Burkett Pecan Tree
Putnam, Callahan County, Texas
Marker Inscription
Bred from a native tree, 1900, by J. H. Burkett (1861-1945), Texas pecan industry leader. (1966)
Erected by Texas Historical Commission
The Story
In 1900, near Putnam, J. H. Burkett selected and propagated a superior nut from a native pecan tree — the beginning of the Burkett pecan, a variety that would help turn Texas's wild groves into a commercial industry. Burkett, who lived from 1861 to 1945, became a leading champion of pecan growing across the state. The tree honored here stands as the source of that enduring cultivar.
Why it matters
The pecan is Texas's state tree, and Burkett's work marks the moment a scattered wild harvest became a cultivated industry — a small but telling chapter of American agricultural innovation.
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Related people
- · J. H. Burkett
Themes & tags
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