5. Significant Years 1845-55Potato famine in Ireland and the German Revolution of 1848 greatly increase immigration 1887-97Drought reduces settlement on the Great Plains 1940sMany former southern sharecroppers migrate to war-related jobs in cities 1991Farm entrepreneurial population: 5,024,000
6. Farm Economy 18th centuryNorthern farmers produce a variety of crops and livestock; Southern plantation agriculture concentrates on export crops. 1850-61The South, with its primarily agricultural economy, is politically strong 1889-1919Farm prosperity
7. Farm Economy 1910sFarm credit is a steadily growing rural issue 1920Collapse of agricultural prices 1932Farm prices and income reach Depression bottom 1950Large agricultural surpluses
8. Farm Economy 1966Federal minimum wage extended to some farm workers 1972Russian wheat sale brings higher farm prices 1980sFarm financial crisis affects farmers with heavy debt loads 1996Net farm income reaches a record $54.9 billion
9. Corps & Livestock 17th and 18th centuriesNew crops from Europe include clover, alfalfa, timothy, small grains, and fruits and vegetables; 1805-15Cotton begins to replace tobacco as the chief southern cash crop 1849First poultry exhibition in the United States1874-76 Grasshopper plagues in the West.,1877 U.S. Entomological Commission established for work on grasshopper control 1900-20Extensive experimental work to breed disease-resistant varieties of plants,
10. Corps & Livestock 1910-20Grain production reaches into the most arid sections of the Great Plain 1930-35Use of hybrid-seed corn becomes common in the Corn Belt 1945-55Increased use of herbicides and pesticides 196096% of corn acreage planted with hybrid seed 1990sBiotechnology brings important new developments in dairy, corn, and other commodities; genetically engineered crops and livestock appear