Hemp History

Historically, hemp was a vital crop for North America, with 17th century farmers in Virginia, Massachusetts, and Connecticut being ordered by law to grow Indian hemp on their land. By the early 18th century, a person could be imprisoned if

they didn’t comply.

Contrastingly, the Marihuana Tax Act of 1937 was drafted by anti-cannabis prohibitionist Harry Anslinger, and was passed with the intent of levying taxes on hemp products and on the commercial sales of cannabis products.

Even with hemp’s storied past, its industrial attributes are widely misunderstood these days, often being conflated with its THC-rich doppelganger—marijuana. Nearly 50 years after the Controlled Substances Act of 1970, which classified all cannabis species as a Schedule I Drug, the government still seems to have some confusion in distinguishing the two plants.

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