90 Forces Driving More
in his last annual message to Congress, wanted help for farmers in
the “spirit of discovery and improvement.” Yet beyond instructing
the Army Signal Service to provide farmers with weather reports,
Congress did little.
Not until 1 2 was a congressional committee on agriculture and
forestry even created. Fourteen years passed before one thousand dol-
lars was appropriated to collect statistics, distribute seeds, and conduct
investigations. Two years afterward, the first crop reports were issued,
only to be discontinued less than a decade later. Going into the 1 0 s,
the nation’s platform for agriculture centered on overseas consuls
collecting and sending seeds to be distributed, taxing select agricultural
imports, and adding cursory farming statistics to the Patent Office’s
annual summary.
Notwithstanding the absence of federal intervention, new breeds
of animals and crops like rice, sugarcane, corn, cotton, and tobacco
were established. A few states opened schools of agriculture. Labor-
saving machinery like the flour mill, cotton gin, steel plow, reaper,
threshing machine, and corn planter were introduced. Seeds touted to
be resistant to insects were rolled out. Canning and refrigeration were
established.
Eighteen sixty-two is when the tide changed. The government
was giving away land. The United States Department of Agriculture
(USDA) was established. All states were granted land to build col-
leges of agriculture. In the decades that followed, federal and state gov-
ernments began funding research and widely disseminating the results
to farmers and rural communities. A federal financial system for agri-
culture was established, enabling farmers to take out operating loans,
buy new equipment, and purchase additional land.
In the 19 0 s, when the economy faltered and farm income plum-
meted, Congress arranged direct financial aid. The first section of the
19 Agricultural Adjustment Act (the inaugural Farm Bill) was titled
“Declaration of Emergency.” It was an acknowledgment that many
farmers were heavily in debt and needed to be bailed out by the federal
government.
Five years later, the 19 Farm Bill was designated as permanent law,
setting the mold for ongoing subsidies and protections. Thereafter,
crafting a new farm bill was automatically part of the congressional