The Challenge of the Land‐Grant Centennial 1

THE membership of the American Society of Agronomy in its annual meeting salutes two organizations which are observing their hundredth anniversary and whose successful development in the past hundred years has had a profound influence on American agronomists. In 1862 Congress enacted two laws creating separate organizations which have contributed greatly to the welfare of all our citizens and have had an impact on many other nations of the world. The United States Department of Agriculture was created on May 15, 1862. The first Morrill Act became law on July 2 of the same year, creating the basis for the establishment of a national system of higher education—the land-grant colleges and universities. The title of agronomist was used first during the late 1890's, according to C. J. Willard. Agronomy and other agricultural science areas are products of the land-grant colleges. These colleges have produced most of the agronomists and other agricultural scientists of our nation. It is significant that the two organizations created by the Congressional acts of one hundred years ago have paralleled each other in growth and development. This parallelism has been mutually helpful as each organization has