The definition of “stogie” is rooted deeply in the history of cigars in the
United States. It’s derived from Conestoga,
Pennsylvania, where the Amish have been growing tobacco the same way for over 300 years in Lancaster County, and – of equal significance – where the first Conestoga wagons were manufactured. The word “stogie” enjoyed multiple meanings during America’s frontier days. The wagon drivers were called “stogies,” as were the durable shoes they wore.
Eventually, the term was applied to the long, thin, and rugged cigars many wagon drivers smoked. The strong and distinctive cigars were mostly rolled from Pennsylvania tobaccos. Though far fewer tobacco crops are grown in Pennsylvania today than centuries ago, Pennsylvania Broadleaf tobacco is still harvested there, and cigar-makers continue to blend with this unique tobacco. Although the expansion of the railroad rendered Conestoga wagons obsolete in much of the country by the late 1800s, we still call cigars “stogies.”
Modern Use of the Term
Because the cigars the pioneers smoked on their Conestoga wagons were of a fairly rough and rudimentary nature, “stogie” has commonly been used as a reference for cheroots, or cheap cigars that are opened on both ends, like those made by
Henry Clay, De Nobili Toscani, and Backwoods. Today, however, cigar lovers apply the term broadly to all cigars, including premium handmade brands you know and love, as well as good cheap cigars.
