USDA-NASS - About NASS - Agricultural Statistics: A Historical Timeline - Early Beginnings 1776-1860

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United States Department of Agriculture
National Agricultural Statistics Service

About NASS

Agricultural Statistics: A Historical Timeline

The story of agricultural statistics in the United States begins with exporters, citizens and government officials recognizing the need to know more about the crop production and land values of the young nation. Technological advances lead to increases in the productivity of early farmers.

1776 - The Continental Congress offers land grants for service in the Continental Army.

1788 - The Constitution of the United States is ratified and George Washington becomes the first President of the United States.

1791 - George Washington, one of the earliest compilers of information on American agriculture, corresponds with land holders for information on farmland prices, commodity prices and crop yields at the request of an Englishman named Arthur Young.

U.S. Population 1790 - 3,929,625

1793 - Eli Whitney invents the cotton gin, a machine that quickly separates the cotton fiber from the seed.

U.S. Population 1790 - 3,929,625

1796 - President George Washington proposes to establish a National Board of Agriculture based on four principles: the Board has at least 10 and no more than 30 members, members are from both Washington D.C. and the field, members are knowledgeable about the agricultural industry, the board disseminates information to all parties equally, although a congressional committee agrees with Washington’s proposal, Congress does not act.

U.S. Population 1790 - 3,929,625

1803 - During Thomas Jefferson’s presidency, the United States purchases 828,800 square miles of land claimed by France, in a transaction known as the Louisiana Purchase.

U.S. Population 1800 - 5,308,483

1805 - Cotton replaces tobacco as the chief southern crop. Lower costs associated with the production of wheat and meat in the western areas encourage New England farmers to produce dairy, fruits, vegetables and tobacco.

U.S. Population 1800 - 5,308,483

1807 - The Massachusetts Society for Promoting Agriculture, established in 1792, publishes inquiries relating to production per acre, number of animals, and agricultural prices. Other states establish agricultural societies to improve agricultural production practices.

U.S. Population 1800 - 5,308,483

1819 - The U.S. Department of the Treasury instructs consuls to collect seeds, plants and agricultural inventions. It publishes data on agricultural imports and exports, but not on domestic production.

U.S. Population 1810 - 7,239,881

1820 - The U.S. House of Representatives creates the Agriculture Committee. 1825 - Completion of the Erie Canal accelerates the development of agricultural lands in western New York and the Ohio Valley; The U.S. Senate creates the Agriculture Committee.

U.S. Population 1820 - 9,638,453

1830 - The railroad era begins, speeding up agricultural production in the Mississippi Valley and later in the Great Plains.

U.S. Population 1830 - 12,866,020

1837 - The Commonwealth of Massachusetts conducts the Massachusetts Agricultural Survey over a four-year period. Agricultural data are collected for each county in the state.

U.S. Population 1830 - 12,866,020

1838 - President Martin Van Buren, the eighth President of the United States, proposes to establish a Bureau of Agriculture. As a result of this proposal, agricultural data are collected for the first time in the 1840 Census of Agriculture.

U.S. Population 1830 - 12,866,020

1839 -The Commissioner of the U.S. Patent Office, Henry Ellsworth, obtains a $1,000 appropriation for the “collection of statistics and distribution of seed.

U.S. Population 1840 - 17,069,453

1841 - Henry Ellsworth issues the first annual crop estimates based on the 1840 Census of Agriculture.

U.S. Population 1840 - 17,069,453

1849 - President Zachary Taylor says he will, “...secure encouragement and protection to the great interests of agriculture.” President Taylor dies in office 16 months later, before an agricultural office is established.

U.S. Population 1840 - 17,069,453

1850 - James T. Earle, president of the Maryland State Agricultural Society, proposes to state agricultural societies that they appoint individuals in each county to report on crops and summarize the reports for all interested.

U.S. Population 1850 - 23,191,876 | Number of Farms 1850 - 1,449,073

1858 - John Jay, Chairman of the American Geographical and Statistical Society of New York, gives an address emphasizing that statistics, if adequately provided, could help guide the Nation’s policy in agriculture as well as in social matters.

U.S. Population 1850 - 23,191,876 | Number of Farms 1850 - 1,449,073

1859 - Orange Judd, editor of The American Agriculturalist, solicits comments on crop conditions from subscribers and publishes his appraisal of crop conditions. Questionnaires are then distributed to individuals selected by Judd as crop reporters.

U.S. Population 1850 - 23,191,876 | Number of Farms 1850 - 1,449,073

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United States Department of Agriculture • National Agricultural Statistics Service • 1400 Independence Avenue, SW
Washington, DC 20250 • Voice: (800) 727-9540 • Email: nass@nass.usda.gov • Web: http://www.nass.usda.gov

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7 Census of Agriculture