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2.1 Overview: Articulate important historical and current events impacting the agricultural industry and agricultural youth development. Include landmark laws, theories, and practices such as, but not limited to, the Morrill Act, the Smith-Lever Act, the Smith-Hughes Act, and influential figures such as John Deere, Henry Groseclose, Booker T. Washington, and important government agencies in the promotion of knowledge and technology of agricultural science, biotechnology, and key technological developments.

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Agriculture is all around us, everything we use, eat, the houses we live in are all products of some kind of Agriculture. Even though it is such a big part of our life, we rarely hear the history behind the agriculture industry. Follow through this to learn more.

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The Future Farmers of America Association was started in 1928 and continues to be a program for young people today. FFA has a rich history, watch this video to learn more.

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4-H started in the early 1900s to teach kids hands-on skills in farming, home economics, and leadership. It began with agricultural clubs that helped young people learn better farming methods. Over time, it expanded beyond farming to include science, technology, and community service. Today, 4-H helps youth develop life skills through fun and educational activities.

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4-H provides kids with community, mentors, and learning opportunities to develop the skills they need to create positive change in their lives and communities.

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The Smith-Lever Act of 1914 created the Cooperative Extension System to help spread useful agricultural and home economics knowledge to rural communities. It partnered universities with local extension offices to provide research-based education. This helped farmers improve their methods and encouraged youth programs like 4-H. The act played a big role in modernizing American agriculture.

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The Smith-Lever Act of 1914 is a United States federal law that established a system of cooperative extension services, connected to the land-grant universities, in order to inform people about current developments in agriculture, home economics, public policy/government, leadership, 4-H, economic development, coastal issues ( National Sea Grant College Program), and many other related subjects. It helped farmers learn new agricultural techniques by the introduction of home instruction.

The appropriation for cooperative extension is shared between the states based on the following formula. Once the historic amount that has been allocated for "special needs" programs is set aside and an additional 4% is reserved for USDA administrative costs, the remaining funds are allocated:

20% shared by all States in equal proportions;

40% shared in the proportion that the rural population of each bears to the total rural population of the several States as determined by the census;

40% shared in the proportion that the farm population of each bears to the total farm population of the several States as determined by the census.

Except for the "1994 Land-grant colleges" for Native Americans, each state must match its Federal cooperative extension funds.

In addition, an amount no less than 6% of the total Smith-Lever Act appropriation is appropriated for the extension programs of the "1890 Land-grant colleges" (historically black colleges). These funds are also shared between the 1890 colleges by the 20/40/40% formula, with Alabama A&M and Tuskegee University treated as though they were in different states.

In 1964, a US stamp was issued honoring homemakers for the 50th anniversary of the Smith-Lever Act.

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The Smith-Lever Act of 1914 is a United States federal law that established a system of cooperative extension services, connected to the land-grant universities, in order to inform people about current developments in agriculture, home economics, public policy/government, leadership, 4-H, economic development, coastal issues ( National Sea Grant College Program), and many other related subjects.

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Watch this to discover the history of John Deere, the man who mechanicalized agriculture, and changed farming as we know it.

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Who Was John Deere? The Founder's Story | John Deere Kids

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The Smith-Hughes Act of 1917 provided funding for vocational education in schools, focusing on agriculture, trades, and home economics. It helped students gain hands-on skills for jobs instead of just academic learning. This law supported training for teachers and led to more career-focused education programs. It played a key role in shaping vocational education in the U.S.

