Agriculture

John Deere Model D Tractor

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
Topic: Agriculture

International Harvester Tandem Disc

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, made this metal die-cast International Harvester tandem disc harrow model during the 1970s. This is a 1:16 scale model, and could be hooked onto other Ertl-made International Harvester tractors.
Location
Currently not on view
ID Number
AG.78A01.06
catalog number
78A01.06
accession number
1977.0989

Ink Shipping Crate

This is a Sanford Ink Company shipping crate side. The Sanford Manufacturing Company was founded in Worcester, Massachusetts in 1857.
Description (Brief)
This is a Sanford Ink Company shipping crate side. The Sanford Manufacturing Company was founded in Worcester, Massachusetts in 1857. The company relocated to Chicago in 1866 and became a large producer of ink and glue products in its early years before focusing on ink and being renamed the Sanford Ink Company in 1940. Sanford introduced the Sharpie marker in 1964, which went on to become one of its best selling products. Sanford was purchased by the Newell Company in 1992.
Location
Currently not on view
referenced business
Sanford Corporation
ID Number
1979.0441.226
catalog number
1979.0441.226
accession number
1979.0441

Terramycin for Mastitis

Currently not on view
Location
Currently not on view
date made
ca 1962
maker
Charles Pfizer and Company
ID Number
MG.M-10016.01
catalog number
M-10016.01
accession number
239425

Apple Crate Label

Labels are an important marketing device.
Description (Brief)
Labels are an important marketing device. They often go beyond merely identifying contents and are designed to help establish brand distinction and generate customer loyalty for a largely interchangeable product.
This Over the Top brand apple crate label was used by the Manson Fruit Growers Inc. of Manson, Washington during the early 20th century. Manson was situated on Lake Chelan, part of the fertile apple region of the Wenatchee Valley. The label was lithographed by the Schmidt Lithograph Company of Seattle, Washington. The label shows apples floating in the water, riding a cresting wave. Labels often showed natural images to evoke a sense of fresh produce, and would depict images of the region. This label shows an image of Lake Chelan.
Location
Currently not on view
referenced business
Manson Fruit Growers Inc.
ID Number
1979.0441.141
accession number
1979.0441
catalog number
1979.0441.141

Prize: Society for Horse Races Tambov, For Count A.G. Orlov-Tchesmenski

Currently not on view
Location
Currently not on view
Date made
1875
ID Number
NU.69.127.742
catalog number
69.127.742
accession number
286471

Roast Beef Shipping Crate

This shipping crate end panel is imprinted with the “Libby’s” script of the manufacturing firm Libby, McNeil, and Libby. Archibald McNeil and Charles and Arthur Libby founded the company in 1868. In 1875, Libby’s began to pack their meats into pyramidal shaped cans.
Description (Brief)
This shipping crate end panel is imprinted with the “Libby’s” script of the manufacturing firm Libby, McNeil, and Libby. Archibald McNeil and Charles and Arthur Libby founded the company in 1868. In 1875, Libby’s began to pack their meats into pyramidal shaped cans. These cans were extremely popular among consumers, and Libby’s became one of the country’s biggest producers of canned meats. The company was purchased by Nestle in 1971.
Location
Currently not on view
referenced business
Libby, McNeill & Libby
ID Number
1979.0441.342
catalog number
1979.0441.342
accession number
1979.0441

Society for Horse Races Honoring Count Vorontzoff

Currently not on view
Location
Currently not on view
Date made
1890
ID Number
NU.69.127.690
catalog number
69.127.690
accession number
286471

medal

Currently not on view
Location
Currently not on view
ID Number
NU.68.263.1447
catalog number
68.263.1447
accession number
281689

International Harvester Tractor and Trailer

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.
This metal model is of an International Harvester tractor and trailer. Many retailers sold models that were 1:16 scale, this model is a smaller scale, likely 1:32.
Location
Currently not on view
ID Number
AG.78A01.01
catalog number
78A01.01
accession number
1977.0989

Hunting Arms and Tools Token, Jeton, Russia

Russia 1886Hunting Arms and Tools tokenObverse Inscription: ВЫСТАВКА ОХОТНИЧЕ - ПРОМЫСЛОВАГО ОРУЖИЮ ("Exhibition of Hunting and Commercial Arms")Reverse Inscription: ИМПЕРАТОРСКОЕ РУССКОЕ ТЕХНИЧЕСКОЕ ОБЩЕСТВО / 1886 ("Imperial Russian Technical Society")Currently not on view
Description
Russia 1886
Hunting Arms and Tools token
Obverse Inscription: ВЫСТАВКА ОХОТНИЧЕ - ПРОМЫСЛОВАГО ОРУЖИЮ ("Exhibition of Hunting and Commercial Arms")
Reverse Inscription: ИМПЕРАТОРСКОЕ РУССКОЕ ТЕХНИЧЕСКОЕ ОБЩЕСТВО / 1886 ("Imperial Russian Technical Society")
Location
Currently not on view
date made
ca 1886
ID Number
NU.69.127.359
catalog number
69.127.0359
accession number
286471

