Agriculture

From butter churns to diesel tractors, the Museum's agricultural artifacts trace the story of Americans who work the land. Agricultural tools and machinery in the collections range from a John Deere plow of the 1830s to 20th-century cultivators and harvesters. The Museum's holdings also include overalls, aprons, and sunbonnets; farm photographs; milk cans and food jars; handmade horse collars; and some 200 oral histories of farm men and women in the South. Prints in the collections show hundreds of scenes of rural life. The politics of agriculture are part of the story, too, told in materials related to farm workers' unions and a group of artifacts donated by the family of the labor leader Cesar Chavez.

John Deere Plow
John Deere Plow, 1830s
This shipping crate side has a label for Gilbert S. Graves Family Gloss Starch that was manufactured by the National Starch Company of Buffalo, New York during the late 19th and early 20th century. The crate contained 16 3-pound boxes of starch.
Description (Brief)
This shipping crate side has a label for Gilbert S. Graves Family Gloss Starch that was manufactured by the National Starch Company of Buffalo, New York during the late 19th and early 20th century. The crate contained 16 3-pound boxes of starch. The National Starch Company was one of the largest American producers of starch during the early 20th century, controlling a number of companies including the Gilbert S. Graves Company.
Location
Currently not on view
referenced business
National Starch Co.
ID Number
1979.0441.333
catalog number
1979.0441.333
accession number
1979.0441
The nature of farming dramatically changed in the 20th century through what came to be known as the Green Revolution.
Description (Brief)
The nature of farming dramatically changed in the 20th century through what came to be known as the Green Revolution. From the 1920s-1950s farming productivity rose dramatically due to mechanization, fertilizers, chemicals (fungicides, pesticides, herbicides) and the hybridization of plants and animals. Agricultural innovations continue to be important to farming today. While the museum has over a dozen full-size tractors and other pieces of farming equipment, most technical developments of the 20th century are represented in the collection through toys and models.
An unknown maker manufactured this model of a McCormick-Deering corn picker around 1949. Models like this could be hitched to a model tractor and operate like the real thing.
Location
Currently not on view
ID Number
1986.0818.05
accession number
1986.0818
catalog number
1986.0818.05
Currently not on view
Location
Currently not on view
date made
1909
Associated Date
1909-08-22
1909-08-24
ID Number
2018.0166.0074
accession number
2018.0166
catalog number
2018.0166.0074
This sample of wheat came from the first field test designed to chart the movement of genetically modified microorganisms after their release into the environment.
Description (Brief)
This sample of wheat came from the first field test designed to chart the movement of genetically modified microorganisms after their release into the environment. In November of 1987, genetically modified soil bacteria of the genus Pseudomonas were planted along with winter wheat in a field in Blackville, S.C. The project was a joint effort of Monsanto, which had modified the organisms in the lab, and Clemson University, which carried out the field test.
The microorganisms were modified to contain harmless “marker genes” allowing scientists to distinguish them from naturally occurring Pseudomonas bacteria. After their release, scientists kept track of the movement of the modified bacteria in order to create a model for how genetically modified microbes migrate upon their release. Several months earlier, the release of genetically modified “ice-minus” bacteria (see object number 1987.0770.01) in California was the center of public concern.
Sources:
Accession File
“After Release, Altered Bacteria Stayed Close to Their Roots.” Renseberger, Boyce. The Washington Post. February 22, 1988. p. A3.
“Release of Altered Microbes Is Approved in Tracking Test.” Schneider, Keith. The New York Times. October 21, 1987. p. A19.
“Clemson Scientists Begin Field Testing of Microbe.” The Item. November 3, 1987. p.4B.
Location
Currently not on view
date made
ca 1987
ID Number
1995.0055.01
accession number
1995.0055
catalog number
1995.0055.01
Currently not on view
Location
Currently not on view
date made
1882
date sent
1882-06-06
ID Number
DL.057432
accession number
11548
catalog number
057432
The nature of farming dramatically changed in the 20th century through what came to be known as the Green Revolution.
