American Agriculture History Minute: Deere and Mansour’s Breakthrough in the 1800s In the mid-1800s, the American agricultural industry faced a critical need: a more accurate corn planting solution. Rising to meet this challenge, Charles Deere—son of the legendary John Deere—and Alva Mansour, a family business partner, joined forces to form the Deere and Mansour Company. Operating out of a modest …
American Agriculture History Minute: Switching to Electric Power from Kerosene
I’m Mark Oppold with an American Agriculture History Minute reports that by the 1930, more than 90% of rural homes still used kerosene lamps for lighting. Running water and indoor bathrooms were still impossible without power. That would all change in the early 1930s. In fact, for many rural Americans in the 1930s, one of the most memorable experiences of a …
American Agriculture History Minute: One-Room Schoolhouses-an Important Part of American Agriculture History
Mark Oppold with an American Agriculture History Minute says One-room schoolhouses are an important part of American agriculture history. Early settlers knew the importance of education since a large portion of the population lived in small rural communities or isolated rural areas. The local one-room school was the answer, often built by nearby farmers. In fact, most of the teachers …
American Agriculture History Minute: Why a Farmland Auction Draws a Crowd
Mark Oppold with an American Agriculture History Minute looks into why a farmland auction usually draws a good-sized crowd. But, on a bitter, cold February morning in 2025, temperatures outside in central Iowa nearly zero, a group so large it was standing room only. Why? They were watching an Iowa farm change hands for the first time since 1882. 636 acres …
American Agriculture History Minute: One-Room Schoolhouses Move West with Agriculture
I’m Mark Oppold with an American agriculture history minute tells us today about how One-room schoolhouses are part of American agriculture history. The Eureka Schoolhouse in Springfield, Vermont, was one of the earliest recorded one-room schools built in 1785. As settlers moved west, the one-room schoolhouse model moved with them. Abraham Lincoln attended a one-room school in 1822 in rural …
American Agriculture History Minute: Farmland Values and Location
I’m Mark Oppold with an American Agriculture History Minute discusses farmland values having always been part of American agriculture history. Recent stories indicate that farmland values in some areas of the country are leveling off or even declining. But, in real estate, it’s all about location, location, location. Such was the case for this farm in October 2024. 90 acres, 20 …
American Agriculture History Minute: One-Room Schoolhouses Move West
Mark Oppold with an American Agriculture History Minute relates that one-room schoolhouses are a part of American agriculture history. Early settlers knew the importance of education, and since a large portion of the population lived in small rural communities or isolated rural areas, local one-room schools were the answer, often built by nearby farmers. In fact, most of the teachers …
American Agriculture History Minute: Believing in the Future of Agriculture
Mark Oppold with an American Agriculture History Minute explains how President Thomas Jefferson believed in the future of agriculture. In fact, he believed it to be the cornerstone to the success of the country’s new independence. It has been said Jefferson gave Meriwether Lewis specific instructions in the summer of 1803 before he and William Clark set out on their 1804 …
American Agriculture History Minute-Agriculture Production Potential West of the Mississippi
Mark Oppold with an American agriculture history minute tells us how any modern traveler now retracing the steps of Meriwether Lewis and William Clark after they left the Missouri River and proceeded west would likely wonder how areas of the Dakotas, Montana, and Idaho could ever be agriculturally productive. After all, President Thomas Jefferson gave specific instructions to the two that …
American Agriculture History Minute: Chemical Manufacturing Company Opens Doors
Mark Oppold with an American agriculture history minute explains how a small chemical manufacturing company opened its doors in 1957 in West Helena, Arkansas, near the Mississippi River south of Memphis. Today, the company is headquartered just outside Memphis and known as Helena Agri-Enterprises and is one of the largest contract chemical manufacturers in the country, providing formulations and packaging …