American Agriculture History Minute

American Agriculture History Minute: Best Remembered for Producing Louisiana’s First Granular Sugar

Dan American Agriculture History Minute, Specialty Crops, Sugar, This Land of Ours

I’m Mark Oppold with an American Agriculture History Minute. Etienne DeBorre is a little-known figure in American agriculture. Born in 1741 in a small village along the Mississippi River in Illinois. Etienne spent most of his life in Louisiana, and it was there that he’s best remembered for producing Louisiana’s first granulated sugar. His innovation encouraged producers there to plant …

American Agriculture

American Agriculture History Minute: The Beginning of Husker Harvest Days and Grand Island

Dan American Agriculture History Minute, This Land of Ours

I’m Mark Oppold with an American Agriculture History Minute. Husker harvest days are held every September in Grand Island, Nebraska. Grand Island is located along the Platte River and figures into American agriculture history. It’s estimated a quarter of a million settlers followed the Platte River between 1840 and 1870, making their way west. French traders named a large island …

American Agriculture History Minute

American Agriculture History Minute: Advancing American Agriculture from the Classroom

Dan American Agriculture History Minute, Education, This Land of Ours

I’m Mark Oppold with an American Agriculture History Minute. E.T. York is an example of a person helping American agriculture advance without actually farming or experimenting in a lab. York was born in 1922 in Alabama. He was a university administrator, later an Ag Extension Administrator, a U.S. Presidential Advisor on Agriculture, and authored over 100 papers and articles.  He …

American Agriculture

American Agriculture History Minute: Farmers Move Across America

Dan American Agriculture History Minute, This Land of Ours

I’m Mark Oppold with today’s American Agriculture History Minute  After the Louisiana Purchase in 1803 and the American victory in the War of 1812, plus the building of canals and the introduction of steamboats, new opportunities opened up in agriculture. And in times of rapid economic growth, a farmer could still improve the land he was on for far more …

Agriculture

American Agriculture History Minute: When USDA Extension Service Began

Dan American Agriculture History Minute, This Land of Ours

I’m Mark Oppold with today’s American Agriculture History Minute Even though the Department of Agriculture was established in 1862, it wasn’t until passage of the Smith-Lever Act in 1914 that the USDA Extension Service began. USDA partnered with land-grant universities to provide hands-on education and research to farm families. In 1914, more than 50% of the population lived in rural …