An unidentified presenter at a community historical-society event in Ventura County traced the local lima-bean industry from 19th-century ranchos to a much smaller modern footprint, saying her family has farmed in the area for five generations and that "I grew up here at 1566 5th Place."

The presenter told the audience that early settlers and large rancho purchases in the 1860s paved the way for dry farming on the Oxnard Plain. Barley, she said, dominated early production because it required little water; she described a later pivot to lima beans and highlighted growers who developed durable dry-lima varieties for the East Coast market. "Henry Lewis started experimenting and keeping the good beans," she said, crediting him with the variety commonly called the 'Lewis lima.'

Why it matters: the talk framed the crop as both a regional economic engine and a cultural heritage item. The presenter recounted how local growers and cooperatives marketed Ventura County beans at events such as the 1893 Chicago World's Fair and used postcards and banners to reach national markets. She also described trials with sugar beets in the 1890s and reported that local papers announced plans for a $2,000,000 sugar factory in 1897 — a figure the presenter converted to a modernized estimate during the talk.

The speaker said the industry experienced another market inflection during World War I when, she asserted, federal authorities requisitioned local beans to feed troops in 1917; she noted farmers received payment but that prices later fell. In the mid-20th century the presenter said canned and frozen processing — and later mechanized harvesters and threshers — reshaped labor patterns and where beans were processed. She named local cooperative facilities and a processing plant sold in 1989 as turning points that led to contraction of the local industry.

On current production, the presenter reported that "there's under 2,000 acres nowadays" of dry lima beans still grown on the Oxnard Plain and identified several active growers and harvesting operations that ship product to processing centers in King City and Santa Maria. She described how modern pick-up and self-propelled harvesters evolved from earlier threshing methods and how the loss of local processing capacity reduced the incentive to continue large-scale local production.

The event also served as community outreach: the presenter manages a farm park and said she organized a Lima Bean Fest as a fundraiser. She described selling books and bags of dried beans ("$25 for the book, $10 for a bag of beans"), a children’s craft, and a recipe contest judged by local restaurants; she said she plans to host the festival each year on the second Saturday in September. The presenter also said a follow-up book covering a wider Central and Southern California chapter will be available by the next festival.

Direct quotes in the talk included neighborhood details, family history and first-hand recollections of working in the bean fields; several audience members asked logistical questions and commented on recipes and memories. The presenter repeatedly framed the narrative as both agricultural history and living community practice — ending by inviting questions and offering to sell books and bean bags after the presentation.

The presenter attributed many specific local names and dates to historical records, postcards and interviews she collected while researching the book; where possible in this report such details are identified as the presenter’s account rather than independently verified archival facts. The program at the farm park remains open for volunteers and visitors (presenter-stated hours: Saturdays and Tuesdays, 9 a.m.–noon).