CONTENT WARNING
Materials in the Library of Virginia’s collections contain historical terms, phrases, and images that are offensive to modern readers. These include demeaning and dehumanizing references to race, ethnicity, and nationality; enslaved or free status; physical and mental ability; and gender and sexual orientation.
Context
From the time the earliest English settlers arrived in 1607 to today, corn has been a staple crop in Virginia. Farmers across the state grew vegetables like corn to eat and to feed their farm animals. As America's population increased, the demand for corn also grew. By the late-19th century, the development of commercial and industrial agriculture allowed for the mass production of corn-based goods to be manufactured to meet the growing demand.
Industrial agriculture centered around growing or cultivating massive amounts of a single product, whether it be crops, dairy, or meat products. The focus on a single product required infrastructure, machinery, land, money, and large numbers of workers. As a result, many companies formed and brought up massive amounts of land so they could harvest crops on a large scale, resulting in less expensive and plentiful products. Industrial agriculture production was so organized that these companies became the agricultural equivalent of machine factories, prompting the term “factory farming.”Industrial agriculture was met with no small amount of controversy. Family farms suffered because they often could not compete with the large companies, as they could not offer the same quantity or price. Building large farms required massive amounts of land, which caused some companies aggressively to purchase land owned by farming families and small-scale farming operations. Critics also pointed out that industrialized farming could have serious impacts on the environment, as growing the same product on a specific plot of land could strip the soil of nutrients, possibly making the land barren.
Citation: Mann, Harry C. (1866-1926), A.W. Cormick and Co. H.C. Mann., n.d., Visual Studies Collection, Harry C. Mann Photograph Collection, Library of Virginia, Richmond, Va
Standards
Social Studies: VS.1, VS.8, USII.1, USII.4, VUS.1, VUS.8, VUS.9
English: 4.7, 5.7
Earth Science: ES.6, ES.8
Suggested Questions
Preview Activity
Artistic Expression: Sometimes a photograph can offer a glimpse into the lives of others. Consider the photograph, what does it reveal about the people who own the land? Why might have the photographer chosen to focus on a corn field?
Post Activity
Analyze: How do you think that the industrial farms differed from the smaller farms? How were they similar? Other than encouraging population growth, how do you think that industrial agriculture affected other areas like politics, education, and public health?
Current Connections: What are some of the current arguments for or against industrial agriculture? Are they sound or do they have any faults in them?
STEM STAT: Crop rotation, the shifting of different crops on a plot of land in a seasonal cycle, is considered essential to growing healthy crops. It is done so that the soil is not used for one type of crop that relies on specific nutrients. Over time, those nutrients will be stripped from the soil and result in unhealthy or sparsely growing crops. In rotating crops, the nutrients in the soil are restored, increasing the nutrients in the soil and reducing erosion. Some industrial agricultural operations in the 19th century did not rotate their crops as often as local farmers who understood its importance. How might the lack crop rotation impacted the production of goods and the environment?