Category Archives: History

Urban 4-H Clubs

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The National 4-H History Preservation Team is beginning to research and write the history of Urban 4-H Programs. If you were (or if you know someone who was) involved in planning and development of an urban program, we would love to hear the story.

o How did it get started?
o How did you determine what program content to offer?
o What target audiences did you intend to reach?
o How was it staffed?
o How was it funded (publically or privately)?
o Tell us about the successes the missteps, the challenges.
o What are your most proud memories relating to this urban program?
o How is the program doing today?

And, anything else you would like to share. We know many urban programs started in the 1950s, 60s and 70s. And, that many of them were very different from one another. Most have different audiences, needs, and approaches.

Part of the Urban 4-H Program segment on the 4-H History website will include short stories about specific urban programs. Therefore, please make sure that the urban programs started in your state, will be represented by sending us the details. We also know there have already been some brief histories written on urban programs, including Chicago and Indianapolis. There may be more documented histories out there which we don’t know about.

Please tell us anything that you know about urban 4-H programs or provide information on appropriate contact persons. Write: info@4-HHistoryPreservation.com

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4-H Uniforms a Part of 4-H History

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National 4-H uniforms, although currently not used widely throughout the country, bring a visual message about the time when they were created and worn. In 1976 a number of states recreated 4-H uniforms to show how 4-H had grown with the country. As 4-H plans for the celebration of the act which created Cooperative Extension, it seems like a good time to bring them out again. Therefore, it’s most appropriate that the 4-H History Preservation team is beginning to writ about the history of uniforms to appear on the 4-H History Preservation website.

Jan Scholl, Pennsylvania State 4-H staff, jump-started this research when she developed a poster which was introduced at the 2009 NAE4-HA Conference in Rochester, NY. With her knowledge and experience, she was a natural to head up the creation of a written version of the program. We hope to have an abbreviated history on the website before the end of this year and the comprehensive version up by the end of 2013.

The History Preservation team is delighted that we recently found correspondence concerning the uniforms which dated from 1917 to 1971, which helps us to piece together the dates and times as well as reasons that the styles and fabrics were chosen for the uniforms during the fifty plus years that an official National 4-H uniform existed.

Sue Benedetti and Jan share leadership for this section of the website, assisted by Eleanor L. Wilson and Kendra Wells. We are also ecstatic to welcome as volunteers to the team, two former Simplicity Pattern Company 4-H Stylists; Madeleine Green and Eleanor Berry.

Any information leading to actual uniforms or patterns that are still in existence would be appreciated. Contact us at: info@4-HHistoryPreservation.com

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Historical 4-H Quote: Calvin Coolidge

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“Probably no activity is of more importance to the future standing, prosperity and social position of agriculture than the Boys’ and Girls’ Farm Clubs. Their activities warrant the belief that they will greatly aid in the solution of many of the problems of farm life, and it gives me very great pleasure to accept the Honorary Chairmanship of the National Committee on Boys’ and Girls’ Club Work.”
President Calvin Coolidge. 1927.

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June 2012 4-H History Newsletter Available

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The June 2012 4-H History Newsletter is available on the 4-H History Preservation website – http://4-HHistoryPreservation.com – by “clicking” on the HOme and News Section of the menu bar and then on Newsletter. You may also subscribe to the free newsletter from this page.

This edition of the newsletter announces the National 4-H Oral History project, a feature on historical 4-H handicrafts and a search for urban 4-H program information.

From the National 4-H History Preservation Team. info@4-HHistoryPreservation.com

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No Triple Crown at Belmont this Year; “The Kid” Still Rules

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After winning the Kentucky Derby and the Preakness, `I’ll Have Another’ was favored to win tomorrow’s horse race at Belmont becoming the first Triple Crown winner in 34 years. However, he has been pulled from the race due to a leg injury.

No one has won the Triple Crown since a young teenager from Walton, Kentucky, affectionately know as “The Kid,” won the coveted triple races in 1978 riding `Affirmed.’ The young unassuming boy was Steve Cauthen.

