GREEN AND ROASTED COFFEE BUSINESS IN THE UNITED STATES Page 5

Growth of the Leading Coffee Ports

Twenty-two years ago, when the century opened, New York passed over her docks a total of 676,000,000 pounds of coffee, which represented eighty-six percent of the total for the country. In 1920, juggling the figures a little, she imported 767,000,000 pounds, which was fifty-nine percent of the total. While she was thus practically marking time, she watched New Orleans run wild with an increase from 44,000,000 pounds to 380,000,000 pounds, or 763 percent gain; this meaning also the supplying of twenty-nine percent of the country's demands instead of five percent, while San Francisco in the same time jumped from 24,000,000 pounds to 137,000,000 pounds, or 470 percent gain, her share of the total trade now being ten percent instead of three percent in 1900. These gains, however, have not all been made at the expense of the city on the Hudson. In 1900, Baltimore was a close rival of New Orleans and was far ahead of all other ports except New York; but a decline in her imports began about 1903, and was so swift, that five years later her imports were almost negligible.

Looking South from Wall Street into the Heart of the Green Coffee District
On the left-hand corner is Hard & Rand's, opposite Leon Israel & Bros.' building, and beyond are many other leading green coffee firms.

Looking North from Wall Street. Here a Few Well Known Coffee Firms Are Located
The trend of the trade is south from Wall St. rather than north
FRONT STREET, NEW YORK'S GREEN COFFEE DISTRICT, IN 1922

[K] Calendar years. All others fiscal years.

New Orleans began her advance at about the same time that Baltimore began to fall off, so that her rise to a place of importance as a coffee port has been practically coincident with the twentieth century. Her first big step upward was in 1901, from 44,000,000 to 72,000,000 pounds, and was followed by another the next year to 115,000,000. Thereafter there was a steady gain to 213,000,000 pounds in 1906 and to 301,000,000 pounds in 1910, and after that wide fluctuations, especially during the war. In 1918, doubtless because of the draining of shipping to the North Atlantic service, there was a heavy slump; but immediately after the war, in the calendar year 1919, there was a big jump to a record mark, up to that time, of 356,000,000 pounds. This was followed by the record of 380,000,000 pounds in the calendar year 1920, although the 1921 figure of 331,036,770 shows a falling off of nearly 50,000,000 pounds.

San Francisco's growth, on the other hand, is of recent occurrence. The story is told farther along in this chapter, how the city was definitely placed on the coffee map by the provision of adequate shipping facilities to Central America. The outbreak of the war in Europe, however, which loosened the grip of European nations on the coffee crops of Central America, was the prime cause of San Francisco's rise in the coffee world, affording her an opportunity of which she had the enterprise to take full advantage. In 1913, her imports were only about 36,000,000 pounds, at which mark they had stood for many years. There was only a slight gain until 1916, when 71,000,000 pounds were recorded; but this increased to 97,000,000 pounds in 1917, to 134,000,000 pounds in 1918 (fiscal year), and to 160,000,000 pounds in the calendar year 1919. In 1920, there was a falling off to 137,000,000 pounds, and it may be that the high figure reached the year before represents about the maximum that her natural market, the Pacific-coast region, can well absorb.

For the benefit of those who like to do their own interpreting of figures, we present in the table at the top of this page the official record for recent years.

The leading importers of Brazil coffee direct to New York and Baltimore in 1894, as compiled by William H. Force & Co., were as follows. Included in this list are a number of names well known in the green and roasted coffee trades of other cities: