Library Guides: History Research Guide: Agricultural &amp; Rural History

History of Agriculture Resources

ISU Special Collections: Agriculture and Rural Life
The core of the collections documents agriculture in the Midwest, particularly Iowa, while the records of agriculture and scientific organizations are national in scope.
USDA Soil Surveys for Iowa
County by county historical soil surveys and supplemental documents with soil information from 1899 to 2005.
USDA Soil Surveys
A gateway to soil surveys, soil geography, major land resource areas (MLRA), and ecological regions (CER).
USDA Agricultural Census
The Census of Agriculture, taken only once every five years, looks at land use and ownership, operator characteristics, production practices, income and expenditures. For America’s farmers and ranchers, the Census of Agriculture is their voice, their future, and their opportunity.

Core Historical Literature of Agriculture This link opens in a new window
Electronic collection of classic agricultural texts published between the early 19th century and the middle to late 20th century.
Farm, Field and Fireside: Agricultural Newspaper Collection This link opens in a new window
A free repository of historically significant US farm weekly newspapers documenting a time of transition in American agriculture, politics, family life and technology. Covers late nineteenth to early twentieth centuries.

Buckaroos in Paradise: Ranching Culture in Northern Nevada, 1945 to 1982
This collection from the Library of Congress includes 41 motion pictures and 28 sound recordings, motion pictures produced from 1945 to 1965 by Leslie Stewart (owner of the Ninety-Six Ranch), 2,400 still photographs drawn from the Center's ethnographic field project conducted 1978-1982 and from historic photos dating 1870-1958.

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Subjects: Anthropology, History, World Languages & Cultures