For the next several weeks the Friday Footnote will be visiting Missouri – The Show Me State. It will be interesting to learn what the Show Me State has to show us about agricultural and extension education.
A few weeks ago we learned about the segregated state fairs in several southern states. The reason for that topic was because some agricultural educators who grew up in the northern United States had never heard of segregated state fairs during the days of segregation. Today, the table is turned. I grew up in Texas and had never heard of a Boys’ State Fair School in Texas. So, in researching this Footnote, I was educated about Boys’ State Fair Schools. In the process I learned that Missouri was not the only state that had them, but we will focus on the Boy’s State Fair School Missouri.
In the Beginning
The decision to have a Boys’ State Fair School in Missouri was made in 1913. An article in the June 4, 1913 Carrolton Daily Democrat (Carrolton, Missouri) with the title “Boys’ State Fair School” provided the details. I have transcribed the newspaper article below to make it easier to read. The same article was published in numerous Missouri newspapers.
The Missouri State Fair directors have decided to have a Boy’s State Fair School composed of one boy from each county in the state. The boys of this school shall be cared for in Sedalia and be the guests of the Fair. Their selection in various counties shall be according to rules prescribed by the following committee: Wm. P. Evans, chairman; John T. Stinson, secretary; W. A. Dallmeyer and F. B. Mumford.
The committee prescribes the following preliminary rules:
- George W. Reavis, Jefferson City, is appointed manager of the Boy’s State Fair School [Note: Reavis was inspector of rural schools for the state. Later he was state director of vocational education.]
- The County Superintendent of Schools and one other to be chosen by the committee shall have charge of the contest in each county to determine the county representative.
- The contest shall be open to boys who shall on October 1, 1913, be between 12 and 17 years of age, and shall be based one-half on elementary school subjects and one-half on agriculture according to rules to be announced by the committee.
- The representative selected under these rules shall have no claim on the fair for their expenses in going to the fair and returning from it, but it shall be the duty of the fair to provide free entertainment, instruction and supervision during the fair. Failure on the part of any county representative to comply with the camp requirements shall be grounds for expulsion and shall cancel any obligation of the fair.
- The boys of the B. S. F. S. shall give one-half of their time during the fair to such duties as the committee shall prescribe. The other part of their time shall be devoted to study of the exhibits under expert direction.
- An examination will be conducted in each county between Sept. 1st and 15th 1913 to determine the county representative. The grades in this examination shall be based one-fourth on each of the following”
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- An essay of 250-300 words on “Corn Growing.”
- Five questions in Elementary Agriculture.
- Five questions in Arithmetic.
- Five questions in Geography.
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Questions in the last three subjects will be furnished by the state manager.
This is the first attempt of the kind in this State and it is to be hoped the county superintendents will urge the boys of their respective counties to enter the contest. The successful boy will have an opportunity to enjoy the fair and receive valuable instruction, with only the cost of transportation. While at the fair the boys will be in charge of competent supervisors and no parent need to have fears about their safety. Every effort will be made by the Board of Agriculture to make this Boys’ School a pleasant and profitable occasion.
For further information address Supt. Wm. P. Evans, chairman, or Geo. W. Reavis, Manager, Jefferson City, MO.
The County School Superintendents took the responsibility of recruiting and examining boys to represent their counties seriously. For example, James L. Lynch, Superintendent of Schools for Saline County published the following article in The Saline County Weekly Progress (Marshall, Missouri) on August 15, 1913.
Figure 2. The Saline County Weekly Progress (Marshall, Missouri), August 15, 1913. The 1613 should be 1913.
The Boys’ State Fair School was a Success
It appears the Boy’s State Fair School was a great success. This conclusion is based on two pieces of evidence. The first is a photograph published in The Sheldon Enterprise (Sheldon, Missouri) on August 18, 1916. I haven’t counted the number of boys in the photo but it would appear that every county in Missouri is represented.
Figure 3. The Sheldon Enterprise (Sheldon, Missouri), August 18, 1916.
One of the required activities of the boys attending the school was to write an article about their experiences to be published in the local newspaper. In 1918 Clifford Milligan wrote about his experience at the Boy’s State Fair School. It was published in The Metz (Missouri) Times on September 13. 1918. This is typical, but perhaps a bit longer, than similar letters published by other boys in their home newspapers. The title of Clifford’s article was “My Trip to the Missouri State Fair”. To make reading easier, I have transcribed his letter verbatim:
The Missouri State Fair was a great success this year, and I am highly pleased to think that I was one of the one hundred and eight boys who attended the Boys’ State Fair School carried on in connection with the State Fair.
The Boys’ State Fair School is composed of one boy from each county and ten boys making the best showing at the fair last year. This boy from each county is chosen by a competitive examination given by the county superintendent. Three boys beside myself took the exam this year, and I was the lucky one. I was furnished my meals, tent, cot and a pass into the fairgrounds and the grandstand.
