The Grange Movement
National Grange of the Order of Patrons of Husbandry
The Grange, officially named The National Grange of the Order of Patrons of Husbandry, is a fraternal organization in the United States that encourages families to band together to promote the economic and political well-being of the community and agriculture. The Grange, founde…
What was on of the political goals of the Grange?
The Grange, founded after the Civil War in 1867, is the oldest American agricultural advocacy group with a national scope. The Grange actively lobbied state legislatures and Congress for political goals, such as the Granger Laws to lower rates charged by railroads, and rural free mail delivery by the Post Office.
What was the Grange and what did it do?
What was the Grange and what did it do? The Grange, officially named The National Grange of the Order of Patrons of Husbandry, is a social organization in the United States that encourages families to band together to promote the economic and political well-being of the community and agriculture.
What was major aim of the Grange and populist movements?
The Populist movement was most interested in improving conditions for farmers In the late 1800s, the Granger movement tried to improve conditions for farmers by forcing railroads to lower their rates The Farmer is the Man When the farmer comes to town With his wagon broken down, Oh, the farmer is the man Who feeds them all. . . .
What did the Grange begin as?
The Granger Movement was begun in the late 1860s by farmers who called for government regulation of railroads and other industries whose prices and practices, they claimed, were monopolistic and unfair. Membership was open to both men and women, and each local group was known as a Grange. What did the Grange movement do?
What was the Granger movement?
What is the National Grange?
What did the Grangers do at their meetings?
What is the origin of agriculture?
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What caused the Granger movement?
The financial crisis of 1873, along with falling crop prices, increases in railroad fees to ship crops, and Congress's reduction of paper money in favor of gold and silver devastated farmers' livelihoods and caused a surge in Grange membership in the mid-1870s.
Why did farmers start the Grange movement Populist Party?
What drew most farmers to the Granger movement was the need for unified action against the monopolistic railroads and grain elevators (often owned by the railroads) that charged exorbitant rates for handling and transporting farmers' crops and other agricultural products.
What was the purpose of the Grange movement quizlet?
Its original purpose was to provide a social outlet and an educational forum for isolated farm families. By the 1870s, however, Grange members spent most of their time and energy fighting the railroads.
What were the goals of National Grange?
The National Grange of the Patrons of Husbandry (the Grange) was a fraternal society founded in Washington, D.C., in 1867. Its aim was to advance the political, economic, and social interests of the nation's farmers.
How did the Grange help farmers?
The Grange, also known as the Patrons of Husbandry, was organized in 1867 to assist farmers with purchasing machinery, building grain elevators, lobbying for government regulation of railroad shipping fees and providing a support network for farm families. By the early 1870s there were more than one million members.
Which is a goal shared by the Granger and Populist movements?
The frustrated farmers eventually organized around the Granger organizations in order to push for regulation of the railroads and their rates. Explanation: The idea of "Free Silver" (the open coinage of silver backed dollars, as opposed to those backed by more expensive gold) was one supported by the Populist Party.
What concern for farmers were Granger Laws hoping to address?
The Granger laws were a group of laws enacted by states off Minnesota, Iowa, Wisconsin, and Illinois in the late 1860s and early 1870s intended to regulate rapidly rising crop transport and storage fees railroads and grain elevator companies charged farmers.
Why did farmers think that a new political party was needed to bring about reform?
Why did farmers think that a new political party was needed to bring about reform? The major parties didn't represent farmers' interests. Farmers wanted a voice in government. be a Populist alternative to the Democratic and Republican Parties.
The Grange Movement, 1875 - Gilder Lehrman Institute of American History
The Grange Movement, 1875 | The Patrons of Husbandry, or the Grange, was founded in 1867 to advance methods of agriculture, as well as to promote the social and economic needs of farmers in the United States. The financial crisis of 1873, along with falling crop prices, increases in railroad fees to ship crops, and Congress’s reduction of paper money in favor of gold and silver devastated ...
The Grange and the Populist Party Platform: Goals, History ...
The Granger Movement and Farmers' Alliances. Beginning in 1867, the Granger movement took shape in America's farmland. Formally known as the National Grange of the Patrons of Husbandry, the ...
What did the Grangers support?
Both at the state and national level, Grangers gave their support to reform minded groups such as the Greenback Party, the Populist Party, and, eventually, the Progressives. This lithograph, published in 1875, is a modification of the Grange motto, "I pay for all.".
Why was the Patrons of Husbandry founded?
The Patrons of Husbandry, or the Grange, was founded in 1867 to advance methods of agriculture, as well as to promote the social and economic needs of farmers in the United States. The financial crisis of 1873, along with falling crop prices, increases in railroad fees to ship crops, and Congress’s reduction of paper money in favor ...
