Father of the Modern Tomato

Alexander W. Livingston (1821-1898), a Reynoldsburg, Ohio seedsman, in 1870 developed the first

Back cover from A. W. Livingston’s Sons annual [catalog] of true blue seeds, 1897. Image source: A. W. Livingston’s Sons annual of true blue seeds (accessed from Internet Archive) by Livingston Seed Company; Henry G. Gilbert Nursery and Seed Trade Catalog Collection (specifically here) is licensed under Public Domain Mark 1.0

commercially successful variety of tomato. He changed the tomato from an ugly duckling of horticulture (small, ribbed, hard cored, and almost hollow) into the uniform, smooth-skinned, juicy, flavor-packed, meaty beauty that is one of the world’s favorite foods. Livingston and his seed company eventually introduced more than 30 varieties of tomatoes. By 1910, half the major varieties of tomatoes grown in the United States were Livingston products, and he won praise from the U. S. Department of Agriculture.“With all due credit to the important contributions of other growers, seedsmen, and investigators, it is not out of place to call attention again to the great contribution of the Livingston Seed Co. to tomato improvement. Of about 40 varieties that had attained a distinct status prior to 1910, a third were productions or introductions by the Livingston company. If we add those varieties derived directly from Livingston productions and introductions, it appears that half of the major varieties were due to the abilities of the Livingstons to evaluate and perpetuate superior material in the tomato.”
— The Yearbook of Agriculture 1937, U. S. Department of Agriculture.

Stone and Globe are among the Livingston varieties grown today. Seed producers still carry heirloom Livingston seeds such as Acme, Beauty, Buckeye State, Dwarf Stone, Golden Queen, and Perfection. Tomatoes grew throughout the world long before Livingston’s work. The tomato is native to the Americas, where the ancient Aztecs and Incas grew it more than 1,300 years ago. In the 16th Century, Spanish Conquistadors took seeds back to Europe from Mexico and Central America. People in Spain, Italy, and other Mediterranean countries fell in love with it. The French thought tomatoes had special powers and called them “The Apple of Love.” But the British believed tomatoes were poisonous, and the American colonists carried that myth with them to the New World.

Gradually, however, tomato fans emerged, including the Creoles in New Orleans who diced up tomatoes for jambalayas and gumbos. Livingston selected and planted seeds from tomato plants that bore good fruit. Then he gathered seeds from the best of those tomatoes. Gradually, he got tomatoes that were bigger, smoother, and meatier. After 5 years of this careful selection process, Livingston was ready with seed for a tomato he named the Paragon.

Born in 1821 in Reynoldsburg, Livingston eventually moved to Columbus where he started the A.W. Livingston’s Sons seed company. Today, life without Lycopersicon esculentum would be odd, indeed. Imagine spaghetti with no sauce, pizza with no rich red topping, and salsa would be lost without it.
Find out more…

• Livingston and the Tomato by A.W. Livingston (forward by Andrew F. Smith). First published in 1893, this classic is packed with information about the tomato varieties he developed. As a bonus, there are 60 tomato-based recipes, including exotic but delicious items like tomato butter, pie, and custard.
• The Victory Seed Company website offers a Seedsmen Hall of Fame, with a profile of A.W. Livingston.