74 THE GRANGER MOVEMENT 



was the development of a series of more or less independent 

 clubs, usually avowedly political, and always devoted to the 

 project of advancing the interests of the agricultural class in 

 every possible way. To many farmers the secret features of 

 the Grange were objectionable, while others disapproved of 

 its non-partisan attitude; and for these the farmers' club pre- 

 sented the most satisfactory solution of the problem of agri- 

 cultural organization. 1 Fostered by the same influences which 

 led to the great multiplication of granges, the number of these 

 farmers' clubs increased rapidly in many of the southern and 

 western states during the first half of the decade 1870-80. It 

 quickly became evident that some sort of machinery must be 

 developed whereby these clubs could work together for the com- 

 mon purpose, if they were to hold their place against the Patrons 

 of Husbandry and accomplish anything for the elevation of the 

 agricultural class. 



The first state in which the open farmers' clubs succeeded in 

 uniting, and the only state in which their organization had any 

 considerable importance, was Illinois. Even before the Civil 

 War some dissatisfaction with economic conditions made its 

 appearance among the farmers of this state, and on September 

 15, 1858, a convention of farmers met at Centralia, set forth their 

 grievances against the " non-producers " and proposed the forma- 

 tion of farmers' clubs which should " produce concert of action 

 on all matters connected with their interests." 2 During the 



1 It appears that a considerable number of Roman Catholic farmers did join 

 the Grange, especially in Minnesota, in spite of its secret features. See Prairie 

 Farmer, xliv. 315 (October 4, 1873), xlv. 107 (April 4, 1874); Richmond Whig and 

 Advertiser (semi- weekly), July 3, 1874, p. 3. In the South the question of organ- 

 ization for the negro farmers received some attention. Occasionally northern 

 Grangers, ignorant of conditions in the South, advised their southern brethren to 

 admit the negroes into their granges, and the master of the Missouri State Grange 

 declared his intention to organize separate granges for them, but there is no evi- 

 dence that any negroes ever became members of the order. There were some 

 efforts to establish an independent secret order of negro farmers similar to the 

 Patrons of Husbandry, but these seem to have had no results. See Prairie Farmer, 

 xliv. 275 (August 30, 1873); Industrial Age, September 27, 1873, P- 5> Western 

 Rural, xiii. 143 (May 8, 1875); Farmers' Home Journal, November 13, 1875, 

 p. 364. 



2 The only reference to this convention which has been found is in Jonathan 