Description (Brief)
The nature of farming dramatically changed in the 20th century through what came to be known as the Green Revolution. From the 1920s-1950s farming productivity rose dramatically due to mechanization, fertilizers, chemicals (fungicides, pesticides, herbicides) and the hybridization of plants and animals. Agricultural innovations continue to be important to farming today. While the museum has over a dozen full-size tractors and other pieces of farming equipment, most technical developments of the 20th century are represented in the collection through toys and models.
The Ertl Company of Dyersville, Iowa manufactured this model of a four-bottomed plow around 1965. The cultivator came as part of a “Ford Deluxe Farm Set.”
Location
Currently not on view
ID Number
AG.69A09.10d
catalog number
69A910.d
accession number
282677
This farm worker figure was made in France by an unknown maker during the early 20th century. This small three-dimensional metal figure is of a women raking grain. She is wearing a yellow skirt, blue blouse, and read headscarf.Currently not on view
Description (Brief)
This farm worker figure was made in France by an unknown maker during the early 20th century. This small three-dimensional metal figure is of a women raking grain. She is wearing a yellow skirt, blue blouse, and read headscarf.
Location
Currently not on view
ID Number
AG.75A04.07N
catalog number
75A04.07N
accession number
314637
This shipping crate side contained hardware manufactured by the P.F. Corbin Company of New Britain, Connecticut around the early 20th century.
Description (Brief)
This shipping crate side contained hardware manufactured by the P.F. Corbin Company of New Britain, Connecticut around the early 20th century. The Corbin Company was well known for their productions of locks and keys, and created other small metal objects like screws, bolts, and nuts.
Location
Currently not on view
referenced business
P. & F. Corbin
ID Number
1979.0441.317
catalog number
1979.0441.317
accession number
1979.0441
Currently not on view
Location
Currently not on view
Date made
1935
maker
Heller, Helen West
ID Number
GA.20064
catalog number
20064
accession number
182887
The John Deere Model D tractor was introduced in 1923 and became the first tractor built, marketed, and named John Deere. It replaced the Waterloo Boy in the company's product line.
Description
The John Deere Model D tractor was introduced in 1923 and became the first tractor built, marketed, and named John Deere. It replaced the Waterloo Boy in the company's product line. The two-cylinder kerosene-burning engine produced 15 horsepower at the drawbar and 22 at the belt. It also featured a high-tension ignition and an enclosed drive train. In the mid-1920s, a farmer could obtain a Model D for about a thousand dollars. Deere and Company donated both this Model D tractor and also a Waterloo Boy tractor to the Smithsonian Institution in 1966. The serial number of the Smithsonian's Model D is 30940; it weighs over two tons.
Since the 1903 appearance of the Hart-Parr line of tractors, farmers had turned from steam traction engines to lighter and more practical internal combustion engine tractors. Most farmers did not need a large tractor just one that was versatile and could do both field and belt work. Farmers became increasingly aware of the importance of dealer support, so they turned to machines that were not only dependable but that could be repaired by experts. The Model D competed with McCormick-Deering, Hart-Parr, Rumely, and other tractors.
maker
John Deere
ID Number
AG.67A1
accession number
270865
catalog number
67A1
This shipping crate side originally contained shellfish packed and shipped by the Haines Oyster Company of Seattle, Washington during the early 20th century.
Description (Brief)
This shipping crate side originally contained shellfish packed and shipped by the Haines Oyster Company of Seattle, Washington during the early 20th century. Founded in 1892, the Haines Oyster Company was one of the oldest wholesale shellfish farmers in the Pacific Northwest.
Location
Currently not on view
referenced business
Haines Oyster Co.
ID Number
1979.0441.306
catalog number
1979.0441.306
accession number
1979.0441
Rectangular celluloid card. A photograph of the Agricultural Museum at the New York State Fair Grounds in Syracuse is on the front. Reverse has calendar for the year starting July 1920. The date of Jan 22, 1930, is circled in red to highlight the organization's homecoming.