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Overview The Smith-Hughes Act of 1917 promoted a new kind of education for many high school of the country. Federal funds, on a matching basis, were to be made available to those high schools that would organize and conduct classes in agriculture over a 12-month period; and, hire a qualified teacher to conduct these classes on a “learn-by-doing” basis. By 1920, one hundred high schools were organized under the provisions of the Smith-Hughes Act and the directives of the Illinois State Board of Vocational Education. As is true of many new educational ventures, numerous individuals questioned their purposes and merits. In the case of vocational agriculture education, much of this reaction was due to a lack of understanding of the new program’s objectives and how the program would meet the educational needs of rural high school youth. In the early 1920’s, Mr. Carl Colvin, then State Supervisor of Vocational Agriculture, and several vocational agriculture teachers studied these public reactions and misunderstandings. Mr. Colvin appointed a committee, with A.T. Anderson as chair, to explore what could be done to improve the situation and lead to a fuller acceptance of this program. It was the conclusion that a publication was needed to serve the interests of the association and the teachers. As a result, “The Fan Mill” was started. The first issue was dated, October, 1922. C.S. Anderson of Rockford was the first editor. It was suggested that “The Fan Mill” should be published on an irregular basis whenever suitable materials became available. Unfortunately the records of the early discussions and actions leading to the formation of the association were lost. However, the minutes from 1923 on are a matter of record. During the 1922 June Conference, A.T. Anderson was elected the first president of the Association and W.P. Miller, secretary-treasurer. An executive committee was formed, consisting of the officers of the Association and, in addition, three directories, one from each of the three divisions of the state - north, central, and southern. The state was also divided into ten sections with a temporary chairmen appointed for each, Thereafter, the teachers in each section were to elect their own chairman. In the 1923 June Conference, A.T. Anderson was again elected president. W.A. Newlin of Casey, vice president and F.R. Wakeland of Minonk, secretary-treasurer. Additional officers were also elected to serve in an advisory capacity. Northern Illinois, C.S. Anderson of Rockford, Central Illinois, W.L. Gard of Tallula, Southern Illinois, E.P. Henderson of Bridgeport. Since 1923, the developing program and activities of the Association are set forth in an excellent publication entitled, “A History of the Illinois Association Vocational Agriculture Teachers, 1922-1970.” Some of the important reasons for having a state association, as envisioned in the discussions leading up to its formation, were as follows: To establish good relations with high school administrators.
To divide the state into logical sections in order to more effectively conduct various types of judging contests.
To demonstrate to the Office of the State Superintendent of Public Instruction and the Board of Vocational Education, that a vocational agriculture teachers association could make a real contribution in the promotion of vocational education in the state.
To establish and maintain working relationships with the farm advisers and the College of Agriculture.
To offset a somewhat prevalent idea that the use of Federal and State Funds in local high school programs would seriously diminish decision-making at the local level.
A.T. Anderson IAVAT President 1922-1924

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Henry Groseclose was an American agricultural educator who played a key role in founding the Future Farmers of America (FFA) in 1928. He helped develop the organization's structure and rituals, drawing inspiration from the traditions of agricultural fraternities. His contributions greatly influenced agricultural education and youth leadership in the United States.

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After I wrote the Friday Footnote a month or so ago about the passing of Mrs. Henry C. Groseclose I realized that the profession now probably knew more about Marie Groseclose than they did about Henry Groseclose, the Father of the FFA. Basically, we teach our students that Henry Groseclose was the Father of the FFA and he was on the faculty at Virginia Tech. But, other than that, Henry Groseclose is just a name to be memorized. Our students memorize the name but they know nothing more about the person. This Friday Footnote will attempt to introduce us to Henry C. Groseclose, the man.

Henry Caspar Groseclose II

Henry Caspar Groseclose II was born in the village of Ceres in Bland County, Virginia on May 17, 1892. Henry's father was a dry goods merchant but was also a farmer. Bland County is in a mountainous region of Virginia located on the West Virginia border. It is one of the least populated counties in Virginia and is one of only a few counties in the United States that contains no incorporated municipalities. The Jefferson National Forest covers much of Bland County and the Appalachian Trail traverses its ridges and valleys. General livestock farming with small fields of grain crops are the agricultural mainstays.

A farm in Bland County, Virginia

To say that Henry Groseclose came from a rural background would be an understatement. It is fitting that Henry came from the village of Ceres - which was named after the Roman Goddess of Agriculture and Grain. Henry received his basic education in the public schools of Bland County. Then he enrolled at Washington and Lee University in Lexington, Virginia where he attended from 1909 to 1912. Mueller (1955, p. 6) wrote:

When Henry Groseclose enrolled as a freshman at Washington and Lee University to prepare for a career in vocational agriculture, he was a bashful, self-conscious boy from a mountain farm. He had kept growing since choosing his high school graduation suit, and his ill-fitting clothes, provincial way of speaking, and homemade haircut were the object of ridicule on the part of some of his city classmates.

Three years later Henry, who had learned to select clothes and wear them well, stood in line to register for the fall semester. He looked at the long line of freshman boys on the other side of the hall and thought how easy it was to single out the farm boys with their ruddy faces, work-hardened hands, and skimpy or odd-colored suits. Groseclose, remembering his own painful experiences as a freshman, wished there was something he could do to help farm boys overcome the feeling of inferiority and shyness they feel in the company of their city classmates. He dreamed of starting an organization in which farm boys could have some social experiences comparable with those of city boys, a club where they would develop self-confidence and pride in their rural heritage.

It would be several years before Henry realized his dream.

Henry started his career as an agriculture teacher at Buckingham High School in central Virginia. His monthly report for May 22, 1919 indicated "Organized agriculture club in school - 20 members" (Bryant, 2001, p. 41). So it should be no surprise later, when the subject of a club for agricultural students surfaced, that he was favorable to the idea. Henry completing both a bachelors degree in agricultural education (1923) and a master's degree in agricultural education in 1927 at Virginia Tech. (Kinnear, 1952).

