Texas Grower Produces U.S.’s First Bale of 2010
October 12, 2010 
first bale of the 2010 season.
The tradition of the First Bale contest dates back to the 1800’s when the producer of the first harvested bale of cotton grown in the United States would be required to transport the cotton to Houston for certification. For many years prior to 1953, the Houston Cotton Exchange auctioned the first bale. In the spring of 1953 a program was outlined for Harlingen to purchase the first bale of cotton.
Sanction was received from the Houston Cotton Exchange for Harlingen to auction the first bale without their certification. For the past 57 years, the Harlingen Cotton Committee has continued to auction the first bale of cotton grown in the United States.
The first bale of cotton harvested for the 2010 growing season was delivered to the Lyford Gin Association on Tuesday, July 13th. Sam Simmons with Heritage Farms grew the 3,520 pounds of seed cotton. This was the producers first time to win the Harlingen Cotton Committee’s annual contest.
The cotton, Dyna-Gro variety 2570, was supplied by Crop Production Services (CPS) and machine picked. The Simmons family began picking the cotton early afternoon on Tuesday, July 13th and delivered the seed cotton to the Lyford Gin Association late Tuesday evening.
For his efforts, Sam Simmons will be awarded $3,000 by the Harlingen Area Chamber of Commerce’s Harlingen Cotton Committee. The check presentation was held at 8:00 pm on Thursday, August 12th during the First Bale Auction and Scholarship Fundraiser. Following the check presentation, the first bale was auctioned off to the highest bidder. All proceeds received from the sale will be used for promotion of cotton and to award scholarships to local students interested in studying agriculture.
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