Coffee Nation

           Brian and Chiara’s presentation went into the importance of coffee agriculture in Costa Rica.  They pointed out some similarities to the United States in that a lot of wealth was generated from these coffee plantations, and this allowed for some independence to be gained.  In the United States, plantations growing cotton and other crops allowed the country to gain wealth and was instrumental in winning independence from Britain. 

            The main bean grown in Costa Rica at this time was the Arabica bean.  Within the first ten years of coffee being grown in the country, its production surpassed that of all the other cash crops that had been important prior to its introduction.  However, there were many environmental impacts from this expansion, including erosion and clear cutting of the forests.  The coffee created a village economy, meaning the villages were the ones producing the crops and generating the money.  However, there was “puppetry” occurring because San Jose was the one directing the farmers in the villages on when to plant and harvest and were the ones who actually received the money from the crops.  Only a small percentage of people were truly benefiting from the wealth coming from the coffee.

            William Walker was an important figure during this time.  He was from the United States and wanted to find colonies for the country by enslaving Central American countries.  He first conquered Nicaragua and used this as a source of fighting forces and a base for his attack on Costa Rica.  CR was able to pull together a rag tag army, and after a bloody war, defeated William Walker and drove him out of the country.

            During our discussion, some were confused about how William Walker related to the coffee trade and how he was instrumental in creating the nation of Costa Rica.  We discussed how Walker’s defeat was an event that brought the country together against him and created a strong sense of national pride.  The country was also able to continue to accumulate wealth that they could put towards creating a stronger nation.