While teaching high school Groseclose had his Buckingham students make a survey of agricultural practices on 100 farms in 1919 (Stimson & Lathrop, 1942). This formed the basis for the curriculum he taught. He also served as a principal at a school in Painter, Virginia (Hillison, 1992) at some point in time before joining the Virginia Tech faculty in 1924.

In 1917 (September 8) Henry married Dorothy Saxton. She was from Ohio. I don't know where or how they met. The wedding was in Ohio. Dorothy and Henry had two children - Henry Groseclose III and Tom Saxton Groseclose.

In 1924 Henry moved to Virginia Tech to help with training agriculture teachers (Kinnear, 1952). A year later his responsibilities changed to that of an Itinerant Teacher Trainer. As an itinerant teacher trainer, Henry was responsible for traveling across the state working with new agriculture teachers - basically, he was teaching agriculture teachers how to teach while on the job.

At a meeting at Virginia Tech in September of 1925 the decision was made to create a state-wide organization of boys enrolled in vocational agriculture (Noblin, 1942). Walter Newman, the new state supervisor for agricultural education, suggested the such an organization was needed. E. C. Magill, Head of the Department and Harry Sanders, an agricultural education faculty member were in the meeting along with Henry Groseclose. At this meeting Henry was assigned the responsibility for developing the plan for the proposed organization.

However, fate intervened. Two months after the September meeting Henry was admitted to Johns Hopkins Hospital in Baltimore Maryland where he was confined for about six months (Admitted on November 10, 1925 - Returned to Virginia Tech on May 23, 1926). While convalescing he developed a tentative constitution and a set of by-laws for the youth organization (Magill, 1931). Upon his return to Virginia Tech a copy of the proposed plans for the Future Farmers of Virginia was mailed to all the agriculture instructors in the state on June 14, 1926. At the summer agriculture teachers conference Henry made a presentation about "A State Organization of Students Enrolled in Agriculture". Shortly thereafter, the Future Farmers of Virginia came into being.

The Future Farmers of Virginia became the model for other states and led the way to a national organization. In the summer of 1928, the federal agricultural education officials called Groseclose and Newman to Washington to consult on the development of the national organization. Noblin (1942, p. 9) summarizes the efforts of Henry Groseclose in establishing the FFA:

Groseclose originated the name; produced the constitution and bylaws which, with some minor revisions, was accepted by both the state and national organizations; he gave the idea of progressive membership based on achievement and the names for the degrees; developed the emblem, the key, and the seal which was almost identical with that of today with the exception of the cross-section of an ear of corn; he perfected the induction ceremony for the Greenhand; wrote the first handbook and arranged for financing it with the Farm Journal Company; secured the plow emblems from John Deere Company; and played an important part in securing incorporation for the national organization. He was the first executive secretary, and for more than twelve years served as national treasurer. In recognition of his services he was the first to receive the ... Honorary American Farmer.

Supposedly the idea of naming the organization the Future Farmers of Virginia (FFV) came to Groseclose one night while taking a hot bath. There was a prestigious group in Virginia known as the First Families of Virginia (FFV) and included the likes of George Washington and Thomas Jefferson. It would be an honor for the agricultural students to share the same initials.

After the national FFA was established Henry continued in his teacher education position at Virginia Tech (except for a one-year assignment as State Supervisor of Secondary Education for Virginia in 1929). He served as the National FFA executive secretary from 1928 until 1930 and then was National FFA treasurer from 1928 to 1941 until he resigned because of ill-health.

The home of Henry Groseclose in Ceres, Virginia

On July 1, 1945 Henry retired from Virginia Tech on the advice of the university physician (Groseclose, 1945). He moved back to his home county (Bland) and became Superintendent of Schools. Henry died on June 4, 1950 at the age of 58. He was preceded in death by his first wife Dorothy Saxton who died on January 3, 1947. He was survived by his 2nd wife Marie Carr (whom he married on November 7, 1947). Marie passed away on May 5, 2019. All three are buried in the Sharon Lutheran Church Cemetery in Ceres, Virginia. Dorothy's grave is beside Henry's grave, while Marie's grave is immediately below Henry's grave.

Henry's Grave in the Sharon Lutheran Church Cemetary, Ceres, Virginia

In 1947 Henry was recognized by Progressive Farmer as their man of the year. A highway marker sign was erected in honor of Henry on June 15, 2003 in Ceres. A Henry Groseclose/FFA Museum has been created in the old agriculture building in Ceres, Virginia. In the next Friday Footnote, we will explore that museum.

