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Wilson tobacco market opens 

Wilson opened its 119th tobacco market season Monday. The traditional leaf auctions are long gone, and farmers now sell directly to tobacco companies.

"It was very exciting. Everyone (was) excited," Rick Smith, with Independent Leaf Tobacco, said of the tobacco auction days.

Back then, Wilson got a lot of attention. . . .

When the federal quota system ended in 2004, so did the auctions. Most tobacco warehouses in Wilson closed.

"It's really a piece of Americana that we've lost, and I really regretted to see go," Smith said.

These days, tobacco farmers contract directly with manufacturers in advance. Farmers still bring in their crops for pricing, but the fanfare is gone.

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