KEEPING LOCAL HISTORY ALIVE
4-H:
A FOUNDATION FOR THE FUTURE History Recap Source: iGrow.org
SOUTH DAKOTA 4-H HISTORY The 4-H program grew out of the need to help young people and their families receive better agricultural education. The Morrill Act of 1862 established the land grant college system, which lead to South Dakota State College in 1881. Land grant universities looked for ways to share research with the public and found youth to be an ideal audience. Through Tomato Clubs and Corn Clubs, youth were able to participate in hands-on activities as a way to learn about agriculture. These clubs, referred to as 4-H clubs by 1912, led to agriculture and home management clubs for youth across America. In South Dakota, Minnehaha County resident William Mair organized the earliest South Dakota Boys Club, with the first meeting happening in 1906 or 1907. The Smith-Lever Act in 1914 created the Cooperative Extension System, tasking the land-grant universities in each state to get the university to the people. By 1924, the name “4-H” and the clover were officially adopted. Over time, 4-H has evolved to include both urban and rural youth and has expanded beyond agriculture. Today, 4-H in South Dakota teaches life skills and leadership to youth in the four program priorities of Agriculture, Science, Health and Wellness and Leadership. CAPTURING THE 4-H CULTURE The Elsie Carper Collection on Extension Service, Home Economics, and 10
The Farming Families Magazine | www.agemedia.pub | September 2019
4-H spans almost nine decades from 1908 through 1994. Elsie Carper compiled and preserved the history of home demonstration and 4-H during her four decades as an administrative assistant for the national 4-H program and nearly two decades as an historian during her retirement. Carper saved various items given to her by Extension specialists and program leaders and donated the materials to the National Agricultural Library. The collection includes materials pertaining to the work of three important people in the history of the Extension Service, specifically Seaman Knapp, Oscar Herman Benson, and Gertrude Warren. The collection spans 8.75 linear feet and occupies 14 archival boxes. Materials are in good condition. There are no restrictions on use of the collection. In 2003, Jan Scholl, 4-H Curriculum Specialist, The Pennsylvania State University, and Kate Hayes, Technical Information Specialist, National Agricultural Library, initiated processing of the collection. Barbara Stommel, Special Collections Librarian, National Agricultural Library, completed the processing in 2005. Additional materials contributed by Jan Scholl, including a history of the National Association of Extension Home Economists through 1975 and 4-H Club song records, were added to the collection in June 2006.
