Here’s what Sonoma County looked like 100 years ago

From Luther Burbank to WWI soldiers, travel back in time with these historic photos of fashions, landmarks and people of 1918.|

A lot has changed in Sonoma County since Luther Burbank was our most famous citizen.

One hundred years ago, our valiant sons were fighting the last year of our planet’s first world war. The Spanish Influenza was spreading across the globe, killing as many 50 million in just one year.

On the home front, citizens were busy establishing Sonoma County as an agricultural powerhouse. Products like hops, apples, and eggs were taking off.

In 1918, Petaluma was considered a world leader in the chicken and egg industry. A Chamber of Commerce campaign gave the city the title, “Egg Basket of the World,” and started the Egg Days Parade to celebrate the burgeoning industry

The world was taking notice of Luther Burbank’s groundbreaking work with plant breeding. His blight resistant Burbank Russet potato helped Europe recover from a devastating potato disease and subsequent famine that hit the continent in the mid 1800s. His menagerie of famous friends included Henry Ford, Thomas Edison, Harvey Firestone, and Helen Keller.

Click through our gallery above to catch a glimpse of what life was like in Sonoma County a century ago.

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