Learn about the history of Washington’s apple industry in the Humanities Washington virtual program “Big Apples, Big Business: How Washington Became the Apple State,” offered by NCW Libraries on April 17.

This free program will be offered on Zoom from 6 to 7:30 p.m. and live-streamed at Wenatchee Public Library and Chelan Public Library. Register for the virtual program at www.ncwlibraries.org on the events calendar.| No registration is needed for the live-streaming events. 

 Amanda L. Van Lanen, a professor of history at Lewis-Clark State College, will explore how Washington became the top apple producing state in the country, and how, in the process, it transformed apples into an industrialized commodity. While many regions in the West attempted to grow apples, in Washington they became big business thanks to the work of scientists, investors, irrigators, railroad corporations, marketers, and apple growers.

 Van Lanen will also share her thoughts on how the history of Washington apples reflect larger changes in the American food system — changes that continue to affect our environment and the way we eat today.