It's not true that there were few tomatoes in North America! Although north Americans were late to grow and eat tomatoes it was a staple of Mexico and Europe. They mainly grew the vining indeterminate tomatoes. So Livingston may have developed the first bush tomato but I'm sure immjigrants to America must have brought seeds with them.

Thomas Jefferson grew and developed new varieties of tomatoes and other vegetables. He was an avid gardener and did a lot of hybridizing of not just tomatoes but other vegetables too. In 1809 he fed his guests a dish made with tomatoes much to his guests surprise and maybe a little fear. Because the tomato is related to deadly nightshade people feared eating it's fruit

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