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LIBRARY OF THE UNIVERSITY OF ILLINOIS AT URBANA-CHAMPAICN 305 IL v.5 NOTICE: Return or renew all Ubr tenal! The Minimum Fee for ach Lost Book is $50.00. The this person charging material is responsible for its return to the library from which it was withdrawn on or before the Latest Date stamped below. Theft, mutilation, and of underlining books are masons for discipli- nary action and may result in dismissal from the To University renew call Telephone Center, 333-8400 UNIVERSITY OF ILLINOIS LIBRARY AT URBANA-CHAMPAIGN JUNol L16I O-I096 UNIVERSITY OF ILLINOIS STUDIES IN THE SOCIAL SCIENCES VOL. V SEPTEMBER, 1916 No. 3 BOARD OF EDITORS ERNEST L. BOGART JOHN A. FAIRLIE LAURENCE M. LARSON PUBLISHED BY THE UNIVERSITY OF ILLINOIS UNDER THK AUSPICES OF THE GRADUATE SCHOOL URBANA, ILLINOIS COPYRIGHT, 1916 BY THE UNIVERSITY OF ILLINOIS IX. Land Tenure in the United States With Special Reference to Illinois CHARLES LESLIE STEWART PREFACE This thesis is based largely upon United States census sta- tistics, the reliability of which is seldom questioned. Illinois is a suitable state in which to make a type study of land tenure. Its value for such a study arises from: (1) its size and importance in the production of grain; (2) the variety of conditions in its agricultural economy; (3) its location in the great farming region of the Mississippi valley; (4) the ease of access its farmers have to large local markets as well as to other domestic and to foreign markets; and (5) the fact that, agricul- turally, Illinois is neither an old nor a new state. Fortunately, the tenure statistics began to be collected at the time when nearly all of the present farm area had just been put under cultivation. It was planned to carry on more field investigations than circumstances have permitted. There is need for cost account- ing studies in the relative profitableness of various forms of tenure. The need for a thorough investigation of the relation of tenure to co-operative enterprise, roads, schools, churches, and social life is equally pressing. The writer has received help from many colleagues in the faculty of the University of Illinois, especially from members of the economic seminar, and particularly from Professor David Kinley, director of the seminar and dean of the graduate school. TABLE OF CONTENTS PREFACE .. CHAPTER I. A SKETCH OF LAND TENURE IN THE UNITED STATES 9 The trend of tenure, 1850 to 1880 The trend of tenure, 1880- to 1910 Mortgage encumbrance on owned land Causes and char- acteristic features of prevailing forms of tenure Relation of tenure to farm practice Tenure and the expansibility of the farm area. CHAPTER II. TENDENCIES IN THE AGRICULTURAL ECONOMY OF ILLINOIS.. 30 Physiographic influences Population and agriculture The value of farm property Some changes in farm practice. CHAPTER III. CHANGES IN LAND TENURE IN ILLINOIS 43 Tenure statistics for the state as a whole Statistics of farm tenure by counties Statistics of land tenure by counties The sectional aspects of land tenure in Illinois Historical tendencies and tenure in Illinois. CHAPTER IV. A DESCRIPTION OF FARM OPERATORS IN ILLINOIS 82 The basis of renting The acreage operated The equipment of the various operators Some items of income and expendi- ture Emphasis in farm practice Mortgage incumbrance on owned land Race, color, and nativity of farmers Residence and landed wealth of owners The age of operators in relation to tenure and encumbrance Summary. CHAPTER V. THE RELATION OF TENURE TO RURAL ECONOMIC AND SO- CIAL CONDITIONS IN ILLINOIS 113 The decline in rural population Co-operative enterprise and rural institutions Equipment in farm buildings Concentration on cereal production Tenancy as a symptom and as a cause Rising land prices as a handicap to popular ownership and good farm- ing The outlook. APPENDIX 125 BIBLIOGRAPHY 127 INDEX 134 7 LIST OF PLATES PAGE I. The Growth of the Total Population and of the Population En- gaged in Agriculture, Illinois, 1820-1910 36 II. The Number of Farms and of Acres in Farms, Total and Im- proved, Illinois, 1850-1910 38 III. The Percentage of Operators Belonging to Ten-Year Age- Groups, Illinois, 1800-1910 ioo/ LIST OF SHADED COUNTY OUTLINE MAPS OF ILLINOIS I. The Percentage of Farms Operated by Tenants, 1880. 50 II. The Percentage of Farms Operated by Tenants, 1890. 51 III. The Percentage of Farms Operated by Tenants, 1900 53 IV. The Percentage of Farms Operated by Tenants, 1910 54 V. The Percentage of Farm Acreage Operated by Tenants, 1910.. 57 VI. The Percentage of Farm Acreage Operated under Lease by Part Owners, 1910 58 VII. The Percentage of Farm Acreage Operated under Lease by Tenants and Part Owners, 1910 60 VIII. The Percentage of Farm Acreage Operated by Owners Proper, 1910 61 IX. The Percentage of Land Area in Farms, 1910 63 X. The Average Number of Acres per Farm, 1910 op- XL The Average Value of Land and Buildings per Acre, 1880. 