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Did the founding fathers get high on weed? Or did they actually use it as rope? Abe lincoln talks about smoking sweet hemp, and Jefferson kept journals on growing them? (lemmy.world)

submitted 3 days ago by Patnou@lemmy.world to c/askhistorians@lemmy.world

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[–] PugJesus@piefed.social 3 points 3 days ago

Rope and cloth were common uses of hemp. Most strains of hemp simply don't contain enough of the active chemical in smoked marijuana to be useful. You'd have to inhale a LOT for even a little buzz, assuming all the other waste product from the burning doesn't knock you out cold or kill you. It was a legitimately valuable cash crop for industrial purposes.

I don't remember Lincoln ever being a smoker, though I think that was around the time when non-industrial hemp (ie smokable weed) started to make (medical) inroads in the USA.