What was the purpose of the Patrons of Husbandry?
The Patrons of Husbandry, or the Grange, was founded in 1867 to advance methods of agriculture, as well as to promote the social and economic needs of farmers in the United States. The financial crisis of 1873, along with falling crop prices, increases in railroad fees to ship crops, and Congress’s reduction of paper money in favor of gold and silver devastated farmers’ livelihoods and caused a surge in Grange membership in the mid-1870s. Both at the state and national level, Grangers gave their support to reform-minded groups such as the Greenback Party, the Populist Party, and, eventually, the Progressives.
What was the goal of the Grange movement?
The Grange Movement began in the 1860’s as a grassroots effort to improve conditions for farmers in the Midwest. The original Grangers were led by Oliver Kelley, a farmer and agent for the Minnesota Department of Agriculture. Kelley’s goal was to organize farmers to gain greater influence in the industry, bargaining, and purchasing power that would allow them to compete against oppressive monopolies. Grangers purchased machinery and built infrastructure such as grain elevators. They lobbied government for regulatory change to support their operations.
What was the purpose of the Grange Halls?
The halls were a gathering place for business, civic, and political meetings and also became hubs for social, cultural, and community events.
What was the first male-dominated organization to empower females to become full-fledged members?
Ohio History Central notes that the National Grange was the first male-dominated organization to empower females to become full-fledged members. Youth also actively participated in Grange membership. The modern FFA grew out of the Grange Movement.
What was the Granger movement?
GRANGER MOVEMENT. The Granger movement grew out of a farmers' lodge, the Patrons of Husbandry, founded in 1867 by Oliver Hudson Kelley. While employed by the Department of Agriculture, Kelley made a tour of the South and was struck by the enslavement of southern farmers to outworn methods of agriculture. He believed the situation could best be remedied by an organization that would bring farmers together in groups for the study and discussion of their problems. Accordingly, with the help of a few interested friends, he devised a secret ritualistic order, equally open to women and to men, and became its first organizer. Each local unit, or Grange, was admonished to select among its officers a "lecturer," whose duty should be to provide some educational diversion, such as a lecture or a paper, for every meeting.
When was the Granger movement started?
GRANGER MOVEMENT. The Granger Movement was begun in the late 1860s by farmers who called for government regulation of railroads and other industries whose prices and practices, they claimed, were monopolistic and unfair.
How many Granges were there in the mid-1870s?
Member-ship claims reached a maximum during the mid-1870s of about 800,000, with the total number of Granges estimated at about 20,000. The center of Granger activity remained during the entire period in the grain-growing region of the upper Mississippi Valley.
What was the purpose of the Granger Lodge meetings?
At Granger lodge meetings and picnics, farmers exhorted one another to nominate and elect to office only those who shared their views. In case corporation control over the Republican and Democratic Parties could not be overthrown, they planned to form independent, reform, or antimonopoly parties through which to carry on the fight. So many farmers made Independence Day 1873 an occasion for airing these views that the celebration was long remembered as the Farmers' Fourth of July. On that day, many rural audiences listened with approval to the reading of a "Farmers' Declaration of Independence ," which recited farmers' grievances and asserted their determination to use the power of the state to free themselves from the tyranny of monopoly. Victories at the polls led to the passage of a series of so-called Granger laws for the regulation of railroads and warehouses, not only in Illinois but also in several other northwestern states. These measures were not always well drawn, and for the most part they were soon repealed or drastically modified. Nevertheless, the U.S. Supreme Court, in Munn v. Illinois and a number of other cases, all decided in 1877, sustained the Granger contention that businesses of a public nature could, in accordance with the federal Constitution, be subjected to state regulation—a precedent of far-reaching consequence.
What were the Granger laws?
Victories at the polls led to the passage of a series of so-called Granger laws for the regulation of railroads and warehouses, not only in Illinois but also in several other northwestern states . These measures were not always well drawn, and for the most part they were soon repealed or drastically modified.
What were the grievances of the Northwestern farmers?
The grievances that drove the northwestern farmers into these organizations grew out of their almost complete dependence on outside markets for the disposal of their produce and on corporation-owned elevators and railroads for its handling. The high prices that accompanied the Civil War in the United States and the Bismarckian wars in Europe enabled the farmers, during those wars, to pay the high charges the corporations exacted. After these conflicts, when prices began to drop, the grain growers found themselves in acute distress. In 1869 they paid at the rate of 52.5 cents a bushel to send grain from the Mississippi River to the Atlantic seaboard and nearly half as much to send it from an Iowa or Minnesota farm to Chicago. Elevators, often owned by the railroads, charged high prices for their services, weighed and graded grain without supervision, and used their influence with the railroads to ensure that cars were not available to farmers who sought to evade elevator service.
How much did grain growers pay in 1869?