76 XII. The Average Value of Land and Buildings per Acre, 1910. 77 XIII. The Percentage of Increase in the Value of Land and Build- ings per Acre, 1900-1910 79 XIV. The Percentage of Tenant Farms Rented for Cash, 1910. 84 XV. The Percentage of Owners (and Part Owners) Operating under Mortgage Encumbrance 98 XVI. The Percentage of the Value of Mortgaged Farms Repre- sented by the Mortgage Debt, 1910 IOI XVII. The Direction and Percentage of Change in the Number of Inhabitants Dwelling Outside of Incorporated Places, 1900-1910 115 XVIII. The Average Value of Buildings per Acre 119- CHAPTER I A SKETCH OF LAND TENURE IN THE UNITED STATES From the earliest date of colonization the land in the territory of the United States has been held under a system of tenure distinguished for its simplicity. The feudal tenure of Europe never obtained much footing in the United States and 1 was influential chiefly in that Americans reacted against it. In place of a complicated system of legal fictions and customary relations and charges, the land system of the United States may be said to consist of : and simply two forms ownership ; tenancy, whether on a cash, share, or combined basis. The ownership is that which is known technically as allodial, that is, ownership in fee simple, free from any requirement of rent or service and from any other restriction except that reserved by the state in its right to 4;ax, to exercise police power, and to force sales by virtue of the power of eminent domain. Between the years 1782 and 1790, six of the seven con- federated states which had claims to lands west of the Appa- 2 lachian mountains had their cessions accepted by congress. This laid upon Congress the responsibility of disposing of the Western lands. Congress in 1785 and 1787 passed resolutions which established the foundations of the national land policy. The principles laid down were that the land should be alienated by the government to settlers; that non-resident land owners should not be taxed higher than resident land owners; that the New England rectangular system should be employed; that the lands should be surveyed prior to settlement, and sold in small minimum parcels at low prices; that registry should be and that the of cheap, conveyance simple ; property persons dying intestate should be equally distributed among the children. These provisions, together with the abundance of the lands, have 1 See article by Taylor, H. C, in Cyclopedia of American Agriculture, IV, I74-I7S- 2 New York, 1782; Virginia, 1784; Massachusetts, 1785; Connecticut, 1786, and North Carolina, 1790. The offer of Georgia was made and rejected in 1788 and a satisfactory agreement was not reached until 1802. See Treat, P. J., The National Land System, 1785-1820, 15. 9 10 LAND TENJJRE IN ILLINOIS [404 exercised a most democratic influence upon the agricultural, 8 social and political life of the nation. The public domain of the United States grew by conquest and purchase at a most phenomenal rate. To the quarter of a million acres ceded by the states prior to 1803 there was added to the public domain in that year over three quarters of a million acres. Acquisitions in Florida and in the Southwest increased the public domain by a half billion acres, and the Alaskan pur- chase brought the total land acreage owned by the United States 4 government to nearly two billion. 5 These lands were disposed of at a rate sometimes appalling. During the period, 1831 to 1840, the annual acreage sold ex- ceeded six million on the average. During the next forty years the land sold averaged two-thirds that amount annually. From 1881 to 1888 over twelve million acres left the hands of the gov- ernment in an average year. From 1888 to 1900, the annual amount of land taken up un- derwent a rapid decline, however, and since 1900 very little of the public domain has been sold or given away. Under such conditions there is little wonder that during the earlier days the major part of the population devoted itself to agriculture. The census enumerations show that in 1820, 83.0, and in 1840, 77.5 percent of the "occupied" population was 6 engaged in agriculture. Not only did agriculture employ the energy of the larger part of the American people up to the middle of the last century, but the greater part of the free farm families was undoubtedly in full ownership of their farms and homes. The land was taken up, in most cases, in tracts of a size suitable for almost every one to own a farm, and the owners were usually in such an economic condition that they needed the full return from their land instead of the small fraction which they could receive as rental incomes.