620 RURAL SOCIOLOGY 





gave the course almost every summer, though the name was 

 changed to " Rural Communities." 



... In the fall of 1902 Kenyon L. Butterfield was made 

 instructor in rural sociology at the University of Michigan and 

 gave his first course in that subject. In 1903 Mr. Butterfield 

 called attention to the importance of the study of the social 

 sciences by agricultural students in an article entitled "An 

 Untilled Field in American Agricultural Education," in which 

 he defined rural social science and outlined its content. In 1904 

 as president of the Rhode Island College of Agriculture and 

 Mechanic Arts he gave the first course in rural sociology given 

 in any of the land-grant colleges. 



.... Among the replies received, 35 have stated definitely when 

 the course was first given at that institution. By years, they 

 may be summarized as follows: 1894-5, Univ. Chicago; 1902, 

 Univ. Michigan ; 1904-5, R. I. College, and Cornell Univ. ; 1906-7, 

 Univ. Missouri and Mass. Agr. College ; 1908-9, Univ. No. Dakota ; 

 1910-11, 2 institutions; 1911-12, 2; 1912-13, 4; 1913-14, 5; 

 1914-15, 8; 1915-16, 5; 1916-17, 2 (announced). It seems safe 

 to infer that probably not over a dozen institutions were teach- 

 ing rural sociology prior to 1910, and that fully half of those 

 now offering courses have established them within the last three 

 years. 



Sixty-four per cent, of the 48 land-grant colleges; 45 per 

 cent, of the 20 state universities separate from land-grant 

 colleges; 32 per cent, of the 91 normal schools and 9 per 

 cent, of 300 other colleges arid universities; or 21 per cent, 

 of the total 459 institutions examined are teaching rural 

 sociology. It is obvious that in sparsely settled states like 

 Arizona, Montana, and New Mexico, there should be but little 

 demand for this subject, but it seems odd that agricultural states 

 like Nebraska and South Carolina should not have a single insti- 

 tution teaching this subject. It is also interesting to note that 

 the subject finds but little appreciation in the curricula of eastern 

 institutions. Thus of the 148 institutions in the fifteen states 

 of the Atlantic seaboard but 20, or 13 per cent., gave in- 

 struction in rural sociology and seventeen of these were land- 

 grant colleges, for of the ninety-five private colleges and uni- 

 versities in these states only three, Harvard University (and 



