Industry.
Subjects (LCTGM): Agricultural facilities; Brewing industry; Hops; Kilns
People: Meeker, Ezra, 1830-1928