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The Great Plains
The Great Plains, which extends across central North America, includes some of the best farmland in our nation, with rich, productive soil and a favorable climate. After the adoption of the Homestead Act, settlers began moving into this area, and by the late 1800s the average size farm in this region was nearly 150 acres. -
Louisiana purchase
President Thomas Jefferson acquired the Louisiana Territory by purchasing it from France in 1803. With this purchase, the geographical size of the United States doubled. -
Agriculture advancements
Cyrus McCormick, sometimes referred to as the Father of Modern Agriculture, made one of the most significant contributions to the success of U.S. agriculture by inventing the horse-drawn reaper in 1831. -
Economies Of The North and South
This map of the United States, published about 1850, outlines all the major canals, railroads, and principal stage routes in the country. Although the South experienced prosperity for many years because of its cotton and tobacco plantations, it depended on the northern states for many of life's necessities. -
Homestead Act
Farmer homesteaders in the Great Plains were sometimes called sodbusters. These hardy pioneers, often new immigrants, dealt with inadequate housing, water, and fuel as well as extreme environmental conditions. Soil is the medium for growing America’s plants. Many regions of the country have land with good soil for growing healthy crops, while other areas have less productive soil. -
Morrill-Land Grant Colleges
The three cornerstones of the land-grant approach--teaching, research, and extension--have improved the economic well-being and quality of life of all Americans. The first Morrill Act, passed in 1862, established land-grant institutions so that the average citizen could obtain an education. -
USDA- Abraham Lincoln And Agriculture
On May 15, 1862, President Abraham Lincoln signed an act of Congress into law establishing at the seat of Government of the United States a Department of Agriculture. -
Post War Agriculture
The southern states were devastated by the Civil War. Georgia, for example, lost sixty-six percent of its developed resources during the war. Post-war farming practices in the south were in the midst of monumental changes as former slaves were emancipated. -
Advocacy For Farmers
Since the 1700s, American farmers have formed organizations to promote and support agricultural and farmer interests. -
Science, Technology, And Education
From 1873 to 1877, grasshoppers from the Northwest invaded many Western States and territories' some states the destruction of crops was so serious that it caused starvation among pioneer families. USDA entomologist, Charles Valentine Riley, studied the plague and worked to bring it to the attention of Congress. -
Agriculture Science
One of the first entomologists (insect scientists) employed by the USDA was Townsend Glover. USDA Commissioner Newton encouraged Glover to start a museum containing Glover’s extensive collection of insects, as well as models of fruits. Commissioner Newton established an agricultural museum on August 1, 1864, with Glover as curator. -
Early Agriculture Science Research
Throughout its history, one of the tasks of the Department of Agriculture has been to search the world for new plant and animal types in order to increase the variety of our nations food supply and to ensure the productivity of American agriculture. The following account is a description of how one American scientist vastly improved our country's wheat, and possibly saved the nation from famine.