Cauthen’s first race was at Churchill Downs in May, 1976… he came in last. And, a week later he came in first. His rise to prominence was meteoric. He was the nation’s leader in race wins in 1977 with 487. And, it was recognized – Steve was Sports Illustrated’ Sportsman of the Year; Sporting News’ Sportsman of the Year, Associated Press’ Male Athlete of the Year.

The December 1977 issue of National 4-H News feature Cauthen on it’s cover and had an interview with him inside. Steve started 4-H when he was nine years old and was a member until he was 16 and started racing. His project: horses. He showed his horse at 4-H shows and the state fair. He went to the state fair four times, placing in the top three each year.

In the 4-H News interview Steve says that “4-H has been a part of my learning. The thing I can say for it is that it helped me see how groups work together. My friends were in 4-H and we did things together. We had duties and responsibilities in the club. When asked what advise he could pass on to others his own age, the young man stated, “when you find something you want to do, nothing’s going to stop you from doing it, if you want to do it bad enough. It’s just important that you do your best at all times. That’s one thing I try to do. Whenever I do anything, I try to do the best I’m able. I work hard at whatever it is I do. Not just riding, but also just being a nice guy. I try to do my best. All through my career I’ve had good people around me. I’ve had my parents behind me all the way. You know, I’ve been lucky.”

As Cauthen said this week as he was heading up to the Belmont from his home in Kentucky, “it’s time for another Triple Crown”… but, it just won’t be this year. “The Kid”, now at the “old” age of 52, still rules.

From National 4-H History Preservation Program.
info@4-HHistoryPreservation.com http://4-HHistoryPreservation.com

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4-H Oral History Project to Capture Stories of Former 4-H Members

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Looking for an exciting idea for 4-H Youlth? Engage them with interviewing former 4-H members.

Cooperative Extension will celebrate the 100th Anniversary of the Smith-Lever Act in 2014. The Smith-Lever Act of 1914 is a United States federal law that established the nationwide system of cooperative extension services connected to land-grant universities.

The National 4-H History Preservation Team hopes to launch a national 4-H Oral History Project in 2013 to capture the stories of former 4-H members, leaders, and staff to include in the celebration! We’d like to identify a few states/communities to pilot the project in the summer and fall of 2012. Pilot groups will receive guidance, including resources for recruiting and training current 4-H members to conduct interviews.

The 4-H oral history interview is a substantial tool for collecting stories from 4-H alumni and others involved with the past and present history of your 4-H program. To read more about the project check out the May issue of the National 4-H History Newsletter. Go to http://4-HHistoryPreservation.com – “click” on the Home and News Section of the menu bar and then on Newsletter. You may also sign up for the free newsletter from this page.

From the National 4-H History Preservation team. info@4-HHistoryPreservation.com

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A Place in the Sun – the First Performance

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When the girls attending the 1948 National 4-H Club Congress in Chicago boarded buses to travel up to the famous Edgewater Beach Hotel on Chicago’s Lake Shore for the luncheon sponsored by Montgomery Ward they really thought that was a special treat. But the treat was yet to come in a thrill of a lifetime.

There to entertain them was Fred Waring and his Pennsylvanians, in person. Every one had heard – or heard of – this master radio showman, but to actually see him lead his 69 musicians was one of the top-flight experiences of the crowded Congress week.

But, Mr. Waring had a special purpose for entertaining these Congress delegates as part of the program was the first first performance of a very special new 4-H song written by Fred Waring himself – “A Place in the Sun.” The whole of the 4-H world would soon hear this music in days to come, but these privileged girls can always say “we heard its first performance!”

This is just one of the stories in the May issue of the 4-H History Newsletter. Go to http://4-HHistoryPreservation.com and “click” on the Home and News Section of the menu bar and then on Newsletter.

From the National 4-H History Preservation team. info@4-HHistoryPreservation.com

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May 2012 4-H History Newsletter Available

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The May 2012 4-H History Newsletter is available on the 4-H History Preservation website – http://4-HHistoryPreservation.com – by “clicking” on the Home and News Section of the menu bar and then on Newsletter. You may also subscribe to the free newsletter from this page.

This newsletter includes features on doing 4-H history interviews, 4-H and Sports, premiering a 4-H song and recognizing firsts and lasts in club and county 4-H history.

