Description
200 Years and Growing: The Story of Stark Bro’s Nurseries & Orchards Co. by LeAnn Zotta is the definitive account of one of the most remarkable business stories in American history — a family nursery founded in 1816 that went on to discover the Red Delicious, Golden Delicious, and Gala apple, shaping the fruit industry and the American grocery store in ways that persist to this day. From James H. Stark’s westward journey to present-day Louisiana, Missouri, this richly illustrated hardcover tells the full story through family interviews, rare photography, and historical details that have never been compiled in one place before. Hardcover, 202 pages.
The Story of How America’s Favorite Apples Were Discovered
Before Stark Bro’s, the Red Delicious didn’t exist as the world knows it. Neither did the Golden Delicious. Nor the Gala. The discovery, development, and introduction of these varieties — now mainstays in every grocery store on earth — is the central story of 200 Years and Growing, told from the inside with access to family history and archives that no outside author could have assembled. It’s the story of how a single nursery family in Missouri shaped what the world eats.
Family Interviews, Rare Photography, and Historical Tidbits
The book draws on primary sources unavailable anywhere else — interviews with Stark family members across generations, rare historical photography from the company’s archives, and the kind of first-hand institutional knowledge that only a 200-year-old family business accumulates. The result is a genuinely compelling read that works as corporate history, American agricultural history, and family biography simultaneously.
Endorsed by Missouri Governor Jay Nixon
“When James H. Stark moved west and started his business here in 1816, no one could have imagined the influence the business and family would have had on our state and nation. As the industry leader in fruit-breeding and tree production, the products they have introduced to the world are now mainstays in our yards, kitchens and grocery stores … the Stark family has made its mark on Missouri in many ways.” — Missouri Governor Jay Nixon
About the Author
LeAnn Zotta is a non-fiction author, editor, journalist, and freelance writer based in historic Williamsburg, Virginia, with more than a dozen books and publications in over 100 magazines and newspapers to her credit. A lifelong gardener, she was, by her own account, especially thrilled to be chosen to document the 200-year saga of this great American family business.
Why This Book Belongs in Every Stark Bro’s Customer’s Library
- The inside story of Red Delicious, Golden Delicious, and Gala — how they were discovered and introduced to the world
- Family interviews and rare historical photography — primary sources available nowhere else
- 200 years of American nursery and agricultural history — 1816 to present day
- Endorsed by Missouri Governor Jay Nixon — recognized as a landmark piece of Missouri and national history
- Hardcover, 202 pages — a beautiful, substantial gift for gardeners and history lovers alike
