Table Of ContentPURDUE UNIVERSITY
THIS IS TO CERTIFY THAT THE THESIS PREPARED UNDER MY SUPERVISION
BY Harvey Paul Sweany
entitled THE EDUCATIONAL SIGNIFICANCE OF OPPORTUNITIES AND
PATTERNS FOR BECOMING FARM OPERATORS IN INDIANA
COMPUTES WITH THE UNIVERSITY REGULATIONS ON GRADUATION THESES
AND IS APPROVED BY ME AS FULFILLING THIS PART OF THE REQUIREMENTS
FOR THE DEGREE OF
Doctor of Philosophy
03. C-
Professor in Charge of Thesis
Head of School or Department
June 30# 49
19
TO THE LIBRARIAN:--
THIS THESIS IS NOT TO BE REGARDED AS CONFIDENTIAL.
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GRAD. SCHOOXi FORM 9—3.49—1M
THE EDUCATIONAL SIGNIFICANCE OF OPPORTUNITIES AND
PATTERNS FOR BECOMING FARM OPERATORS IN INDIANA
A Thesis
Submitted to the Faculty
of
Purdue University
by
Harvey Paul Sweany
In Partial Fulfillment of the
Requirements for the Degree
of
Doctor of Philosophy
1949
ProQuest Number: 27712241
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i
table of contents
Page
LIST OF TABLES AND FI CUBES
ACKNOWLEDGMENTS
ABSTRACT
CHAPTER
I THE PROBLEM 1
Introduction to the Problem 1
The Need for the Study 3
The Problem Defined 5
Assumptions Underlying the Study 6
Definition of Terms 7
Limitations of the Study S
II PREVIOUS STUDIES OF OPPORTUNITIES AND OCCUPATIONAL
ADVANCEMENT IN FARMING 11
Introduction 11
Studies Related to the Educational Significance of
Opportunities for Becoming FarmO perators in Indiana 12
Introduction 12
Occupational Opportunities and Educational Planning 13
Estimates of Opportunities in the United States 15
Estimates of Opportunities in Sections of the United
States 16
A Method for Determining Drop-outs from the Farm
Operator Population 20
Limitations of Studies of Opportunities for Farm
Operators 21
Studies Related to the Educational Significance of Patterns
for Becoming Farm Operators in Indiana 22
Introduction 22
Occupational Analysis and Educational Planning 22
Agricultural Ladders 24
Comparisons of Findings of Different Studies of the
Agricultural Ladders 28
Limitations of the Studies of the Agricultural Ladders 31
ii
The Relationship of Certain Factors to Advancement in
Farming Status 33
The Age of Farmers When Achieving Ownership 33
The Patterns of Advancement in Farming in Different
Decades 34
Effect of the Parental Home on the Son's Start in Farming 33
Limitations of the Studies in Relation to the Problems
of this Study 37
Summary 4o
III THE METHOD OF II'IVESTIGATIOH 43
Introduction 43
Securing Data for Estimates of Opportunities in Farming 44
Securing the Humber and the Township Residence of Students
Enrolled in Vocational Agriculture in Indiana 45
Enrollment of Students in Vocational Agriculture 45
The Township Residence of Students of Vocational
Agriculture 47
Securing Information From Farm Operators 4s
Developing the Information Blank 4s
The Selection of the Farmers to be Studied 49
The Methods Used in Collecting Information From Farmers 51
Statistical Treatment of Data 54
IV THE KIND AHD HUMBER OF OPPORTUNITIES FOR FARM OPERATORS IN
INDIANA AND IN SIX INDIANA COUNTIES OF TK2 FOURTH
SUPERVISORY DISTRICT BETWEEN 1940 AND 19^9 56
Introduction 56
The Differences and the Causes of Differences in Census
Data for United States 5S
Differences Between the Number of Farm Operators and the
Number of Farmers in Indiana 59
Data from the Census of Agriculture was Used in this Study 62
The Number of Farm Operators Leaving Farming in Indiana
Between 1910 and 19U0 62
The Effects of Selected Factors on the Number of Farming
Opportunities in Indiana and in the Fourth Supervisory
District During the Past Three Decades JO
ill
The Trends in the Number of Acres Farmed by Operators
in Indiana 71
The Trends in the Number of Acres Farmed by Operators
in the Fourth Supervisory District 74
The Trends in the Total Number of Acres Devoted to
Agriculture 76
Estimâtes of the Number of Opportunities for New Farm
Operators Between 19^0 and 19^9 in Indiana 77
The Effect of Trends on the Number of Opportunities JB
The Estimated Number heaving the Farm Operator Status
in Indiana Between 19^0 and 19^9 79
The Number of Operators Who will not be Replaced SI
Opportunities for New Farm Operators in Indiana Between
1940 and 1949 S2
The Estimate of Opportunities for New Farm Operators in
the Fourth Supervisory District Between 1940 and 1949 S2
The Estimated Number of Farm Operators Leaving the Farm
in Six Indiana Counties of the Fourth Supervisory
District 82
Number of Farm Operators not Likely to be Replaced in
Six Indiana Counties of the Fourth Supervisory
District 84
Opportunities for New Farm Operators in the Six Counties
of the Fourth Supervisory District 86
Estimate of Opportunities for New Farm Operators in Town
ships in the Fourth Supervisory District 86
Kinds of Farm Operator Opportunities 85S
Introduction SS
The Trend in the Number of Part-time Farmers 91
The Value of Farm Products Produced on Farms 94
The Kinds of Opportunities for Farm Operators in Indiana, 36
The Kinds of Opportunities for Farm Operators in the
Counties of the Fourth Supervisory District 36
Summary 99
