Early Dairy Industry Roots From 1624 Devon Herd to American Markets
The dairy industry traces to 1624 when the Charity delivered a bull and three heifers to Plymouth Colony. Cattle spread through New England, with rising export demand to the West Indies before overstocking and price drops. By the mid 1800s dairy profits grew as top New York farmers earned substantial butter, cheese, and milk from dozens of cows.
MENTIONED IN THIS ARTICLE
Noecker
Charity
Plymouth Colony
Devon
Edward Winslow
Plymouth Colon
William Bradford
Massachusetts
New England
West Indies
New York
Dain Industr
From Colonial Milk to Modern Dairy Yields
The article notes low milk production in colonial times with Israel Acrebus reporting cows delivering two quarts twice daily. It contrasts with modern farms where daily yields reach 25 to 75 quarts, and explains gradual gains from 1790 onward due to better forage and selective breeding around 1800.
MENTIONED IN THIS ARTICLE
Israel Acrebus
Philadelphia society award for abstinence farming prize
In 1825 the Philadelphia Society for Promoting Agriculture offered a $50 gold medal to any person who farmed without using ardent spirits for two years unless prescribed by a physician. No claimant pursued the premium. Home stills were long a main cash crop on farms.
MENTIONED IN THIS ARTICLE
Philadelphia Socrets For
Clover and plaster like man and wife farming adage
An Amherst County Virginia farmer described liming acidic soil to boost hay and forage yields with the saying clover and plaster like man and wife ought never to be divorced. The old adage highlights lime as a long standing soil amendment for better pasture and crop production.
MENTIONED IN THIS ARTICLE
Amherst County
Forage Production Advances Through Lime and Machinery
The article notes lime as a key agricultural practice praised by Sporrs New Holland and Virginia farmers for soil improvement. It highlights modern hay handling equipment enabling a toiler to manage large hay yields with a single operator. The piece ends with a paraphrase about Clover and modern machinery and a proverb on marriage.
MENTIONED IN THIS ARTICLE
Lming
Sporrs New Holland
Wheat yields in New York fall after poor fertilizer use
The article notes during the Revolutionary era wheat fields in New York State yielded 25 to 35 bushels per acre. Over the next fifty years poor fertilizing practices reduced yields to several bushels per acre.
MENTIONED IN THIS ARTICLE
Revoluion
New York State
Fragmentary Agrarian Quote Reaches German Farriers
Partial OCR text describes German farriers and maintenance of profitable sprardens near their homes. The readable lines mention submitting to the Goermans and a reference to horticulture. The fragment lacks clear dates names places or events to specify further.
MENTIONED IN THIS ARTICLE
Goermans
Also Mentioned on This Page
America
Dauphin County
Christian Noecker
Harrisburg
Philadelphia
Agrifacts
Virginia
Tarr’s Dairy Store
Card
Lester
Doris Covert
Farmco, Inc
State St
Seneca Falls
Blue Seal Feeds
Steel & Pole Buildings
E. E. Miller & Son
Geneva
German’s Gas Co
Ovid, NY
This is just the beginning! Our collection holds over 300 years of history, including rare newspapers, obituaries, marriage records, birth records, and so much more—most of which you won’t find anywhere else!