us history11

Food, Land & People in a Changing America: 

Food, Land & People in a Changing America The story of American Agriculture 1877-Today Debra Spielmaker Utah Agriculture in the Classroom

Geography, the Climate and Land: 

Geography, the Climate and Land Deep well drained topsoil, prime agricultural land. Temperate climate, moderate temperature, and adequate rainfall. What is agriculture?

Hearts and Minds: 

Hearts and Minds There seems to be 3 ways for a nation to acquire wealth: the first is by war...this is robbery: the second by commerce, which is generally cheating: the third by agriculture, the only honest way... Benjamin Franklin

Hearts and Minds: 

Hearts and Minds I know of no pursuit in life in which more real and important services can be rendered to any country than by improving its agriculture, its breed of useful animals, and other branches of a husbandman’s care. George Washington

Hearts and Minds: 

Hearts and Minds Cultivators of the earth are the most valuable citizens. They are the most vigorous, the most independent, the most wedded to its liberty and interests, by the most lasting bonds. Thomas Jefferson

Transformed America, the Food, Land and People: 

1837 - John Deere manufactures steel plow. 1843 - Sir John Laws founded the commercial fertilizer industry by developing a process for making superphosphate. 1850 - Rembert & Prescott developed a mechanical cotton picking machine. Transformed America, the Food, Land and People 1845 – 1855 Great Potato famine in Ireland.

Transformed America, the Food, Land and People: 

1855 - Michigan and Pennsylvania established the first state agricultural colleges. 1858 - Mason jars, used for home canning. 1862 - President Lincoln creates the first Department of Agriculture and the Morrill Land Grant College Act. Homestead Act give 160 acres to settlers who will farm the land for five years. 1867 - Barbed wire invented. Transformed America, the Food, Land and People Utah State University Established 1888

Land Distribution: 

Land Distribution

Transformed America, the Food, Land and People: 

1869 - Transcontinental railroad completed. 1865 - Pasteurization invented. 1870 - Refrigerator railroad car patented. 1875 - Milking machine invented. Transformed America, the Food, Land and People 1860 - Farmers make up 58 % of the population. 1890 - 35-40 labor hours to produce 100 bushels of wheat on 2.5 acres Automatic milker, 2000

Transformed America, the Food, Land and People: 

1881 - Hybridized corn produced. - The hatch Experiment Station Act was passed, providing federal grants to states for agricultural experimentation. 1888 - The first long haul shipment of a refrigerated freight car was made from California to New York. 1892 - The gasoline tractor was built by John Froelich. Transformed America, the Food, Land and People 1870- Farmers make up 53 % of the population.

Transformed America, the Food, Land and People: 

1900 – George Washington Carver, conducts important research on peanuts, sweet potatoes, soybeans, and cotton. 1902 - The Reclamation Act was passed, leading to water projects for irrigation. 1906 - The Pure food and Drug Law was enacted. 1914 - Establishment of the federal-state Extension Service was a major step in direct education for farmers. Transformed America, the Food, Land and People 1890- Farmers make up 43 % of the population.

Transformed America, the Food, Land and People: 

1920 - Agriculture prices collapse. 1932 - Dust Bowl conditions develop. 1933 - The Farm Credit Administration was established, creating specialized credit for agriculture. 1938 - The Agricultural Adjustment Act of 1938 was enacted, authorizing farm price supports and adjustment programs. Transformed America, the Food, Land and People 1921 – 1940 The Great Depression 1930- Farmers make up 21 % of the population.

Transformed America, the Food, Land and People: 

1945 - Frozen foods become popular. 1947 - General Agreement on Tariffs and Trade was negotiated. Federal Insecticide, Fungicide, and Rodenticide Act passed. 1949 - Agricultural Act of 1949 passed, incorporating the principle of flexible price support and giving surplus food to the needy. 1950 – Farm Surpluses - More tractors than work horses on the farm. Transformed America, the Food, Land and People 1940- Farmers make up 18% of the population.

Transformed America, the Food, Land and People: 

1955 - 9 – labor hours to produce 100 bushels of wheat on 4 acres (1830 – 275 labor hours to produce 100 bushels of wheat on 5 acres.). 1955 - Sterile flies used for screwworm control. 1964 - Nation Food Stamp Act passed. Transformed America, the Food, Land and People

Transformed America, the Food, Land and People: 

1965 - 5 – labor hours to produce 100 bushels of wheat on 3.3 acres. Transformed America, the Food, Land and People 1930 - One farmer supplies 10 persons in the U.S. and abroad. 1940 - One farmer supplies 11 persons in the U.S. and abroad. 1950 - One farmer supplies 16 persons in the U.S. and abroad. 1960 - One farmer supplies 26 persons in the U.S. and abroad. 2000

Transformed America, the Food, Land and People: 

1972 - Russian wheat sales bring higher farm prices. 1985 - Passage of 1985 Food Security Act shifts U.S. farm policy toward market orientation. Anti-smoking campaigns cut tobacco production. 1986 - Worst drought ever to hit Midwest farmers. Transformed America, the Food, Land and People 1940- Farmers make up 18% of the population. 1980 - One farmer supplies 76 persons in the U.S. and abroad.

Transformed America, the Food, Land and People: 

1989 - The number of U.S. farm acres retired through the Conservation Reserve Program reaches 30 million. 1992 - The use of conservation tillage methods, which leave crop residues in the field to combat erosion continues to rise. 1993 - Passage of North American Free Trade Agreement (NAFTA). Advances in biotechnology reach the agricultural producer and consumer level. Transformed America, the Food, Land and People 1990- Farmers make up 3% of the population.

Transformed America, the Food, Land and People: 

1995 - Farmers begin using satellite technology to track and plan their farming practices. 1995 - USDA meat inspection modernized for safer food. 1990 – 1999 - Farm Families make up less than 10% of rural population but rural areas experience strong growth. Transformed America, the Food, Land and People 2000- Farmers make up 2% of the population, or 5 million of 275 million. 2000 - One farmer supplies 140 persons in the U.S. and abroad. Concentric ring patterns were due to worn or plugged nozzles. Pie-shaped purple area indicated a pivot stall that caused over-watering. The higher-elevated South half of field shows crop stress due to poorly performing pressure regulators.

Food, Land and People = Agriculture: 

Food, Land and People = Agriculture How do you define agriculture in 2001? What do you think Ben Franklin George Washington, and Thomas Jefferson would say about agriculture today? How did these men shape our American culture and our future? Is agriculture as important today as in 1776? 1877? How has agriculture changed? Have the uses of agricultural goods changed?