V THE NUMBER OF STUDENTS COMPLETING- FOUR YEARS OF INSTRUCTION
IN VOCATIONAL AGRICULTURE IN INDIANA IN 1941-42 101
Introduction 101
The Number of Students Enrolled in Vocational Agriculture
in Indiana 102
The Number of Rural Farm Males Attending School 104
A Comparison of the Number of Twelfth Grade Students
Enrolled in Vocational Agriculture and the Number of
Farmers in the Township 105
iv
The Humber of Students Enrolled In Vocational Agriculture
in Schools in the Fourth Supervisory District 105
Summary 107
VI PATTERNS FOR BECOMING- FARM OPERATORS IN THE FOURTH
SUPERVISORY DISTRICT 1920-1942 109
Introduction 109
Occupational Statuses Studied 111
Determining the Patterns of the Sequences of Occupational
Statuses 115
The Length of Time Required to Reach an Operator Status 120
The Differences Between Croups in Total Time Required
to Reach the Operator Status 120
The Differences Between Certain Combination of Croups
in Total Time Required to Reach an Operator Status 125
Differences between Croups in Years Spent in Occupational
Statuses 12J
Years Spent in Allowance Status 128
Years Receiving Income from Enterprises 129
Years Spent in Partnership 129
Years Paid Wages at Home 130
Years Spent as a Hired Man 131
Years Spent as Non-farm Laborer 131
The Importance of the Patterns in Five-year Periods from
1920 to 1939 132
The Association of Certain Characteristics of Farm
Operators with Different Croups of Farm Operators 134
The Differences in the Distance Between the Teen-Age
Home and the Present Farm of Operators of the 16 Croups 134
The Differences in the Amount of Agricultural Education
Taken and in the Length of Time Spent in School by
Farm Operators of the 16 Croups 136
The Differences in the Sizes of the Farms of the Fathers
of the Operators in the 16 Croups 143
The Differences in the Number of Brothers of the Operators
of the l6 Croups 145
Changes in the Types of Farming Practiced by Farm
Operators 148
The Differences in the Types of Farming Practiced by the
Farm Operators and Their Fathers 150
The Sequence of Statuses Independent of Croup Patterns 151
V
The Uext Occupational Statuses Entered From Each Status 155
At Home on an Allowance 155
Income from One or More Farm Enterprises 155
Farm Partners 155
Farm Laborer for Wages, at Home 15&
Farm Laborer for Wages, Away from Home 156
Hon-farm Work 156
Summary 157
VII SUMMARY OF FIHDIHOS AND G-EHEEALIZATI OK S 1&2
Findings 162
The Humber of Opportunities for Farm Operators 162
The Humber of Students Completing Four Years of
Vocational Agriculture 164
The Patterns of Occupational Advancement of Farm
Operators 164
General i sat i ons 167
The Hature and Humber of Opportunities for Farm
Operators in Indiana l6S
The Humber of Students Completing Four Years of
Vocational Agriculture l6S
Patterns of Occupational Advancement and Character
istics of Farm Operators in the Various Groups l6S
VIII THE EBUCATIOHÂL SIGHIFICAHCE OF THE OPPQRTUHITIES AHD
PATTERNS FOR BBCOMIHG FARM OPERATORS 1J0
The Basic Philosophy Underlying Interpretations 170
Introduction 1J0
The Basic Philosophy 170
The Educational Significance of the Opportunities for
Hew Farm Operators 172
The Educational Significance of the Patterns of Occupa
tional Advancement and Characteristics of the Farm
Operators in the Various Groups 174
Suggestions for Further Study 180
LITERATURE CITED
APPENDIX
VITA
vi
LISTS OF TABLES AND FIGURES
List of Tables
Table Page
1. The number and per cent of individuals by routes of exper
ience summarized from studies made of the "agricultural
ladder” in United States 29
2 The per cent of owner—operators with previous experience in
*
the different statuses 30
3. The total number of farm operators, the number of selected
operators, and the percentage ..return of acceptable blanks
by townships
4* The difference between the number of farm operators reported
by the census of agriculture and the number of farmers and
farm managers reported by the census of population in Indiana
for census years, 1900-1940 inclusive 60
5. The net change in the number of farm operators reported by the
census of agriculture and in the number of farmers and farm
managers reported by the census of population in Indiana during
decades from 1900 to 1939 inclusive 61
.
6 The number of farm operators reported in the census of agri
culture and the number of farmers and farm managers reported
in the census of population, by age in Indiana, 1930 and 1940 61
7. The number of farm operators reporting age, by age, in Indiana,
1910 and 1920 63
8 The net number entering and leaving the farm operator status,
*
by age, in Indiana, 1910-1919 inclusive 65
9. The net number entering and leaving the farm operator status,
by age, in Indiana, 1920-1929 and 1930-1939» inclusive 67
.
10 The percentage net loss of farm operators, in Indiana, by age
within decades 1910-1939» inclusive 68
11. The average number of acres farmed by operators in Indiana
and in counties of the fourth supervisory district in census
years from 1900 to 1945 inclusive 72
12. The number of farms and net change in number of farms in
Indiana, by size between census years, 1900 to 1945 73
