652 BOARD OF AGRICULTURE. 



editors of tlie Indiana Farmer; Mr. C. L. Wliitney, then of Cincinnati, O.; 

 Prof. K. T. lirowii (decvased); Dr. T. M. Stevens (deceased), and Mr. J. 

 J. W. Hillingsley. of Indianapolis; Mr. S. R. Quicli and Mr. Henry Doup, 

 of Colunii)Us, Bartlioloniew County; Dr. Allan Furnas, of Hendricks 

 County; Hon. .las. A. Mount (deceased), of Montgomery County; Prof. .T. 

 M. Coulter, of Wabash College. Crawfordsville; J. N. Latta (deceased), 

 and J. N. Babcock. both of Lagrange County; Prof. H. W. Wiley, of 

 Purdue University, Lafayette, Ind., now chemist of the Department of 

 Agriculture, Washington, D. C; Prof. C. L. Ingersoll (deceased), of 

 Purdue University, and later President of the Colorado Agricultural Col- 

 lege; President J. H. Smart, Mrs. Emma P. Ewlng, and Prof. W. C. 

 Latta. of Purdue University. 



The foregoing account has been gleaned from the annual reports of 

 the State Board of Agriculture issued during the eighties. As several 

 of the men who were actively identftied with these early institutes are still 

 living, the following circular letter of inquiry was sent out to them in 

 the hope of securing further information: 



"Dear Sir— Mr. John Hamilton, the recently appointed farmers' insti- 

 tute specialist of the National Department of Agriculture, desires to pub- 

 lish a history of the farmers' institute work throughout the country. He 

 wishes an account, not only of what has been done under State control, 

 but of the incipient stages of the work as well. You have some personal 

 knowledge of the early stages of the work under the direction of the 

 State Board of Agriculture. I would be glad, therefore, to have you give 

 me what information you can, that I may embody the same, together with 

 an account of the work since the State assumed control, in a report to 

 Mr. Hamilton. 



"Please state as fully as you can, when and where the first farmers' 

 institutes were held, and under what general and local auspices. What 

 men were prominently identified with the work -at the beginning? Any 

 information that you can give me, and any reference to other sources of 

 information, will be thankfully received." 



Several replies were received. These letters being chiefly written 

 from memory and relating to events which happened nearly, if not quite, 

 a score of years since, some slight inaccuracies may be expected. It is 

 believed, however, that in the main they are substantially correct, as 

 they throw some additional light upon the early institutes. Extracts from 

 these letters are given below: 



From Mr. J. B. Conner, editor of the Indiana Farmer, Indianapolis: 



"I iam in receipt of your letter of the 11th iust., inquiring about the 

 first movements for farmers' Institutes in this State. I am so very busy 

 that it is Impossible now to look up this .data, though I am sure that if 

 you would write Mr. R. M. Lockhart, Waterloo, Ind., he could give you 



