Kentucky Proud

History of hemp in Kentucky

Hemp history

Kentucky's first hemp crop was grown in 1775, and Kentucky went on to become the nation's leading hemp-producing state in the mid-19th century with peak production of 40,000 tons in 1850. U.S. hemp production declined after the Civil War, and almost all of the nation's hemp was grown in the Bluegrass region of Kentucky. Federal legislation passed in 1938 outlawed production of cannabis, including hemp, in the U.S. Hemp production in Kentucky and the U.S. ramped up during World War II as part of the war effort but fell again after the war and ended with the demise of a small hemp fiber industry in Wisconsin in 1958.

History of hemp in Kentucky
Sources:
  • Industrial Hemp – Legal Issues
  • Hemp: A New Crop with New Uses for North America
  • Historical Marker Database Search
    • Contact the Commisioner