Agriculture has always been part of Washington State University's curriculum. In the earliest days of the Agricultural College, Experiment Station, and School of Science of the State of Washington (later the State College of Washington, before becoming WSU), all of its disciplines were taught in one department, the Department Of Agriculture. By 1918 these agricultural disciplines including farm crops, soils, etc., had expanded enough to warrant the formation of separate departments. The Department of Farm Crops and Soils were consolidated into a Department of Agronomy in February 1928. This name was changed in November 1969 to Department of Agronomy and Soils.
This collection consists of a two-volume history of the Washington State University Department of Agronomy and Soils and related United States Department of Agriculture programs. This document was edited by B. Rodney Bertramson, and the contents were contributed by current and former faculty members. The first volume, "History of the Department of Agronomy and Soils, Washington State University, 1889-1984," includes chapters on Resident Instruction, Research (Crop Science and Soil Science), Extension. and a faculty roster for the period 1898-1988. The second volume, "History of Related USDA Programs at Washington State University," includes contributions related to USDA programs, closely related to the work of the WSU Agronomy Department but conducted under the auspices of the USDA: the Wheat Quality Laboratory, the Plant Materials Center, and the Plant Introduction center.
Contributors: B. R. Bertramson; R. L. Hausenbuiller; O. A. Vogel; F. J. Meuhlbauer; L. W. Rasmussen; J. D. Maguire; R. L. Warner; F. E. Koehler; D. F. Bezdicek; H. H. Cheng; W. H. Gardner; A. Busacca; R. L. Papendick; K. J. Morrison; A. R. Halvorson; G. L. Rubenthaler; J. L. Schwendiman; L. W. Hudson.
This collection is open and available for research use.
Copyright restrictions apply.
[Item Description]
History of the Department of Agronomy and Soils, and related USDA programs, Washington State University, circa 1988-1989
Manuscripts, Archives, and Special Collections, Washington State University Libraries, Pullman, WA.
These two volumes were transferred to the Washington State University Libraries from the Department of Crop and Soil Sciences (MS 1992-60).
Manuscripts, Archives, and Special Collections holds many collections and items related to research and teaching in Agronomy and related fields, for example:
State College of Washington Department of Agronomy Records, 1940-1973
Washington State University College of Agriculture Dean Records, 1945-1979
Bertram Rodney Bertramson Papers, 1933-1979
Orville Vogel Papers, 1931-1988
United States Soil Conservation Service Pullman Plant Materials Center Records, 1934-1964
This collection is indexed under the following headings in the online catalog. Researchers desiring materials about related topics, persons, or places should search the catalog using these headings.