Information Sheet

 

 

R         East Prairie Farm Club (Morgan County, Mo.).

426                  Record book, 1916‑1923.

                                    One folder, photocopies.

 

 

 

This is a record book of a farm club which met at East Prairie School in eastern Morgan County, Missouri.  An affiliate of the Missouri Farmers’ Association, the club provided educa­tional and social programs for the area’s residents.  It met in conjunction with the East Prairie Liter­ary Society, 1921-1923.  The records include the constitution and bylaws, minutes of meet­ings, and membership lists.

 

The East Prairie Farm Club (sometimes referred to in the record book as the “East Prairie Farmers Club”) was organized at the East Prairie schoolhouse in eastern Morgan County, Mis­souri, on 24 April 1916.  It was one of a number of “School House Farm Clubs” estab­lished un­der the auspices of the Missouri Farmers’ Association.  This record book includes the constitu­tion, by­laws, minutes, and membership rolls of the organization through its last listed meeting on 16 March 1923.

 

The East Prairie rural community is located in Township 42 North, Range 16 West, near Barnett in eastern Morgan County.  Membership in the Farm Club appears to have been re­stricted to adult males.  As many as 28 men were listed on the rolls at any one time.  As origi­nally organ­ized the purpose of the club was professional and educational in nature, and meet­ings were de­voted to discussions, and even formalized debates, of such issues as farm legisla­tion, agri­cultural methods, and the “good roads” movement.  Guest speakers included Prof. W. H. Baker of the Uni­versity of Missouri College of Agriculture.  The first president of the club was J. E. Boan, suc­ceeded by H. D. Gunn in December 1916.

 

There are no entries in the record book between May 1917 and January 1921, when the club appears to have been inactive.  It was revived on 27 January 1921 under the leadership of H. M. Madole.  From this point on the nature of the club appears to have been more social than educa­tion­al.  Programs included spelling and ciphering matches and plays, some of which were pre­sented in neighboring communities as well as East Prairie.  In the fall of 1921 the club began joint meetings with the East Prairie Literary Society, apparently a women's organiza­tion, and some of the re­cords pertain to that group.  J. E. Boan resumed the presidency of the Farm Club in January 1922.

 

The club did not meet during the farmers’ “busy seasons,” which limited successful meet­ings to the cold‑weather months.  By 1923 Farm Club membership was 15, and the last meet­ing men­tioned, in conjunction with the Literary Society, was held on 16 March 1923.  There is no indica­tion as to the ultimate disposition of the club.

 

 

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