The domesticated tomato may date back 7,000 or more years, but the 2026 edible variety didn’t show up in Murphy, North Carolina, until July 23 at our local farmers market. At least this was the first I had seen this season.
So, naturally I’ve been eating a summer’s worth of tomato sandwiches since. And every one has been worth its weight in gold.
For those who want to know, the wild ancestor of the tomato, the red-fruited Solanum pimpinellifolium, is native to Chile, Peru, and Ecuador. The exact date of domestication is unknown, but as I said earlier, about 5,000 years before the Modern Era — some 7,000 years ago.
But it’s darn odd to me that the tomato is that old and yet mankind endured another 6,900 years or so before the first mention of the tomato sandwich. That didn’t happen until 1911 when The Virginia Chronicle newspaper published the first reference to a workingman’s tomato sandwich — which the idiot paired with watermelon, according to the newspaper anyway.
Watermelon with tomato! The indignity!
The tomato itself goes with lots of things, it’s true, but I doubt any southerner has wanted to pair it with melon. Go figure.
Anyhow, for a sandwich, the only absolute requirements are good bread, Duke’s Mayonnaise, and bacon. Lettuce may not be essential, but it’s a wonderful addition to the tomato sandwich. But with the current scare over the nasty stomach ailment known as cyclosporiasis I’ve been avoiding that leafy green addition for the time being.
So salute the wonderful tomato — not the supermarket variety, which you can buy year round though rarely if ever enjoyably. Supermarket tomatoes are legendary in their tastelessness.
Murphy, my adopted hometown, is doing its best to plug the gaps in tomato appreciation and history. This coming Saturday, August. 1, the Cherokee Clay Food Alliance in conjunction with the Murphy Farmers Market bring us the 3rd annual Tomato Fest on the farm market grounds at the old train depot.
And it’s peak season for the truly edible variety. I plan to make the festival to restock my tomato supply. I hope you can.