Apple Crate Label

Labels are an important marketing device.
Description (Brief)
Labels are an important marketing device. They often go beyond merely identifying contents and are designed to help establish brand distinction and generate customer loyalty for a largely interchangeable product.
This Service brand apple crate label was used by the Trunkey-Wolfe Fruit Company, Inc. of Wenatchee, Washington during the early 20th century. The lithographed label was produced by the Ridgway Lithography Company of Seattle, Washington. The green label has a red rim with a large rainbow in the center. The label advertises the apples as Wenatchee district apples. The Wenatchee Valley region is famous for its apple production, and claimed to be the “Apple Capital of the World.”
Location
Currently not on view
referenced business
Trunkey-Wolfe Fruit Co., Inc.
ID Number
1979.0441.037
accession number
1979.0441
catalog number
1979.0441.037

medal

Currently not on view
Location
Currently not on view
Date made
1888
ID Number
NU.69.127.345
catalog number
69.127.345
accession number
286471

Golden Palomino Shipping Crate

This shipping crate held Golden Palomino brand fruit that was distributed by Donald R. Bones of Littlerock, California during the early 20th century. The wooden shipping crate side has black text.Currently not on view
Description (Brief)
This shipping crate held Golden Palomino brand fruit that was distributed by Donald R. Bones of Littlerock, California during the early 20th century. The wooden shipping crate side has black text.
Location
Currently not on view
referenced business
Donald R. Bones
ID Number
1979.0441.156
catalog number
1979.0441.156
accession number
1979.0441

Support American Agriculture, Protest Pin

The American Agriculture Movement was started in the fall of 1977 in response to the 1977 Farm Bill which had the adverse affect of dropping commodity prices to a level lower than the cost of production.
Description
The American Agriculture Movement was started in the fall of 1977 in response to the 1977 Farm Bill which had the adverse affect of dropping commodity prices to a level lower than the cost of production. Many farmers left their hometowns to participate in tractorcades, protests on tractors, or lobby in Congress for better agricultural prices. Some farmers participating in the movement attempted to organize a national farm strike, whereby farmers would not buy or sell anything, but it ultimately fizzled out before getting off the ground. In 1978 and 1979, movement organizers rallied large numbers of farmers to descend upon Washington, DC in order to bring their plight to the attention of the American people and lawmakers.
The farm crisis of the late 1970s and 1980s was triggered by several factors stemming from the early 1970s. When Earl Butz became the Secretary of Agriculture in 1971, he changed farm policies that provided supports to farmers who did not plant a certain percentage of their land, and instead asked farmers to plant “fence row to fence row” in order to increase production. New foreign markets had opened up, inflation was high which increased land values and interest rates were low which provided extra incentive for farmers to increase their landholdings and purchase modern equipment that made output from the land more productive. Many farmers took advantage of this confluence of factors to increase their income by following this advice.
In the late 1970s, the Federal Reserve Board raised interest rates in an attempt to bring down the rate of inflation. This happened at the same time foreign markets dried up and a trade embargo was placed on the Soviet Union. These factors meant farm income dwindled at the same time interest rates skyrocketed, eating up what little income remained for farmers. The members of the American Agriculture Movement were highly involved in protests through the late 1970s and 1980s, speaking to officials at all levels of U.S. government in an attempt to raise awareness of the growing farm crisis. Concern over the 1977 Farm Bill ignited the concern for many farmers who believed the bill would adversely affect farm income by lowering commodity prices to less than the cost of production. Farmers began to protest at all levels of government, most for the first time, in order to bring this to the attention of policy makers as well as the people.
Location
Currently not on view
ID Number
1993.0188.059
accession number
1993.0188
catalog number
1993.0188.059

Apple Crate Label

Labels are an important marketing device. They often go beyond merely identifying contents and are designed to help establish brand distinction and generate customer loyalty for a largely interchangeable product.This Depend-On brand apple crate label was used by the C.M.
Description (Brief)
Labels are an important marketing device. They often go beyond merely identifying contents and are designed to help establish brand distinction and generate customer loyalty for a largely interchangeable product.
This Depend-On brand apple crate label was used by the C.M. Kopp Company of Yakima, Washington during the early 20th century. The label was lithographed by Lehmann Lithography of San Francisco, California. The label features an illustration of an apple orchard in a valley, with the sun setting behind a hill. There are four large red apples pictured on the foreground of the label. Fruit crate labels often depicted landscapes like this to evoke the idea of rich, natural produce.
Location
Currently not on view
referenced business
C. M. Kopp Company
ID Number
1979.0441.095
accession number
1979.0441
catalog number
1979.0441.095

International Harvester Truck Model

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.
This plastic and metal model is of an International Harvester truck, made in the 1960s.
Location
Currently not on view
ID Number
AG.78A01.03
catalog number
78A01.03
accession number
1977.0989

