this new method of curing that led to the building of tobacco
barns, which were known to be in use at the time of the Indian Massacre
in 1622.

By 1671 the planters had stopped stringing the leaves on lines; the
tobacco plant was cut off just above the top of the ground and left
lying in the field for three or four hours, or until the leaves "fell"
or became somewhat withered so that the plant could be handled without
breaking the stems and fibers in the leaves. The plants were then
carried into the tobacco barns, and hung on tobacco sticks by a small
peg that had been driven into each stalk.

During the early years of the eighteenth century the pegs were
superseded by partially spliting the stalk and hanging it on the
sticks. The use of fire in curing tobacco was also introduced during
this century, but was rarely used before the Revolution. The earlier
accounts refer to curing as the action of the air and sun. If the plant
was large, the stalk was split down the middle six or seven inches
below the extremity of the split, then turned directly bottom upwards
to enable the sun to cause it to "fall", or wither faster. The plants
were then brought to the scaffolds, which were generally erected all
around the tobacco barns, and placed with the splits across a small oak
stick about an inch in diameter and four and a half feet long. The
sticks of tobacco were then placed on the scaffold. The tobacco
remained there to cure for a brief period and then the sticks were
removed from the outdoor scaffolds, carried into the tobacco barn and
placed on the tier poles erected in successive regular graduation from
near the bottom to the top of the barn. Once the barn was filled, the
curing was sometimes hastened by making fires on the floor of the barn.

Around 1800 the most common method was still air-curing, fire was used
primarily to keep the tobacco from molding in damp weather. During the
War of 1812 there was a considerable shift to fire-curing owing to the
demand in Europe for a smoky flavored leaf. Fire-curing not only gave
tobacco a different taste, but it also improved the keeping qualities
of the leaf. The fire dried the stem of the leaf more thoroughly, thus
eliminating the major cause of spoilage when packed in the hogshead for
shipment.

August and September were the favorite months for cutting and curing
because the tobacco would cure a brighter color if cured in hot
weather. Even today farmers like to finish curing