Below you'll find a list of all posts that have been categorized as “This Land of Ours”
Expanding West After the Louisiana Purchase In the early 1820s, following the landmark Louisiana Purchase of 1803, the United States government began turning its attention toward agricultural development in the vast western territories. Among these areas was what is now the state of Kansas—a region seen as rich with potential for farming and trade. At the time, the federal government …
The Birth of Agriculture in Greeley Greeley became Colorado’s first major agricultural settlement, marking a turning point in the development of farming across the state. Early settlers arrived with optimism but quickly encountered a harsh and unforgiving environment. At the time, much of the region was labeled the “Great American Desert,” a term used to describe the dry, unpredictable conditions …
At the close of the Civil War, a new chapter in American agriculture began across the Kansas prairie. Through government homestead programs, Union Army veterans were offered land as an opportunity to rebuild their lives. More than 100,000 veterans answered the call, setting out to transform open prairie into productive farmland. A New Opportunity After War These men were more …
A Humble Beginning in 1938 American agriculture has always depended on innovation—not just in the field, but in how farmers access the tools they need. In 1938, Charles E. Schmidt recognized a major gap and launched a mail-order tractor parts business in Minot, North Dakota. At the time, many farmers faced long travel distances to find replacement parts. Schmidt’s mail-order …
Settlement and the Promise of Kansas Farmland Early agriculture in the state of Kansas was not always successful. When Kansas was opened to settlement in 1854, waves of settlers began moving into the region, drawn by the promise of fertile land on the vast prairie. Farmers arriving in the territory often brought seeds with them from the eastern United States …
Early Agriculture in Kansas Was Far from Easy Agriculture in what is now the state of Kansas began under extremely difficult conditions. The wide open plains that would later become some of the most productive farmland in America initially posed major challenges for early settlers trying to build farms and communities. The unfamiliar landscape, harsh climate, and isolation of frontier …
Reviving a Bankrupt Manufacturing Company American agriculture has long been tied to machinery innovation, and one small but important story in that history begins in Milwaukee, Wisconsin, in the mid-19th century. In 1860, entrepreneur Edward P. Ellis purchased a bankrupt manufacturing firm known as Reliance Works at a sheriff’s auction. Though the company had failed financially, Ellis recognized the opportunity …
International trade played a powerful role in shaping agriculture in early America. Long before the United States became a global agricultural powerhouse, colonial farmers and traders were already responding to international markets. In the early 1700s, demand from Europe for both natural resources and food helped drive economic growth across several regions of the American colonies. From the booming fur …
American agriculture has always been shaped by the land—and by how farmers chose to use it. In today’s American Agriculture History Minute, agricultural broadcaster Mark Oppold highlights the work of historian Louis Hacker, who documented how early American settlers managed the land as they pushed westward across the expanding United States. The Pioneer Expansion Era According to Hacker’s historical research, …
Early Settlers vs. Harsh Realities The promise of the Great Plains as fertile, open land for farming drew many settlers westward in the 19th century. However, as Mark Oppold highlights in an American Agriculture History Minute, “Early settlers discovered that the Great Plains were not all that great.” The region’s climate posed formidable challenges that often proved disastrous for new …
