Combine harvesting an Iowa farm field

Agriculture

Agriculture is an occupation. It's a lifestyle and a business. It involves producing crops and raising livestock. 

The first people who arrived in the area now known as Iowa were farmers. They planted corn, beans, squash and pumpkins. When European settlers arrived, they too decided to make a living from Iowa’s rich soil by planting crops and raising animals such as cows and pigs. As time passed, Iowans used railroads and waterways to turn farming into big business. From the pizza delivered to your front door or the ethanol fueling your car, agriculture now provides us with products that were unimaginable to the first Iowans.

With advances in science and technology, agriculture has changed. But here's something that hasn't changed: People all over the world depend on Iowa’s farm products. Can you predict how the business, science, and lifestyle of agriculture will be different in the future? How will those changes affect you?

From the days of growing simple vegetables to today's diversified farming, explore the rich story of agriculture in Iowa. Your discoveries may surprise you!

 

My Path

  1. Meredith Willson
  2. Steamboats on the River
  3. The Most Satisfactory Investment for the County Physician Harry P. Engle, M.D. Newton, Iowa
  4. Trucking Along
  5. The First Bridge Over the Mississippi and the Effie Afton
  6. The Tricky Missouri River and the Steamboat Bertrand
  7. Iowa Past to Present Teacher's Guide: Chapter 5 Pioneer Life on the Prairie
  8. Iowa Past to Present Teacher's Guide: Chapter 6: Rivers, Trails, and Train Tracks, Transportation in the 1800s
  9. Iowa Past to Present Teacher's Guide: Chapter 7: A Nation Divided
  10. Iowa Past to Present Teacher's Guide: Chapter 8: Settlers from Many Lands
  11. Iowa Past to Present Teacher's Guide: Chapter 10: Schools for a New State
  12. Iowa Past to Present Teacher's Guide: Chapter 11: Keeping Faith on the Frontier
  13. Iowa Past to Present Teacher's Guide: Chapter 12: Experiments in Community Living
  14. Iowa Past to Present Teacher's Guide: Chapter 18: A Time of Many Changes
  15. Iowa

Pathways

How has agriculture in Iowa changed over time?

Media Artifacts

Investigation Tip:
Get up-close and in-depth when examining artifacts such as photographs. Look for details such as clothing, technologies or street signs in old photographs to learn more about the past.

Web Sites