n the early 1700's, when Benjamin Twiggs was just a wee little boy in Kent, England, his father used to tell him stories about cherry trees. As Master Twiggs drew 
upon his cherrywood pipe, he would weave wonderful tales about "the time before time began" when ancient men lived in caves and, in part, survived upon the fruit of wild cherries.
Benjamin's father could trace the history of cherries from China to Rome to their prominence in England during the reign of King Henry the Eighth.
When the Twiggs family decided to leave England for the colonies, they brought large crates of cherry pits with them in plans to begin a cherry orchard in the New World. Disaster struck en route, however. A fierce ocean storm washed Benjamin's mother and father overboard and sixteen year old Benjamin was left orphaned, with five crates of cherry pits on the shores of a new land.
With no money to his name, Benjamin began traveling the countryside, pulling his crates of cherry pits behind him in a small wooden wagon.
In his travels, Benjamin followed the path of the St. Lawrence River which eventually led him to the Great Lakes or "those marvelous inland seas" as he called them. Over the years, he worked his way north to the place that is now called Grand Traverse Bay, in the northwestern corner of Michigan's Lower Peninsula. Here, he planted his cherry pits on the hillsides banking the shoreline.
Benjamin knew that he had found the very best spot in the world for growing cherry trees, where the weather was cool during the growing season but
temperate by the bay to protect the young cherries from the killing frost.
It gave him great pleasure in his old age to watch the cherry trees mature and turn into a sea of white blossoms in the spring, their fruit hanging a brilliant red from the branches before harvest. Yes, Benjamin Twiggs finally had found "home".
Today, the legend of Benjamin Twiggs lives on through the gourmet cherry products that carry his name. In fact, the Benjamin Twiggs Company is located in the center of this marvelous country -- Traverse City, Michigan -- now known nationally as the "Cherry Capital of the World".
Offering the largest selection of cherry food product in Michigan and, most likely, the country, Benjamin Twiggs is dedicated to bringing you the very best that the nation's Cherry Capital has to offer.
Rich in tradition, beauty, flavor and nutrition, cherries provide a brilliant addition to any meal...and the perfect gift for any occasion.
