The Fruit Belt research team used this map to help them locate the area known as the Fruit Belt. The map illustrates the key role Lake Michigan plays in fruit growing. It also underscores the importance of transportation links between Southwest Michigan orchards, fields, and vineyards and the markets of Chicago and Milwaukee. The artwork below appeared in a 1909 promotional booklet advertising Michigan’s Original Fruit Belt. It was created by A. B. Morse Co. of St. Joseph. Using this map and artwork as a guide, the Fruit Belt project team began to search for sources about the Fruit Belt. They found only a handful of secondary sources (books, articles, etc.) on the history of fruit growing in Southwest Michigan. The team thus concentrated their efforts on finding and analyzing primary historical sources such as documents, artifacts, oral histories, photographs, buildings, the landscape, maps & charts, art, and literature. The following sections of this guide will help you locate and analyze historical sources.
 

Finally, this artwork illustrates the diversity of the Fruit Belt. The bunches of fruit in the center of the artwork represent only a few of the diverse fruits grown here.