Ben Braaten

HIST 3845

Farm Uprisings in the late Nineteenth Century.

‘What caused the accident?” “He went through the red light.” “Why did you

fail the class?” “I didn’t do the homework.” What caused this? That is a question

asked often in our society and the answers often are not simple as above. We live in

a complex world with many intricacies; often a straightforward answer is not

possible. This is true of the Farm Uprisings of the late Nineteenth Century there was

not one cause, to make it simple so we could all say, “Oh,” and then nod our heads

and go on with our life.

The Farm Uprisings were the result simply of the pressures and changes in

the farmer’s lives. They had been promised good free land by the Homestead Act,

but instead were forced to more isolated properties. They no longer were

independent, but businessman with suppliers, markets and creditors. They were

not the powerful players but instead were small players in comparison to the

railroads and banks . The Farm Uprisings cannot be explained with a singular

answer, but with the story of the lives of the farmers themselves

The Homestead Act is at least partly familiar to many Americans. Many can at

least mutter something about free land for the settlers on the open prairie. The

prairie may have been wide open physically, yet that was not so in terms of open,

claimable land available to the homesteaders . The prairie was not without interest

from large businesses, and speculators. Railroads in particular, aided by friends in

Washington were able to put large expanses of land in their possession.

“Location, location, location.” A term familiar in business was true for both

the speculators, railroads and the homesteaders. Today you can drive across the
vast prairie at 70 mph on paved roads connecting you many towns, and larger

cities. As anyone who has driven such expanses knows, everything is far away and

it takes time to get there even at 70 mph. This factor of distance and transportation

was an issue for homesteaders and everyone in west with poor roads and few

alternatives. (Rinehart, Winston 173) Thus, the value of railroads as a means of

transportation was recognized by all involved, the railroads, speculators and

homesteaders. Such observations led to railroads commissioning not only the land

upon their tracks lay, but the surrounding acreage in recognition of the value of

being able to transport people, export crops, and bring in needed equipment and

goods to lands away from ample waterways, and sufficient roads. (Gates 157)By

purchasing the land surrounding the tracks the railroads obtained a monopoly in

surrounding development and the ample funds obtained by owing the land upon

which towns will bloom. To make things all the more worse farmers were not only in

competition with railroads, but speculators who bought swaths of property. (Gates

156)

Most Americans have a picturesque view of farmers promoted by Little House

on the Prairie and its Hollywood peers. While there is much missing from such

shows, at one time farmers were quite independent out of necessity, which in turn

created a culture of independence. A culture, which didn’t look favorably on the

transition to Commercial farming and the therein dependence, Dependence on

Bankers who know little about what it is like to farm. Onward, there were the various

inputs, from equipment to seeds;then one the markets to sell their goods in perfect

competition. Going from times of independence , where you produced enough to

survive and sell some on the market to being dependent on others for your
livelihood was a rude awakening when the newfound dependence provided=

unproven promises and frustration. (Mayhew 468)

In addition to these newfound dependences was the financial context. One of

the more frustrating and financially debilitating occurrences was the lack of a

proficient banking system to manage the money supply. After the Civil War there

was a time of deflation, with the currency borrowed out worth less than the currency

paid in return. Thus, during normal and bad years the farmers were capable of

finding themselves in a financial pinch, with bankers yearning for their property. This

as one can easily imagine was a frustrating experience. The farmers had no control

over the appreciation of the currency, and could not go without the loans due to

their newfound existence as Commercial Farmers. To makes things all the more

frustrating for the farmers bondholders, were being held to a different standard than

the farmers. (Rinehart, Winston 184)

Added to the farmer’s lives was the nationwide transition and promotion of a

manufacturing based versus the traditionally agrarian based economy. Their way of

life was beginning to lose importance in contrast to the might of the city and

industry. The Americans of the late Nineteenth Century could see and learn from the

prosperity of their peer nations in Europe and elsewhere. From both their

observations abroad and at home they could see that a strong manufacturing base

would develop markets for domestic products and create a more vibrant economy,

of the same status as the best of Europe. Further, there was fear of dependence and

manipulation by the buyers of American agricultural goods. This was of upmost true

of American attitudes toward Britain. The farmers faced a young nation with its eyes

toward dreams and ideals of the future. Dreams which did not consist of a nation of
farmers, but of industrialists, independence from foreign markets and the therein

attributes. (Saloutos 156-157)

The farmers operated in the context of perfect competition in terms of

markets and were new to, and unfamiliar with the institutions they depended on,

had little power beyond actions they could get passed through in Washington. This

extended through the Homestead Act and the Governments part in the railroads

monopoly of land surrounding their lines, through the monopoly power exercised by

the railroads in buying the farmers goods and not ending with the favor shown to

bondholders. These were all far from the Farmer and the land that which was their

home and life. The farmer had gone from a period of independence and the power

to do as he wanted to times of dependence and powerlessness. That is what lead to

the farm uprisings, change which took away what the farm had, trusted and valued

and replaced it with a system which worked less perfectly, had greater risk and

rewards, yet led to powerlessness and dependencies. (Saloutos 156-57)