Description
Book SynopsisTrade Review“This detailed chronicle of the research conducted in the US Department of Agriculture’s Division of the Farm Population and Rural Life between 1919 and 1953 provides a useful overview of the range of research conducted or sponsored by the division and some of the political and institutional challenges to its program. Larson (emer., Cornell Univ.) and Zimmerman (Univ. of Kentucky) nicely illustrate that high-quality research was produced during the years that Charles Galpin and Carl Taylor headed the division. Readers are provided with in-depth descriptive accounts of their tenures.”
—P. Kivisto Choice
“The most significant contribution of this book is its ability to provide roots for contemporary rural sociologists, especially those housed in land grant universities or federal government agencies or those holding extension appointments. It provides history and context for our work, and shows the relevance and potential contribution of applied, policy-related research. The authors show a deep respect for Division staff, particularly Galpin and Taylor, as advocates for rural communities and visionaries for the future of rural sociology.”
—Kathryn Brasier Rural Sociology
“This volume is a landmark publication in rural women's studies and an invaluable resource for those who seek to extend research on American rural women.”
—Mary E. Grigsby Agricultural History
Table of ContentsContents
Foreword
Felice J. Levine and James J. Zuiches; John E. Lee Jr.
Acknowledgments
List of Acronyms
1. Introduction
2. Establishing the Division: The Background
3. The Division as an Organization
4. Research Priorities and Programs: Continuities and Discontinuities
5. Farm and Rural Population
6. Levels and Standards of Living
7. The Social Organization of Rural Society: Locality and Other Groups
8. The Social Organization of Rural Life: Institutions and Services
9. Farm Labor
10. The Sociology of Agriculture
11. The Division and Black Populations Yvonne Oliver
12. The Practice of Sociology: I
13. The Practice of Sociology: II
14. Some Other Areas of Research
15. The Division and the Social Science Research System
16. Retrospect and Reflections
Epilogue
Appendix: Persons on the Professional Staff of the Division of Farm Population and Rural Life, Bureau of Agricultural Economics, U.S. Department of Agriculture, 1919–1953
References
Index