After these conflicts, when prices began to drop, the grain growers found themselves in acute distress. In 1869 they paid at the rate of 52.5 cents a bushel to send grain from the Mississippi River to the Atlantic seaboard and nearly half as much to send it from an Iowa or Minnesota farm to Chicago.
Why was the Grange important?
The Grange had played an important role by demonstrating that farmers were capable of organizing and advocating a political agenda. After witnessing the eclipse of its advocacy efforts by other groups, the Grange reverted to its original educational and social events.
What was the Grange's early years?
In its early years, the Grange was devoted to educational events and social gatherings. Growth was slow in the early years, but the attraction of social events was considerable.
What caused the Grange to spread?
Following the Panic of 1873, the Grange spread rapidly throughout the farm belt, since farmers in all areas were plagued by low prices for their products, growing indebtedness and discriminatory treatment by the railroads. These concerns helped to transform the Grange into a political force.
What political groups were formed in the Grange?
New organizations with more potent messages emerged, including the Greenback Party of the 1870s, the Farmers' Alliances of the 1880s and the Populist Party of the 1890s.
What were the Grange laws?
Grange influence was particularly strong in Iowa, Minnesota, Wisconsin and Illinois, where political pressure yielded a series of "Granger laws" designed to give legislative assistance to the farmers.
What were the Grangers' programs in the 1870s?
During the 1870s, the Grangers advocated programs such as the following: Cooperative purchasing ventures as a means to obtain lower prices on farm equipment and supplies.
What is cooperative grain elevator?
Cooperative grain elevators to hold non-perishable crops until the optimal times to sell
What was the Granger movement?
The Granger movement supported efforts by politicians to regulate rates charged by the railroads and grain warehouses. It claimed credit for the ideas of the Cooperative Extension Service, Rural Free Delivery, and the Farm Credit System.
Why is the Grange important?
The Grange provides opportunities for individuals and families to develop to their highest potential in order to build stronger communities and states, as well as a stronger nation.
What led to the decline of the Grange?
Rapid growth infused the national organization with money from dues, and many local granges established consumer cooperatives, initially supplied by the wholesaler Aaron Montgomery Ward. Poor fiscal management, combined with organizational difficulties resulting from rapid growth, led to a massive decline in membership. By the turn of the 20th century, the Grange rebounded and membership stabilized.
Why were women important to the granges?
The organization was unusual at this time, because women and any teen old enough to draw a plow (aged 14 to 16) were encouraged to participate. The importance of women was reinforced by requiring that four of the elected positions could be held only by women.
What is the Grange?
The Grange, officially named The National Grange of the Order of Patrons of Husbandry, is a social organization in the United States that encourages families to band together to promote the economic and political well-being of the community and agriculture. The Grange, founded after the Civil War in 1867, is the oldest American agricultural ...
How old do you have to be to join the Grange?
Regular Grange membership is open to anyone age 14 or older. The Grange Youth, a group within the Grange, consists of members 13 1/2 to 35. In 2013, the Grange signed on to a letter to Congress calling for the doubling of legal immigration and legalization for undocumented immigrants currently in the United States.
When was The Grange first published?
The Grange is mentioned in Stephen King's novel The Stand, originally published in 1978.
Why was the Grange important?
Although the Grange, like the Masons, began primarily as a social organization designed to provide educational and recreational opportunities for farmers , it evolved into a major political force. Farmers who gathered at local Grange Halls often voiced similar complaints about the high rates charged by warehouses and railroads to handle their grain, and they began to organize for state and federal controls over these pivotal economic issues. The Grange smartly recognized the importance of including women, who often proved to be the organization’s most dedicated members.
Who organized the Grange?
Oliver Kelley organizes the Grange. Former Minnesota farmer Oliver Hudson Kelley founds the Grange, which became a powerful political force among western farmers. Though he grew up in Boston, Kelley decided in his early twenties that he wanted to become a farmer.
What was the Granger movement?
Granger movement, coalition of U.S. farmers, particularly in the Middle West, that fought monopolistic grain transport practices during the decade following the American Civil War.
What is the National Grange?
The National Grange, as it is called, remains a fraternal organization of farmers and takes an active stance on national legislation affecting the agricultural sector.
What did the Grangers do at their meetings?
At their Grange meetings farmers were urged to vote only for candidates who would promote agricultural interests. If the two major parties would not check the monopolistic practices of railroads and grain elevators, the Grangers turned to their own parties for action.
What is the origin of agriculture?
origins of agriculture, the active production of useful plants or animals in ecosystems that have been created by people. Agriculture has often been conceptualized narrowly, in terms of specific combinations of activities and organisms—wet-rice production in Asia, wheat farming in Europe, cattle ranching in the Americas, and the like—but a…
