[Congressional Record Volume 165, Number 42 (Friday, March 8, 2019)]
[House]
[Pages H2607-H2608]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]




        RECOGNIZING JOE M. STEELE OF THE STEELE CANNING COMPANY

  (Mr. WOMACK asked and was given permission to address the House for 1 
minute.)
  Mr. WOMACK. Mr. Speaker, I rise today to recognize the life and 
legacy of the late Joe Steele, the founder of Steele Canning Company in 
Arkansas.
  Joe grew up in northwest Arkansas and eventually enrolled at the 
University of Arkansas. To cover his tuition, he began canning 
tomatoes. This side job quickly turned into the Steele Canning Company.
  The business continued to grow and relocated to Springdale. There Joe 
made history by shipping the first trainload of canned food in the 
United States and introducing Popeye brand spinach. During World War 
II, 70 percent of Steele's products were sent to our brave troops. One 
soldier even commented on the beans, saying that the

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reason they are so good is because they were canned in Arkansas.
  His legacy also includes the creation of the Beaver Water District, 
which is the primary source of water for northwest Arkansas.
  For these contributions, he was posthumously inducted into the 
Arkansas Business Hall of Fame. I congratulate his family on this great 
honor.

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