Description (Brief)
Rectangular celluloid card. A photograph of the Agricultural Museum at the New York State Fair Grounds in Syracuse is on the front. Reverse has calendar for the year starting July 1920. The date of Jan 22, 1930, is circled in red to highlight the organization's homecoming. The back of the card reads, "The New York State Agricultural Society // The Mother Agricultural Society of New York State // Organized at Albany // April 30, 1832."
Description
One side of this celluloid card has a calendar for July 1929 – June 1930, and ad for the New York State Agricultural Society. The other has image of the Daniel Parish Whitter Agricultural Museum erected in Syracuse in 1928.
Location
Currently not on view
date made
1929
advertiser
New York State Agricultural Society
maker
Bastian Bros Company
ID Number
2006.0098.0583
accession number
2006.0098
catalog number
2006.0098.0583
This cedar sap spout was used by settlers in upper New York during the 19th century. After boring a hole into the maple tree, the spout was inserted into the hole to drain sap from the tree into a bucket.
Description
This cedar sap spout was used by settlers in upper New York during the 19th century. After boring a hole into the maple tree, the spout was inserted into the hole to drain sap from the tree into a bucket. Sap was typically collected and boiled down to make syrup or sugar to use an alternative to the expensive processed, cane sugar. Later, when cane sugar became cheaper and took precedence in the American diet, maple syrup was more often produced for either personal use or for supplemental income.
Maple syrup production is one of the few agricultural processes in North America that was not a European import but learned from Native Americans. Sap is typically collected from the Sugar, Red or Black maple, though it can be collected from other tree types. Northeastern North America is the most common area for maple syrup production, with Vermont, New York and Maine leading production in the U.S. Once the sap is collected, it must be boiled down to reduce the water content. It can require anywhere from 20-50 liters of sap to make one liter of syrup, depending on the sugar content of the sap. Each tree is capable of producing 35-50 liters of sap.
Location
Currently not on view
date made
ca 1800
ID Number
AG.52A05.02A
catalog number
52A05.02A
accession number
194893
During most of the 19th century, the U.S. Patent Office required inventors seeking patent protection to submit both a written application and a three-dimensional model. This wood and metal patent model of a windmill succeeded in gaining its inventor, H. M.
Description
During most of the 19th century, the U.S. Patent Office required inventors seeking patent protection to submit both a written application and a three-dimensional model. This wood and metal patent model of a windmill succeeded in gaining its inventor, H. M. Wood, Patent Number 222,340, which was issued on December 2, 1879. As farms spread into the American heartland, windmills proved an extremely important technology, allowing settlers to use the renewable power of wind to pump groundwater for agricultural and household use. Efficiency and reliability were key attributes for rural windmills, and professional and lay inventors experimented with hundreds of design variations throughout the years.
Location
Currently not on view
date made
1879
patent date
1879-12-02
inventor
Wood, Harvey M.
ID Number
MC.309136
catalog number
309136
accession number
89797
patent number
222,340
Currently not on view
Location
Currently not on view
date made
1884 - 1885
ID Number
DL.076751
catalog number
76751
accession number
16961
This print, On the Neshimaney, which shows cows on a still, warm afternoon standing by a creek, is typical of the views of rural Pennsylvania that were the specialty of Peter Moran. He took pains to make the landscape details appear natural.
Description
This print, On the Neshimaney, which shows cows on a still, warm afternoon standing by a creek, is typical of the views of rural Pennsylvania that were the specialty of Peter Moran. He took pains to make the landscape details appear natural. French artists who depicted the rural landscape, such as Constant Tryon (1810–1865) and Charles Jacque (1813–1894), were important to Moran’s artistic development.
Somewhat confusingly, Peter Moran exhibited three etchings with the title On the Neshaminey in his one-man show in 1887 and 1888 at Frederick Keppel’s New York gallery. This print is the largest and last of the Neshaminey series. Philadelphia book dealer Robert M. Lindsay commissioned the print from Moran and published it in an edition of 100 in late October 1886.
