USDA Celebrates 150 Years
The 2012 Smithsonian Folklife Festival
commemorated the 150th anniversary of the founding of land-grant universities and the USDA. Visit our Storify page to read highlights and view photos from the Festival and USDA's 150th anniversary.
Secretaries of Agriculture - 30 Leaders; 150 years
True to his roots as a frontier farm boy, on May 15, 1862, President Abraham Lincoln signed legislation to create the U.S. Department of Agriculture. Over the next two months - in the midst of the Civil War - he signed additional legislation that expanded and transformed American farming, including the Homestead Act, and the establishment of the Land Grant agricultural university system.
Learn more about how USDA touches the lives of each and every American every day by subscribing to the 150th factoids.
Events to Commemorate the 150th
June 27 - July 1 and July 4 - 8, 2012
Smithsonian Folklife Festival - The Mall on Jefferson Street, Washington, DC
The year 1862 marks the founding of two types of institutions that touch the lives of people across the United States and the world every single day: public universities and the U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA). Public and land-grant universities and the USDA partner with communities to put research into action in the areas of agriculture and food, health care, sustainable living, urban and rural revitalization, and education. This Festival program will bring these partnerships to life through demonstrations, discussions, and hands-on activities. Visit www.festival.si.edu for more information.
May 15, 2012 Day of Celebration - Washington, DC
USDA held a special recognition event hosted by Joe Scarborough and Mika Brzezinski of MSNBC's "Morning Joe". USDA also welcomed NFL stars Art Monk and LaVar Arrington, Rolling Stones keyboardist Chuck Leavell, and several current and former USDA employees to help highlight the work of the Department. Watch video of the 150th Anniversary Celebration event.
February 23 - 24, 2012 Agriculture Outlook Forum - Crystal Gateway Hotel, Arlington, VA
In his keynote address, Secretary Vilsack launched the celebration of the 150th anniversary of the People's Department.
The Secretary then moderated a panel with 8 former Secretaries. Watch the discussions:
- Panel: Agriculture: Visions of the Future (Part I)
- Panel: Agriculture: Visions of the Future (Part II)
See the program for the Forum at www.usda.gov/oce/forum.