From the National 4-H History Preservation team. info@4-HHistoryPreservation.com

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4-H History – We Need Your Help

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4-H has a rich history – an important history. For those who have worked in Extension or had an affiliation with 4-H in some other way over the years, we need your assistance and your recollections. For those just getting started in your 4-H careers, the more you can learn about history, the better you can understand and perform your 4-H responsibilities.

Unfortunately, much of 4-H’s important history has either been lost, destroyed, or is buried in archives difficult to access by the general public. A group of volunteers – mostly retired state and national 4-H extension professionals or retired from National 4-H Council – are striving to reverse this situation. the team is retrieving and researching 4-H archival materials and writing about relevant 4-H history, particularly at the national level. the history website and digitization program is already providing access to hundreds of 4-H books, reports, newsletters, films and oral histories.

A new section on the history website: http://4-HHistoryPreservation.com pulls together all of the ways that you can help. Click on “Ways You Can Help” on the menu bar on the left side of the home page.

o Read the `We Need Your Help’ one-page flier; print it out to share with friends who may be interested.

o Review the list of contributors. Make a donation. You can designate specific projects in need of funds; and, can also honor a designated friend, colleague or relative who had or has a special interest in 4-H history.

o Check out the section `Things We Are Looking For’ and the `Help Us Tell a Story’ section… your recollections of 4-H camp, 4-H and one-room schools, 4-H fair, international 4-H program, National 4-H conference, National 4-H Sunday, 4-H television series, urban 4-H programs, Native American 4-H activities, war-time 4-H support and much more.

o While our volunteer team and volunteer consultants are busy workers, we need many more people providing their recollections, their expertise, and their contributions to accomplish our goals.

o We hope you will join us. We Need Your Help. From National 4-H History Preservation Team. info@4-HistoryPreservation.com

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4-H Makes Contemporary History

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4-H isn’t always old. Sometimes a current event is history-in-the-making; sometimes the significance is a link between past events and a new situation which highlights the importance of tracking 4-H History. We can call it “current history” or “contemporary history”.

4-H International: “The Washington Post” recently reported that Mary Kerstetter, a USDA employee stationed in Baghdad, started 4-H clubs in Iraq, the latest country – as far as we know – where 4-H has been introduced. Definitely history-in-the-making! As of November 2010, there were four clubs with 124 members. “[The kids] are very quiet and shy when you start with them” Kerstetter says; “and then they become more confident. They’re learning responsibility; they’re learning leadership.” Yousif Mahamed Nea’amh, 13, was elected News Reporter for one of the clubs. “The first thing I learned from the 4-H club is how to work as a team” he said. They voted to name their club “Al Amal” which means “hope” in Arabic.

4-H Alumna: The Commonwealth of Virginia’s first female Chief Justice of the Supreme Court sworn in on February 1, 2010, Cynthia Kinser, was a 4-H member in Lee County, Virginia. “Her most influential activity,” reports the “Richmond Times-Dispatch,” “might have been her involvement in the 4-H youth organization. She raised steers and researched nutrition, but also developed leadership and speaking skills.” As a high school senior, her first airplane ride was to National 4-H Congress in Chicago. “The 4-H motto – `To make the best better’ – serves as a mantra for her approach to life” says the “Times Dispatch.” She still farms in Lee County.

A Model 4-H’er: Norman Rockwell painted his iconic “The County Agent” for a July 24, 1948 “Saturday Evening Post” cover, and in 2010 Jama Fuller, the model for the 14 year old 4-H girl in the painting, recalled the experience in an interview with Portland, Indiana’s “The Commercial Review.” Jama, now 73, a resident of Redkey, Indiana, and her sister, Sharon Smith (also a former 4-H’er) are the only two surviving models portrayed in the painting. Jama’s brother, Larry Steed, is in the painting, as is County Agent Herald Rippey and hired hand Arlie Champ. All three Steed children were active in 4-H, members of the Jefferson Livewires 4-H Club. The original painting is housed at University of Nebraska, Lincoln. The National 4-H Youth Conference Center has a numbered print of the much reproduced painting.

from National 4-H History Preservation Program. info@4-HHistoryPreservation.com http://4-Hhistorypreservation.com

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