32 
BULLETIN 1432, U. S. DEPARTMENT OF AGRICULTURE 
farmers gain in age they gain in wealth. Their surplus wealth is 
usually invested in land which, so far as they can, they themselves 
farm until advancing age makes it necessary to sell their land or rent 
it to tenants. 
As a group, the operating owners of unmortgaged farms are the 
oldest farmers. Their ages average about 51 years. It is from this 
group of farmers that a large proportion of the farm landlords are 
AGE OF MORTGAGE-FREE OWNER FARMERS, UNITED STATES, 1920, AND AGE 
AT RETIREMENT FROM FARMING OF LANDLORDS WITH EXPERIENCE AS 
FARMERS 
PER CENT OF MORTGAGE - TREE 
OWNER FARMERS WHO WERE 
IN EACH AGE GROUP 
50 40 30 20 10 
AGE 
Under 25 
25 to 35 
35 to 45 
45 to 55 
55 to 65 
65 and over 
PER CENT OF RETIRED FARMER 
LANDLORDS WHO RETIRED AT 
THE AGE INDICATED 
10 20 30 40 50 
14.7 
25.0 
35.0 
18.0 
Fig. 13. — The age distribution of mortgage-free owner farmers is very similar to the retirement age of land- 
lords with experience as farmers, the retirement age being slightly more and averaging 53.6 years as com- 
pared with an average of about 51 years for the age of mortgage-free owner farmers. The left-hand por- 
tion of the graph is based on the 1920 census, while the right-hand portion is based on replies received 
from farm landlords of 40 years of age or over 
recruited. From about the age of 51 more full owners operating 
unmortgaged farms die, change their occupation, or retire from farm- 
ing than there are men who attain the status. Owners of rented 
farms who have farmed for themselves and retired discontinued 
active farming at an age that averaged 53.6 years. This age is only 
a few years older than that of the average age of farmers who operate 
unmortgaged farms (fig. 13.) 
Table 19. — Percentage distribution by age of farmers of selected tenure and of 
farm landlords, 1920 
Percentage distribution by age ' 
Age 
Tenant 
farmers 
Full 
owners 
farming 
unmort- 
gaged 
farms 
Farm 
land- 
lords 
Farm 
land- 
lords 
at retire- 
ment 
Under 25 years 
Per cent 
12.0 
31.1 
26.0 
18.4 
8.5 
4.0 
Per cent 
1.8 
10.2 
20.0 
26.3 
24.0 
17.7 
Per cent 
0.5 
3.5 
12.0 
22.6 
30.1 
31.3 
Per cent 
0.2 
25 to 34 years 
7.1 
35 to 44 years 
14.7 
45 to 54 years 
25.0 
55 to 64 years.. 
35.0 
65 years and over 
18.0 
Total 
100.0 
100.0 
100.0 
100.0 
1 The distributions shown are based on the ages in 1920 of 2,424,493 tenant farmers, 2,117,459 farmers oper- 
ating unmortgaged farms of which they owned all of the land, and 23,916 farm landlords, with the ages at 
which 7,583 of the farm landlords retired from farming. 
