   A Brief History of 4-H - July 25, 2001 Jeff Schalau, County Director, Agent, Agriculture & Natural Resources Arizona Cooperative Extension, Yavapai County A little over a year ago, I wrote a column about Cooperative Extension's national, regional, and local history. This week's column will focus on an important subset of Cooperative Extension: 4-H youth programs. Some people may think that 4-H is outdated or only for "farm kids". This view is far from the truth. 4-H not only teaches practical, hands-on skills, it also teaches life skills and community leadership to make our youth better citizens of tomorrow. For this reason alone, 4-H is more important today than it ever was in the past. The roots of 4-H cannot be traced back to any one individual. However, the setting of rural America in the early 1900's was one of changing agricultural practices. Agricultural research was advancing new technology related to crop and animal genetics, soil chemistry, food preservation, and sanitation. The first 4-H Clubs were formed in 1902. These were corn clubs for boys and canning tomato clubs for girls. 4-H projects gradually expanded into other areas such as poultry, pigs, calves, canning, sewing, and other agricultural projects. During this early period, emphasis was focused on the project rather than the club itself. Along with the project, educational demonstrations and exhibits were also encouraged to communicate the principles learned to other youth and community members. Club leaders looked to Land Grant universities for technical information and assistance. With the passage of the Smith-Lever Act of 1914, which provided for Cooperative Extension under the direction of the Land Grant institutions, a natural partnership was formed between the clubs and local Extension Agents. In addition to the project emphasis, Cooperative Extension increased the prominence of building leadership skills by instituting regularly scheduled meetings, elections of officers, and conduction of business. During the World War I era, 4-H clubs also shifted from school-based to community-based programs. Farmers and their wives began replacing schoolteachers as 4-H club leaders. During the 1920's, the familiar green four-leaf clover with a white "H" superimposed on each leaf began to gain popularity. This 4-H emblem gained popularity and was increasingly used to represent these clubs. In 1927, the 4-H Pledge was adopted: I Pledge my Head to clearer thinking, my Heart to greater loyalty, my Hands to larger service, and my Health to better living, for my Club, my Community, and my Country. The 4-H Motto, "To Make the Best Better", also came into use at that time. 4-H Clubs often were directly responsible for adoption of new agricultural practices by farmers and ranchers. In the past, as now, many people resisted new ideas and technology. 4-H youth often were the first to adopt new crop varieties and agricultural technologies. Their parents and other community members observed the project results at demonstration plots and county fairs. After seeing the proof, adults would begin to adopt some of the new practices and technologies. If youth are the same today as then, I'm sure they challenged the adults to try and keep up with them. 4-H has been and important element in Yavapai County and Verde Valley communities. My records are sketchy at best, but I have researched a few facts. For instance, in 1931, Camp Verde had the first 4-H beef club in Arizona. In both 1951 and 1954, Elva Wingfield of Camp Verde raised the Grand Champion 4-H Fat Steer at the Yavapai County Fair. Vicki Beaver, also of Camp Verde, had three reserve champion steers at the County Fair between 1955 and 1959. Steer projects are still popular throughout Yavapai County. This makes sense because cattle are still the primary agricultural product of Yavapai County. In 2000, 6.8 million youth ages 5-19 were involved in 4-H programs across the United States. Only 10% of these youth live on farms. The remaining 90% are urban and suburban members. In Yavapai County, we had 643 youth members and 113 volunteer leaders in 2000. Popular Yavapai County 4-H projects are steer, swine, lamb, rabbit, poultry, shooting sports, clogging, homemaking arts, and photography. Each of the 643 4-H youth members also completed at least six hours of community service. Yavapai County has had many 4-H Agents over the years. To the best of my knowledge, the first 4-H Agent in Yavapai County was Roy Holland. He was followed by Lonnie Clanton, George Groseta, Jan Norquest, and Valdasue Steele. For the last two years, Yavapai County has been without a 4-H Agent, but we now have Matt Summers. Matt comes to us from Montana and is housed in the Cottonwood Cooperative Extension office. We are really pleased to have him on board. Many people would simply say that today's world is different and youth programs in farming and home economics are outdated. In my opinion, knowing how to feed, cloth, and sustain yourself is always going to be valuable. Traditional projects and community clubs are still the mainstays of Yavapai County 4-H. However, 4-H is moving forward to address new youth needs and interests by offering and ever increasing variety of projects. The University of Arizona Cooperative Extension has publications and information on gardening and pest control. If you have other gardening questions, call the Master Gardener line in the Cottonwood office at 646-9113 or E-mail us at mgardener@kachina.net and be sure to include your address and phone number. Find past Backyard Gardener columns or submit column ideas at the Backyard Gardener web site: http://ag.arizona.edu/yavapai/anr/hort/byg/. |