The melons from Adel, Ga. that helped beat Hitler

The melons from Adel, Ga. that helped beat Hitler

By Charles Shiver

This is a great local historical tale to instill community pride. The story should be retold for the younger generations in particular as the melon harvest season rolls around again during early summer in South Georgia.

On June 11, 1939, President Franklin Delano Roosevelt offered the most important watermelons in history, from tiny Adel, Ga., to King George VI of England and Queen Elizabeth during a picnic at Hyde Park, New York.

According to a 2012 article in Hudson Valley magazine, this was the first time a reigning British monarch had ever set foot on U.S soil.

According to the article, “At that time, U.S. foreign policy was isolationist. Relations with our cousins across the pond were cold and distant at best. ‘There was still much anti-British sentiment and anger at dragging us into World War I,’ says Dr. David B. Woolner, associate professor of history at Marist College and a senior fellow and resident historian at the Roosevelt Institute. But Britain needed our help. FDR wanted to provide that assistance, but first had to persuade the public that it was both a good idea and that the Brits were worthy. ‘With this new war, the debate over U.S. intervention was intense. It was a very critical time in relations between Britain and the U.S.,’ Woolner says.

“Political genius that he was, FDR invited the royal couple to a picnic at his place.”

FDR served hot dogs (the first they had ever eaten) and beer to the Royal Couple, but also shared melons shipped from Adel, Ga., with His Majesty. Charles H. Cannon, president of the SOWEGA Melon Growers Association of Adel, helped bring that about.

A 1939 article in The New York Times is headlined “King and President Treated to Finest of Sowega Melons: 30 Crates Sent to Hyde Park For Sovereigns – Cannon on Eastern Trip.”

According to the article, “New York, June 16 – King George VI and his host at Hyde Park, President Roosevelt, had Sowega watermelons Saturday afternoon as a special treat from grower members of that largest of all watermelon cooperatives.

“Charles H. Cannon, head of the Sowega Melon Growers Ass’n, Adel, Ga., flew to this city Saturday morning, got in touch with Mrs. Roosevelt upstate and asked her if she and her royal guests would like some vine-ripened melons, the kind that are at full maturity at table because they have been shipped to market in crates. The First Lady said she would be delighted, and Saturday afternoon a truck with 30 crates of Sowega’s finest left this city for Hyde Park, where the visiting sovereigns of Great Britain were week-end guests.

“The now famous Sunday picnic took place without the King having any watermelons – just hot dogs. Then His Majesty and the President slipped away from the picnic grounds and took a swim in the pool at the other end of the estate. It was after their dip that they got their vine-ripened watermelons, and both Miss Malvina Thompson, secretary, and the butler are authority for the statement that the two rulers found the melons delicious. The press was not admitted to the grounds to report on the big doings, but Mr. Cannon had a phone call from Hyde Park Monday morning telling him of the success of this treat. The New York Times and Herald Tribune announced Sowega’s treat in their Sunday editions.

“Mr. Cannon is much interested in the progress of the innovation of shipping melons in crates. Some five or six years ago, the idea was first tried by his organization, but that time each melon was placed in a cardboard container to prevent bruising. The new idea of using a wire bound crate containing two, three, and four melons packed in excelsior is working much better, and about 700 crates are selling in New York each day. The protection those crates afford permits shipping melons that have been left on the vine until they are ripe.

“Mr. Cannon is now on a trip through various large markets. He spent the last few days in Detroit, and from there will go to middle-western markets, before returning to Georgia. Regarding this year’s crop, he declared it is really short, and indications are it will be 25% to 40% higher than last year.”

The importance of the Hyde Park picnic and melons to Western history can’t be overstated. As the Hudson Valley article states, “Historians have come to realize this event was a very big deal indeed. Three months after the picnic, England declared war on Germany. Roosevelt was able to convince Congress, and the American people, to take steps to aid the British while still maintaining American neutrality. ‘There has been greater recognition over the past 20 years about the importance of this visit,’ Woolner says. ‘It was an enormous PR success for both governments. I think a genuine warmth emerged between FDR and the king, and it marks a significant turning point in Anglo-American relations.’ ”

The most important – if not the most famous – picnic in history became the subject of “Hyde Park on Hudson,” a 2012 movie starring comedy icon Bill Murray as President Roosevelt and Laura Linney as Margaret “Daisy” Suckley, a cousin and childhood friend of the President.

Chas Cannon, great-great-grandson of Charles Cannon, brought this story to the Adel News’ attention. Chas, former County Manager of Colquitt County, now serves as District 177 State Representative. He describes the story about his great-great-grandfather and SOWEGA melons being given to the King and Queen, and the President and First Lady, as “pretty neat.”

“When you walk into the SOWEGA Building in Adel (currently used by the Adel-Cook County Chamber of Commerce), and look at the black plaque near the entrance, you will see Charles H. Cannon as the president of SOWEGA when the building was constructed,” Chas Cannon says.

Born and raised in Moultrie, Chas lives in a family home that spans four generations. He proudly carries on the forestry and timber business started by his great-great-grandfather in 1912.

According to The Georgia Trust for Historic Preservation, a prominent building in downtown Adel, which

Life magazine named the Watermelon Capital of the World in a 1930s article, the SOWEGA Building has acted as a landmark to locals for generations. The land for the building was sold in 1929 to the South West Georgia (SOWEGA) Melon Growers, and the SOWEGA headquarters was dedicated on March 12, 1931. The SOWEGA building utilizes watermelons as a design motif. Designed by the Atlanta architectural firm of Daniell & Butell, this landmark is generally referred to as the Watermelon Building, due to the small watermelon ornaments between the second and third floors. The structure features the unique green terra-cotta watermelons in terra-cotta lozenges in a broad diamond, which represent the SOWEGA trademark.

In recent years, the SOWEGA Building was home to Del-Cook Lumber Co., the largest producer of lumber from longleaf pine in the world. The building is also named the the Jim Paulk-Sowega Building in memory of the original owner and operator of Del-Cook. According to the Historic Structures website (historic-structures.com), “The SOWEGA building was purchased by the Del-Cook Lumber Company in 1960. The building retained its stature as a landmark, as growth in the town of Adel occurred very slowly. Metcalf Lumber Company purchased Del-Cook from Jim Paulk in 1986, and donated the building to the Cook County Chamber of Commerce, Inc. in 1987 with the stipulation that the building always bear the name SOWEGA/Jim Paulk. In 1988, the ground floor was renovated for the Chamber’s headquarters.”

The building was listed on the National Register of Historic Places in 1990.