University of Tennessee, Knoxville TRACE: Tennessee Research and Creative Exchange History of the Institute of Agriculture: Publications History of the Institute of Agriculture 1976 The Agrarian Tradition in American Society Clinton B. Allison Harold F. Breimyer Walter N. Lambert Frank O. Leuthold Joe A. Martin See next page for additional authors Follow this and additional works at: https://trace.tennessee.edu/utk_aghistory Part of the Agriculture Commons Recommended Citation Allison, Clinton B.; Breimyer, Harold F.; Lambert, Walter N.; Leuthold, Frank O.; Martin, Joe A.; Seigenthaler, John; Smith, Frank E.; and Wheeler, William Bruce, "The Agrarian Tradition in American Society" (1976). History of the Institute of Agriculture: Publications. https://trace.tennessee.edu/utk_aghistory/5 The publications in this collection represent the historical publishing record of the UT Agricultural Experiment Station and do not necessarily reflect current scientific knowledge or ecommendations.r Current information about UT Ag Research can be found at the UT Ag Research website. This Book is brought to you for free and open access by the History of the Institute of Agriculture at TRACE: Tennessee Research and Creative Exchange. It has been accepted for inclusion in History of the Institute of Agriculture: Publications by an authorized administrator of TRACE: Tennessee Research and Creative Exchange. For more information, please contact [email protected]. Authors Clinton B. Allison, Harold F. Breimyer, Walter N. Lambert, Frank O. Leuthold, Joe A. Martin, John Seigenthaler, Frank E. Smith, and William Bruce Wheeler This book is available at TRACE: Tennessee Research and Creative Exchange: https://trace.tennessee.edu/ utk_aghistory/5 Ag-VetM~ S II.,!) ,P'1 /Cf 7" ~. THE AGRARIAN TRADITION IN AMERICAN SOCIETY: A FOCUSON THE PEOPLE AND THE LAND IN AN ERA OF CHANGING VALUES A BICENTENNIAL FORUM THE INSTITUTE OF AGRICULTURE THE UNIVERSITY OF TENNESSEE KNOXVI LLE, TENNESSEE JUNE 16-18, 1976 ) COllTENTS PAGE Organizing and Planning Committee • iii Authors • . iv Program • vii Acknowledgements. x Introduction, "A Bicentennial Forum," Brady J. Deaton and B. R. McManus, Eidtors •••••••• 1 "The Agrarian Tradition: Historical Perspective and Emerging Challenge," by Joe A. Martin • • • 8 "The Interaction of Rural and Urban Values as Viewed by the Journalist," by John Seigenthaler • • • • • • • • • • •• ••••••• 24 "Jeffersonian Thought in an Urban Society," by Bruce Wheeler • • • • • • 36 "The Agrarian Tradition and American Agriculture in International Perspective," by Harold F. Breimyer. • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • •• 50 "Changing Rural Values - Focus on Local Government," by Walter N. Lambert ••••••••• 64 "The Agrarian Tradition and the Political Economy of Resource Use," by Frank E. Smith. • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • 71 "American Public Schools and the Agrarian Myth," by Clinton B. Allison. • • • • • • • • • • • • 83 "Agrarianism and Farm Organizations in the United States," by Frank O. Leuthold • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • 88 ii ORGANIZING AND PLANNING COMMITTEE Chairman of Committee - Dr. Brady ~. Deaton, Associate Professor Department of Agricultural Economics and Rural Sociology The University of Tennessee, Knoxville Committee Members - Dr. David W. Brown, International Professor Department of Agricultural Economics and Rural Sociology The University of Tennessee, Knoxville Ms. Marie Cirillo, Community Development Leader Department of Rural Development Nashville Diocese, Clairfield, Tennessee Dr. John R. Finger, Associate Professor Department of History The University of Tennessee, Knoxville Dr. Frank O. Leuthold, Professor Department of Agricultural Economics and Rural Sociology The University of Tennessee, Knoxville Dr. Joe A. Martin, Head and Professor Department of Agricultural Economics and Rural Sociology The University of Tennessee, Knoxville Dr. B. R. McManus, Associate Professor Department of Agricultural Economics and Rural Sociology The University of Tennessee, Knoxville Dr. William Bruce Wheeler, Associate Professor Department of History The University of Tennessee, Knoxville iii AUTHORS Clinton B. Allison, Professor, Department of Education, University of Tennessee, received his B.S. at University of Oklahoma, M.Ed. at Wichita State University, and Ph.D. at University of Oklahoma. Dr. Allison has taught at Wichita High School Southeast, Wichita State University, University of Oklahoma and University of Tennessee. He has been an active participant in University affairs and has served as President of the Faculty Senate. Dr. Allison has held membership and office positions in several historical and educational societies. His writings are included in numerous profes- sional