W. Atlee Burpee

In 1876, W. Atlee Burpee made the decision that would change American gardens forever. Atlee established his own mail-order poultry and livestock company. When his livestock customers told him that they needed a reliable source for quality seed, he obliged. In his second year of business, he reshaped his enterprise in the celebrated seed company we know today. In 1893, he became President of the American Seed Trade Association. Burpee was the first researched based seed company in the United States, offering new varieties of cabbage, carrots, lima beans celery and sweet pepper. In 1894, Atlee brough forward a lettuce that stayed crisper longer, the world-famous Iceberg.

While still in his 20’s, Atlee was running the world’s fastest growing mail order seed company.