The fair began on Saturday, August 10, but I didn’t leave until Sunday. I took the M. K. & T. out of Nevada at 10:32 in the forenoon. The crops began to look better as I left Vernon County, but there were not many fine looking corn fields. I arrived in Sedalia about 3 o’clock in the afternoon and took a street car to the fair ground. I was admitted on a ticket which I carried and started up main street, not knowing which way to go. But soon a boy wearing a Boys’ State Fair School Badge walked up to me and asked if I was a member of the B. S. F. S. I told him “yes.” He took me to the headquarters tent where I gave my name and address, was assigned to a tent, and told to report back at 5:45.
I will now give you some idea of what we boys were required to do. We arose about 6 o’clock and marched to breakfast. After breakfast we drilled until 8:30 under the direction of Lieut. C. C. Allen, director of athletics, Warrensburg, Mo. At 8:30 we went to the assembly tent for roll call and to listen to lectures until noon. After dinner we could do as we pleased until supper and after supper until 10 o’clock at night. Mr. T. J. Walker had charge of the Boys’ State Fair School.
The lectures, which we were given, were extra good. They were made by the most prominent men in the state.
Mr. Sam Jordan gave us two lectures, one on “The Upbuilding of a Community” and the other “Seed Corn Improvement.” Dean Mumford talked on “Character and Ideals.” Mr. W. B. McKee gave us two lectures. One on “Sheep and Wool” and the other a plain talk on the war in which he gave us this American creed: ”I believe in the United States of America as a government of the people, by the people, for the people, whose just powers are derived from the consent of the governed; a democracy in a republic, a sovereign nation of many sovereign states; a perfect union, one and inseparable, established upon those principles of freedom, equality, justice and humanity for which American patriots sacrificed their lives and fortunes. I therefore believed it is my duty to my country to love it, to support its constitution, to obey its laws, to respect its flag, and to defend it against all enemies.”
Mr. E. G. Bennett made a talk on Jersey cattle. Dr. Lucky told about “Tuberculosis of Stock.” Mr. L. P. Childers talked on “Fertilizers and Soils.” C. T. Patterson gave us two lectures on poultry. One on “Poultry and Poultry Products” and the other “Balanced Ration for Poultry.” Anyone desiring information regarding poultry should write to D.T. Patterson, Springfield, Mo., R. F. D. 4.
Kelly Wright gave us a fine talk on German history, in which he traced the nation from several years B. C up until the present time.
All the exhibits at the fair were good. There were four breeds of dairy cattle exhibited, 51 Jerseys, 39 Holsteins, 54 Ayrshire, and 39 Gurnseys. There was also four breeds of beef shown. 101 Herefords, 43 Angus, 26 Shorthorns and 11 Galloways.
There were 77 Percheron horses, 4 Belgians, 1 Shire, and 67 light horses. There were 26 mules and 182 sheep.
There were 189 Poland China hogs, 74 Spotted Polands, 165 Duroc Jerseys, 148 Chester Whites, 48 Hampshires and 15 Berkshires.
All breeds and varieties of poultry were shown.
The horticulture display was not as large as usual, but I thought it did very well, everything considered. There was very little new corn, but there were considerable fruit and vegetables shown.
There were not many tractors shown, just the Fordson, Bates, Emerson, Cleveland and the Russell.
The government exhibit was fine. They showed mines, depth bombs, torpedo, different size projectiles for guns, bayonets, guns, helmets, gas masks, tents, periscopes, clothing, battleship models, the Lewis machine gun, the light and heavy Browning and an armored motor car.
The attractions were many and varied. On Monday and Saturday afternoons there was automobile racing. Louis Disbrow broke the Sedalia track record for speed making a mile in 52 1/10 seconds. A horse show and the spectacle “World at War” was given every night in front of the grandstand. There was horse racing Tuesday, Wednesday, Thursday and Friday afternoons.
Again, I want to say I enjoyed the fair very much, and I want to thank the state for giving me this privilege of attending the Boy’s State Fair School.
Conclusion
From all accounts it appears the Missouri Boy’s State Fair School was a unique and interesting approach to agricultural education in the first half of the 20th century. However, Missouri was not the only state with a Boy’s State Fair School. A perusal of Newspapers.com finds articles about Boys’ State Fair Schools in Indiana, Illinois, Michigan, and Oklahoma. In Wisconsin, Nebraska and Minnesota there were Boys’ State Fair Encampments. It is possible other states had such schools or encampments, but they were short lived or have not been well documented.
Figure 4. A watch fob from the Illinois Boy’s State Fair School, circa 1930s
It appears the Boy’s State Fair Schools started in the 1910s, primarily in the mid-west and continued for several decades. In Indiana there were Boys’ State Fair Schools up until the 1970s.
If one were to write a comprehensive history of agricultural education in America, it would be important to include the Boy’s State Fair Schools. There are more ways to teach agriculture than the standard school based approach to agricultural education, and we should recognize that fact. And yes, there were state fair schools or encampments for girls, but that is a story for another time.