This print is signed in the image and in pencil at lower left below the image, “P Moran.” It also has a remarque (small design) of a cow’s head at left in the lower margin. Remarques are of special interest to collectors as they are used on prepublication prints and then removed from the plate before the edition is printed.
The Neshaminey Creek in Bucks County, Pennsylvania, runs north of Philadelphia through what are today mostly suburban areas, although some farmland does remain. The area shown in the print is probably near either New Britain or Edison. Peter Moran and his family spent some summers in the area.
Location
Currently not on view
Date made
1886
graphic artist
Moran, Peter
publisher
Lindsay, Robert
ID Number
GA.14769
catalog number
14769
accession number
94830
Christian Adolf Schreyer (1828–1899) painted this dramatic scene of galloping horses pulling a wagon through the Wallachian countryside (now part of Romania).
Description
Christian Adolf Schreyer (1828–1899) painted this dramatic scene of galloping horses pulling a wagon through the Wallachian countryside (now part of Romania). William Unger’s etching, made about 1880, was selected for exhibition at the Cincinnati Exposition in 1888 in an enormous display of past and present graphic art curated by Sylvester R. Koehler, the Smithsonian’s Graphic Arts Curator. Koehler was also a prolific author, editor, and advocate of contemporary etching. He published Unger’s etchings in Foreign Etchings (1887) and in his journal, The American Art Review.
Schreyer’s paintings of horses and peasant life remain popular today. The Chase, his painting showing Arab horsemen dashing through a field, sold for $464,000 in 2005.
Location
Currently not on view
date made
ca 1880
original artist
Schreyer, Adolf
graphic artist
Unger, William
publisher
Kaeser, P.
printer
Kargl, F.
ID Number
GA.14981
catalog number
14981
accession number
94830
Currently not on view
Location
Currently not on view
Date made
1935
maker
Heller, Helen West
ID Number
GA.20062
catalog number
20062
accession number
182887
Currently not on view
Location
Currently not on view
date made
1884 - 1885
ID Number
DL.076752
catalog number
76752
accession number
16961
Currently not on view
Location
Currently not on view
Date made
c. 1900
user
Gilpin, William
ID Number
CL.309003.01
catalog number
309003.1
309003.01
accession number
309003
A poster advertising the boycott of wines made in Modesto, California along with any non United Farm Workers lettuce and grapes.Currently not on view
Description
A poster advertising the boycott of wines made in Modesto, California along with any non United Farm Workers lettuce and grapes.
Location
Currently not on view
associated person
Chavez, Cesar
associated institution
United Farm Workers
ID Number
PL.321648.29
catalog number
321648.29
accession number
321648
A poster asking for people to join the United Farm Workers and to boycott grapes, lettuce, and Gallo wines.Currently not on view
Description
A poster asking for people to join the United Farm Workers and to boycott grapes, lettuce, and Gallo wines.
Location
Currently not on view
affiliated union
United Farm Workers
referenced
Chavez, Cesar
ID Number
1986.0231.137
accession number
1986.0231
A poster commemorating the 50th anniversary of the Peace Corps. Authorized by Congress in 1962 more than 235,000 Americans have joined the Peace Corps and served in 141 countries.
Description
A poster commemorating the 50th anniversary of the Peace Corps. Authorized by Congress in 1962 more than 235,000 Americans have joined the Peace Corps and served in 141 countries. They work with governments, schools, entrepeneurs in education, youth development, community health, business, information technology, environment, agriculture, as well as non-profit organizations.
Location
Currently not on view
date made
2011
maker
Peace Corps
ID Number
2011.0228.03
accession number
2011.0228
catalog number
2011.0228.03
The American Agricultural Movement in the late 1970s consisted of a group of farmers that demanded "parity" from the government. They wanted to be paid equitably for the cost to grow crops.Currently not on view
Description
The American Agricultural Movement in the late 1970s consisted of a group of farmers that demanded "parity" from the government. They wanted to be paid equitably for the cost to grow crops.
Location
Currently not on view
date made
1977
ID Number
1978.0584.03
catalog number
1978.0584.03
accession number
1978.0584

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