RG 004 Agriculture and Land Stewardship

The State Agricultural Society was organized in 1853. Records in the State Archives begin in 1862. The Agricultural Society promoted Iowa agriculture and managed the State Fair until the legislature created the Iowa Department of Agriculture in 1900. In 1923, the departments responsibilities were substantially increased when an act was passed creating the office of Secretary of Agriculture and transferring the functions of several smaller state divisions relating to agriculture to the department. A separate State Fair Board was established in 1924. The following is a partial list of the records in this record group in our holdings. A complete list of record series is available at the Research Center in Des Moines.

General
Title	Date Span
Applications for State Certificates of Registration for Stallions	1906-1911
Century Farms Applications	1975
Correspondence, County and District Agricultural Societies	1883-1909
Correspondence, Crop Conditions	1883-1902
Correspondence, Farmers Institutes	1904-1909
Correspondence, Miscellaneous	1871-1889, 1905-1910
Correspondence, Registration of Stallions	1905-1910
County Auditors Reports of Crop and Farm Statistics	1910-1912
County Auditors Reports of Owners of Stallions	1906
Fertilizer Tonnage and Analysis Sheets	1945-1975
Grange Quarterly Reports	1873-1878
Import Registers of Animals Brought into State	1912-1916
Index to Correspondence Received	1883-1884
Iowa State Grange Business Agency, Day Book	1875-1877
Journals	1884-1894, 1905-1906
Ledgers	1878-1879, 1884-1894
Pesticides Performance Grants	2001-2004
Record of Grange Delegates by County	1873-1874
Records of County and District Agricultural Societies	1906-1918
Records of Fairs Held by County and District Agricultural Societies	1883-1913
Reports of Crop Conditions	1885-1913
Reports of District and County Agricultural Societies	1883-1913
Speeches	1986-1998
Yearbooks: Iowa Yearbooks of Agriculture	1901-1949
Yearbooks: Reports of Iowa Books of Agriculture	1952-1953
Yearbooks: Yearbooks of the U.S. Department of Agriculture	1896-1917

Horticulture Divison
Title	Date Span
Garden Clubs	1979-1980
Iowa Fruit Growers, Correspondence	1975-1980
Iowa Nut Growers	1974-1980
Iowa State Horticulture Society, Awards, Board Meetings and Correspondence	1968-1981
Newsletters, Chrysanthemum, Dahlia, Gladiolus, Lily and Rose Societies	1969-1981
Newsletters, Iowa Florists	1979-1980
Newsletters, Iowa Nurserymens Association	1977-1981

Iowa Agricultural Development Authority
Title	Date Span
Minutes	1984-1994

Iowa State Agricultural Society
Title	Date Span
Correspondence	1862-1865
Letter Books	1865-1904
Minutes	1864-1907

Secretary of Agriculture
Title	Date Span
Executive Correspondence	1975-1983
Speeches	1986-1998

State Dairy Commission
Title	Date Span
Annual Reports	1901-1948

State Fair
Title	Date Span
Reports of Miscellaneous Committees	1884-1890
Reports of Premium Awards Committee	1873-1886
Reports of Superintendent of Fine Art Hall	1884
Reports of Superintendent of Fruit and Flowers	1884
Reports of Superintendent of Horses and Cattle	1884, 1889
Reports of Superintendent of Machinery Department	1901-1903
Reports of Superintendent of Sheep and Poultry	1884
Reports of Superintendent of Speed
Reports of Superintendent of Vegetable Hall	1884
State Fair, Accounts	1876-1878, 1889, 1905-1907
State Fair, Applications for Space	1884
State Fair, Bids, Contracts and Proposals	1884-1996
State Fair, Correspondence, Advertising and Printing	1882-1911
State Fair, Correspondence, Attractions and Privileges	1883-1912
State Fair, Correspondence, Entries and Premiums	1883-1916
State Fair, Correspondence, Miscellaneous	1883-1909
State Fair, Correspondence, Passes	1883-1912
State Fair, Entry Registers	1894-1913
State Fair, Memorandum of Bill Poster	1884
State Fair, Premium Books	1914, 1917, 1920
State Fair, Premium Registers	1876-1893
State Fair, Premium Warrant Registers	1889-1925
State Fair, Race Registers	1882-1918
State Fair, Ticket Registers	1884-1913