journals. Harold F. Breimyer is Perry Foundation Professor of Agricultural Economics, University of Missouri. He attended Ohio State University, the University of California and the American University where he received his Ph.D. in 1960. Prior to joining the University of Missouri in 1966, Dr. Breimyer served 30 years with the U. S. Department of Agriculture as economist for the Agricultural Adjustment Administration, the Bureau of Agricultural Economics and Agricultural Marketing Service. He has been a staff economist in the Council of Economic Advisors and visiting professor at the University of Illinois. Dr. Breimyer has extensive international experience evaluating technical assistance programs and advising governments on agricultural policy. He is the author of several distinguished professional publications including the book, Individual Freedom and the Economic Organization of Agriculture. He served as President of the American Agricultural Economics Association in 1968-69 and was honored in 1973 by being elected a "Fellow" of the Association. Walter N. Lambert is Special Assistant for Federal Relations to the Executive Vice President of the University of Tennessee. He has served as Director of the Technical Assistance Center in the Institute for Public Service, as Research Associate in the Bureau of Public Administration and Instructor in the Department of Political Science at the University of Tennessee, Knoxville. He is a member of the Faculty of the Tennessee Executive Development Pro- gram. He was Director of Highway Safety Programs and Director of the Office of Urban and Federal Affairs in the Tennessee Governor's Office. At the local level, he has served in a number of important capacities and is now a member of the Knoxville Charter Revision Commission and the Greater Knoxville Bicentennial Commission. He is a member of the Government Relations Committee of the Council for the Advancement and Support of Education and of the Legislative Network of the National Association of State Universities and Land Grant Colleges. He is currently serving as a Board member of the American Society for Public Administration. Frank o. Leuthold, Professor of Rural Sociology, has been on the faculty of the Department of Agricultural Economics and Rural Sociology since 1965. He obtained a B.S. in agriculture, an M.S. in rural sociology from the Ohio State University and Ph.D. in rural sociology from the University of Wisconsin. His research interests have been on farmer organizations, acceptance of technology, and demography. Dr. Leuthoad has written several iv v professional articles on U. S. farmer organizations. He is President of the West Knoxville Homeowners Association, the U.T. Credit Union and the U.T. Faculty Senate. Joe A. Martin, a native of Georgia, is presently Professor and Head, Department of Agricultural Economics and Rural Sociology, University of Tennessee. His specialized field of research and teaching is land economics and resource development. Dr. Martin received B.S. and M.S. degrees from Clemson College and his Ph.D. degree from the University of Minnesota in 1955. He joined the staff of the University of Tennessee in 1947. He has been deeply involved in the academic affairs of the University and has published extensively in academic journals in the areas of the changing rural society and natural resource use. John Seigenthale~, Publisher, The Tennessean, is a graduate of Peabody College, was a Nieman Fellow at Harvard, and a Duke Fellow in Communications Policy. He has received honorary degrees from Drake University and Tusculum College. Mr. Seigenthaler has served in the Department of Justice as Administrative Assistant to Attorney General Robert F. Kennedy and was a member of the U. S. Advisory Commission on Information. He has received numerous awards for outstanding journalism and has served five times as a member of the Pulitzer Prize Jury. He serves as host of the weekly Educational TV program, "A Word on Words," and has written several books including An Honorable Profession (with Pierre Salinger and Frank Mankiewicz), A Search for Justice, and The Year of the Scandal Called Watergate. Frank E. Smith most recently served as visiting professor of public affairs at Sangamon State University and as Associate Director of the Illinois State Board of Higher Education. He is a former Director of the Tennessee Valley Authority and a U. S. congressman from his native Mississippi (1951-62). He has been a delegate to the NATO Parliamentary Conference and to the Interna- tional Roads Federation Conferences. He has served as Director of a number of significant national organizations including the Southern Regional Council and the L. Q. C. Lamar Society of which he is a founding member. Mr. Smith is a well known speaker and