Prize: Institute for Forestry

Currently not on view
Location
Currently not on view
date made
n.d.
ID Number
NU.69.127.14
catalog number
69.127.14
accession number
286471

medal

Currently not on view
Location
Currently not on view
ID Number
NU.68.263.1346
catalog number
68.263.1346
accession number
281689

Glidden Fence Making Patent Model

On December 8, 1874 Joseph Glidden and Phineas Vaughn patented this machine for making wire fences. This apparatus attached barbs to double stranded wire cables that were used to corral cattle.
Description
On December 8, 1874 Joseph Glidden and Phineas Vaughn patented this machine for making wire fences. This apparatus attached barbs to double stranded wire cables that were used to corral cattle. The machine boasts a mahogany base and metal end pieces that are painted green with gold edging.
date made
1870 - 1874
patent date
1874-12-08
inventor
Glidden, Joseph F.
Vaughan, Phineas W.
ID Number
AG.157508
catalog number
157508
accession number
89797
catalog number
308814
patent number
157,508

American Agriculture Movement Protest Pin

The American Agriculture Movement was started in the fall of 1977 in response to the 1977 Farm Bill which had the adverse affect of dropping commodity prices to a level lower than the cost of production.
Description
The American Agriculture Movement was started in the fall of 1977 in response to the 1977 Farm Bill which had the adverse affect of dropping commodity prices to a level lower than the cost of production. Many farmers left their hometowns to participate in tractorcades, protests on tractors, or lobby in Congress for better agricultural prices. Some farmers participating in the movement attempted to organize a national farm strike, whereby farmers would not buy or sell anything, but it ultimately fizzled out before getting off the ground. In 1978 and 1979, movement organizers rallied large numbers of farmers to descend upon Washington, DC in order to bring their plight to the attention of the American people and lawmakers.
The farm crisis of the late 1970s and 1980s was triggered by several factors stemming from the early 1970s. When Earl Butz became the Secretary of Agriculture in 1971, he changed farm policies that provided supports to farmers who did not plant a certain percentage of their land, and instead asked farmers to plant “fence row to fence row” in order to increase production. New foreign markets had opened up, inflation was high which increased land values and interest rates were low which provided extra incentive for farmers to increase their landholdings and purchase modern equipment that made output from the land more productive. Many farmers took advantage of this confluence of factors to increase their income by following this advice.
In the late 1970s, the Federal Reserve Board raised interest rates in an attempt to bring down the rate of inflation. This happened at the same time foreign markets dried up and a trade embargo was placed on the Soviet Union. These factors meant farm income dwindled at the same time interest rates skyrocketed, eating up what little income remained for farmers. The members of the American Agriculture Movement were highly involved in protests through the late 1970s and 1980s, speaking to officials at all levels of U.S. government in an attempt to raise awareness of the growing farm crisis. Concern over the 1977 Farm Bill ignited the concern for many farmers who believed the bill would adversely affect farm income by lowering commodity prices to less than the cost of production. Farmers began to protest at all levels of government, most for the first time, in order to bring this to the attention of policy makers as well as the people.
Location
Currently not on view
ID Number
1993.0188.004
accession number
1993.0188
catalog number
1993.0188.004

Apple Crate Label

Labels are an important marketing device.
Description (Brief)
Labels are an important marketing device. They often go beyond merely identifying contents and are designed to help establish brand distinction and generate customer loyalty for a largely interchangeable product.
This Highland Fruits brand apple crate label was used by the Highland Fruits Company of Wenatchee, Washington during the early 20th century. The label was lithographed by the Ridgway Lithograph Company of Seattle, Washington. The label has a red plaid background, with the text “Highland Fruits” in three-dimensional font. These apples came from Wenatchee, part of a region that claimed to be the “Apple Capital of the World.”
Location
Currently not on view
referenced business
Highland Fruits Company
ID Number
1979.0441.121
accession number
1979.0441
catalog number
1979.0441.121

medal

Currently not on view
Location
Currently not on view
associated person
Catherine the Great
ID Number
NU.68.263.1761
catalog number
68.263.1761
accession number
281689

medal

Currently not on view
Location
Currently not on view
ID Number
NU.68.263.1195
catalog number
68.263.1195
accession number
281689

Acme Shipping Crate

This shipping crate side was in use by the Acme Brewing Company of San Francisco, California during the early 20th century. Acme was established by the Olympia Brewing Company of Tumwater, Washington, and produced a variety of beers from 1906-1920.
Description (Brief)
This shipping crate side was in use by the Acme Brewing Company of San Francisco, California during the early 20th century. Acme was established by the Olympia Brewing Company of Tumwater, Washington, and produced a variety of beers from 1906-1920. During Prohibition Acme produced an “Acme Brew,” a so-called near beer with almost no alcohol content.
Location
Currently not on view
referenced business
Acme Breweries
ID Number
1979.0441.282
catalog number
1979.0441.282
accession number
1979.0441

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