Picking the Past: Edwin Temple Remembers Amite’s Strawberry Fields

Six Pints Strawberry Carrier
Photo Credit: Antoinette Harrell

Edwin Temple vividly recalls the days of planting and picking strawberries during his youth in Amite, Louisiana. Long before he climbed aboard the yellow school bus that traveled the route along Bennett Road, Edwin had already begun his day in the strawberry fields.

In the early morning hours, the fields were covered with a blanket of cool morning dew, glistening across the rows of strawberry plants. All around him were the sweet, ripe fruits waiting to be carefully picked. For a young boy, the work was part of everyday life—a childhood shaped by hard work, family, and the land.

Between February and March, Edwin would make his way into the strawberry fields carrying a wooden  handmade carrier fitted with small green nine pints. He carefully picked the bright red strawberries, one by one, placing them into the containers. The work required patience and determination, but it was also a part of a way of life that connected him to the land that he still calls home. 

Some of the strawberries Edwin picked did not simply disappear at the family table. His grandmother, Aline Vining Temple, preserved them, turning the harvest into something that could be enjoyed long after the strawberry season had ended. Through her hands, the fruits of Edwin's labor became part of the family's food traditions and memories.

Edwin's recollections offer more than a glimpse into strawberry farming—they take us back to a time when children learned the value of hard work at an early age, when family members worked together, and when the changing seasons shaped the rhythm of everyday life. His memories of those dew-covered fields, the red strawberries, the wooden berry carrier, and his grandmother's preserving hands remain a living connection to Amite's agricultural past and to a childhood that should never be forgotten. 

Edwin Temple is reminded of the old days, when life seemed much simpler and hard work could put a little money in your pocket. As a young boy, after getting out of school, Edwin would often head to the strawberry fields to work. Before boarding the yellow school bus that traveled the Bennett Road route in Amite, Louisiana, he had already spent part of his day working in the fields. After school, he would return to picking strawberries, earning money for his labor.

One of the farmers Edwin remembers working for was Paul Jake Cozzo. Edwin recalls that Paul had four
strawberry fields. One of those fields was located near the home of Peter Richardson. Behind Paul Cozzo’s old wooden white house was a strawberry field that stretched all the way toward what is now Interstate 55.

Edwin remembers that the Cozzo family had Italian ancestry and was among the many Italian families in the area who planted strawberries. Strawberry farming provided employment for many Black families in the surrounding community, and Edwin remembers seeing numerous Black workers in the fields, including members of families who lived near the Cozzo farm.

Among the families living near the farm were  the Jackson, Morris, Zanders, McCoy, Magee, and Curry families. Edwin specifically recalls members of the Zanders family picking strawberries on Paul Cozzo’s farm.  For many families, strawberry picking was more than just seasonal work—it was a way to earn money and help provide for their households. Edwin’s memories offer a glimpse into a time when strawberry farming was an important part of the local economy and community life. The fields were places where generations of families worked side by side, and where children like Edwin learned the value of hard work at an early age.

The Cozzo family’s connection to farming reaches back another generation. According to the 1930 United States Federal Census, Paul’s father, Cipriano Cozzo, was listed as a truck farmer. His occupation reflects the agricultural roots of a family whose livelihood became intertwined with the strawberry-growing community of Tangipahoa Parish.

Through Edwin’s memories, the strawberry fields are more than just farmland. They represent a chapter of local history—a time when the fields were filled with workers, families depended on seasonal harvests, and a young boy could finish a day of school, pick strawberries in the afternoon, and earn a little money from the work of his own hands.