Groseclose marker in Ceres, Virginia. Henry's house is about 100 yards away.
Concluding Remarks
Henry Groseclose, like many agricultural educators, came from humble beginnings but he didn't let his background stop him. In Henry's situation, going to college helped him advance in life. Today, we have the FFA and further educational opportunities to help our students advance in life. We need to encourage our students to take advantage of these opportunities.

Even when life handed Henry a lemon, being hospitalized for six months, he used this time to full advantage. So when we face obstacles in our lives, we need to figure out a way to overcome them. I am reminded of a noteworthy quote from Booker T. Washington:

I have learned that success is to be measured not so much by the position that one has reached in life as by the obstacles which he has had to overcome while trying to succeed.

When you teach about Henry Groseclose perhaps you can use some of the information in this Footnote to enhance your teaching. I wish to thank John Hillison of Virginia Tech for providing some of the information found in this Footnote.
References
Bryant, B. W. (2001) History of the Virginia FFA Association. Unpublished Doctoral Dissertation. Virginia Tech.

"Groseclose, State Advisor of FFA Since Its Start, Retires. Chapter Chats, (1945, September).

Hillison, John (1992). The Role of Virginia in the Development of the FFA. Southern Research Conference for Agricultural Education. New Orleans.

Kinnear, D. L. (1952). A History of Agricultural Education in Virginia with Special Emphasis on the Secondary School Level. Doctoral Dissertation. The Ohio State Univesity.

Magill, E. C. (1931, March). " Future Farmers in Virginia Celebrates Fifth Anniversary," Chapter Chats, IV.

Mueller, A. H. (1955). That Inspiring Past. Webb Publishing: St. Paul, MN.

Noblin, E. Y. (1942). The FFA Chapter Its Organization and Activities. Virginia Polytechnic Institute: Blacksburg, VA.

Stimson, R. W. & Lathrop, F. W. (1942). History of Agricultural Education of Less Than College Grade in the United States. U. S. Government Printing Office: Washington, DC.

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After I wrote the Friday Footnote a month or so ago about the passing of Mrs. Henry C. Groseclose I realized that the profession now probably knew more about Marie Groseclose than they did about Henry Groseclose, the Father of the FFA.

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The U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA) was created in 1862 by President Abraham Lincoln to support farmers and improve agriculture in the United States. It started by researching better farming methods, distributing seeds, and helping farmers grow more food. Over time, the USDA expanded to include food safety, nutrition programs, and rural development. It now inspects meat, poultry, and dairy products to make sure they are safe to eat. The USDA also helps farmers with loans, disaster relief, and conservation programs to protect land and water. It runs food assistance programs like SNAP (food stamps) to help families in need. Today, the USDA plays a major role in keeping food safe, supporting farmers, and protecting natural resources.

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The Food and Drug Administration (FDA) was created in 1906 after the Pure Food and Drug Act was passed to make food and medicine safer. Before that, there were no rules, and companies could sell unsafe products. The FDA started inspecting food, medicines, and cosmetics to protect people from harm. Over the years, it added more rules to make sure drugs work properly and food is labeled correctly. Today, the FDA continues to keep food, medicine, and medical devices safe for everyone.

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The Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) was created in 1970 to protect the environment and public health. Before that, there were few rules to control pollution, and air, water, and land were becoming dangerously polluted. The EPA was established to enforce laws that limit pollution, clean up toxic waste, and protect natural resources. Over the years, it has helped reduce smog, improve water quality, and ban harmful pesticides. Today, the EPA continues to work on environmental issues like climate change and pollution control.

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The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) is responsible for the protection of human health and the environment. EPA:

Provides technical assistance to support recovery planning of public health and infrastructure, such as waste water treatment plants.

Provides technical assistance for long-term cleanup to minimize public health threats, including environmental sampling and monitoring, site assessment, decontamination, and disposal.

Provides environmental surveillance.

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U.S. Environmental Protection Agency | U.S. Department of the Interior

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The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) is responsible for the protection of human health and the environment. EPA: Provides technical assistance to support recovery planning of public health and infrastructure, such as waste water treatment plants. Provides technical assistance for long-term cleanup to minimize public health threats, including environmental sampling and monitoring, site assessment, decontamination, and disposal.

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Agriculture is something that everyone in the world depends on. We need to know the history behind it, and value the importance. Agriculture has came a long way, and we have made many advancements, but without knowing our past we cannot move forward to the future of agriculture.

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Lesson Boosters - Kids Science and History Videos

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What is Agriculture? (for kids) | Learn the history of agriculture from ancient times to present day