6 BULLETIN 1068, U. S. DEPARTMENT OP AGRICULTURE. / 



slightly larger than the relative increase in number of farm opera- 

 tors. Since 1880 the total area planted to all crops has increased 

 about 3.5 times. 



The decades of 1870 to 1880 and 1890 to 1900 were the two out- 

 standing periods in the increase of the number of farm operators. 

 If data on tenancy were available for the former decade, these two 

 decades undoubtedly would also be shown as the outstanding periods 

 as regards increase of tenants in the area. The increase in number 

 of tenants in the single decade from 1890 to 1900 was 59.1 per cent 

 of the total increase in tenants from 1880 to 1920. Therefore, a 

 more intensified use of farm land has been the principal means 

 whereby the great increase in farm operators has been met; and 

 this use has taken the form of crop growing, so that in 1920, 89.6 

 per cent of all improved land was in some kind of crops. 



Table 2. 



-Utilization of land for farming purposes in the black land, by decades, 

 since I860. 1 



Census year. 



Total 

 number 

 of farms. 



Total 

 number 

 of acres 

 in farms. 



Per cent 

 of area 

 of black 

 land in 

 farms. 



Per cent 

 of farm 

 land im- 

 proved. 



Per cent 

 of farm 

 land in 

 crops. 



1860 



7,036 

 14,403 

 45,858 

 60, 513 

 93, 141 

 93,723 

 94,169 



3,963,34S 

 3,251,056 

 6,104,472 

 6,920,337 

 8, 552, 277 

 9,018,607 

 8, 535, 123. 



37.4 



30.7 

 57.7 

 65.4 

 80.8 

 85.2 

 80.6 



11.7 

 20.8 

 46.7 

 3 68.5 

 64.4 

 68.6 

 76.3 



( 5 ) 



1870 



27.3 



1880 



1890 



39.4 



1900 



54.1 



1910 : 



56.6 



1920 



65.5 







1 Computed from U. S. Census data. Data for 1860 slightly incorrect on account of county boundary 

 changes. 



2 Data not available for these dates. 



■ This per cent is increased because of a change in the definition of improved land. 



CHANGES IN SIZE AND TYPE OF FARMS AS RELATED TO TENURE GROWTH. 



Practically all of the good agricultural land of the black land was 

 granted to its original owners in holdings that were considerably 

 larger than the average size of holding at present. The maximum 

 amount of land ordinarily granted to a married man when Texas 

 was an independent nation was a league and a labor (4,605 acres), 

 and 640 acres after it became a State in the Union. The average size 

 of holdings in the area was probably increased rather than decreased 

 by the depression following the Civil War, which caused land values 

 to decline and stock raising to continue as the principal farm enter- 

 prise until 1870. By 1860 practically all good available agricultural 

 land was patented in holdings of an average size much larger than 

 the present average size of farms. 



After 1870, when great numbers of immigrants began to come into 

 the black land, changing the system of farming to crop growing, 

 many of the original owners of large tracts chose to retain owner- 



