Virginia Claypool Meredith (November 5, 1848 – December 10, 1936) was an American farmer and livestock
breeder
A breeder is a person who selectively breeds carefully selected mates, normally of the same breed to sexually reproduce offspring with specific, consistently replicable qualities and characteristics. This might be as a farmer, agriculturalist, or ...
, a writer and lecturer on the topics of agriculture and home economics, and an active
clubwoman
The woman's club movement was a social movement that took place throughout the United States that established the idea that women had a moral duty and responsibility to transform public policy. While women's organizations had always been a part ...
and a leader of women's organizations. Dubbed "Queen of American Agriculture" by the citizens of
Mississippi
Mississippi () is a state in the Southeastern region of the United States, bordered to the north by Tennessee; to the east by Alabama; to the south by the Gulf of Mexico; to the southwest by Louisiana; and to the northwest by Arkansas. Miss ...
in the 1890s, Meredith was also a pioneer in agricultural education. Between 1897 and 1903 she established the home economics programs at the
University of Minnesota
The University of Minnesota, formally the University of Minnesota, Twin Cities, (UMN Twin Cities, the U of M, or Minnesota) is a public university, public Land-grant university, land-grant research university in the Minneapolis–Saint Paul, Tw ...
and served as the program's first professor. From 1921 to 1936 she served as the first woman appointed a
Purdue University
Purdue University is a public land-grant research university in West Lafayette, Indiana, and the flagship campus of the Purdue University system. The university was founded in 1869 after Lafayette businessman John Purdue donated land and money ...
trustee. Meredith chose an unusual vocation for women of her time, successfully managing the day-to-day operations of her family's
Indiana
Indiana () is a U.S. state in the Midwestern United States. It is the 38th-largest by area and the 17th-most populous of the 50 States. Its capital and largest city is Indianapolis. Indiana was admitted to the United States as the 19th s ...
farm from 1882 until 1915. In addition to her agricultural-related work, Meredith was appointed to the Women's Board of the 1893
World's Columbian Exposition
The World's Columbian Exposition (also known as the Chicago World's Fair) was a world's fair held in Chicago
(''City in a Garden''); I Will
, image_map =
, map_caption = Interactive Map of Chicago
, coordi ...
, serving as vice chair of the Women's Board and chair of its awards committee. She was also elected president of the Indiana Union of Literary Clubs, a founder of the Indiana Federation of Women's Clubs, and the first president of the Indiana Home Economics Association, founded in 1913.
Early life and education
Virginia Claypool, the oldest of Hannah Ann (Petty) and Austin Bingley Claypool's eight children, was born on November 5, 1848, and grew up on Maplewood Farm near
Connersville
Connersville is a city in Fayette County, east central Indiana, United States, east by southeast of Indianapolis. The population was 13,481 at the 2010 census. The city is the county seat of and the largest and only incorporated town in Fa ...
,
Fayette County, Indiana
Fayette County is one of 92 counties in U.S. state of Indiana located in the east central portion of the state. As of 2020, the population was 23,398. Most of the county is rural; land use is farms, pasture and unincorporated woodland. The coun ...
.
Newton Claypool, her paternal grandfather, was an early Indiana pioneer from
Virginia
Virginia, officially the Commonwealth of Virginia, is a state in the Mid-Atlantic and Southeastern regions of the United States, between the Atlantic Coast and the Appalachian Mountains. The geography and climate of the Commonwealth ar ...
who brought his wife from
Ohio
Ohio () is a state in the Midwestern region of the United States. Of the fifty U.S. states, it is the 34th-largest by area, and with a population of nearly 11.8 million, is the seventh-most populous and tenth-most densely populated. The sta ...
to settle in the wilderness. Austin Claypool, her father, became a prosperous farmer who was also active in politics and an early trustee of
Purdue University
Purdue University is a public land-grant research university in West Lafayette, Indiana, and the flagship campus of the Purdue University system. The university was founded in 1869 after Lafayette businessman John Purdue donated land and money ...
.
At the age of fifteen Virginia enrolled at Glendale Female College in Glendale, Ohio
Glendale is a village (United States)#Ohio, village in Hamilton County, Ohio, Hamilton County, Ohio, United States. The population was 2,155 at the 2010 United States census, 2010 census. It is a northern suburb of Cincinnati, and is the site of th ...
, graduating with honors in 1866 and earning a Bachelor of Arts degree.[Bartholomew, p. 50.]
Marriage and family
Virginia Claypool married Henry Clay Meredith, the sole surviving son of American Civil War
The American Civil War (April 12, 1861 – May 26, 1865; also known by other names) was a civil war in the United States. It was fought between the Union ("the North") and the Confederacy ("the South"), the latter formed by states th ...
General Solomon Meredith
Solomon Meredith (May 29, 1810 – October 2, 1875) was a prominent Indiana farmer, politician, and lawman who became a controversial Union Army general in the American Civil War. One of the commanders of the Iron Brigade of the Army of the ...
and his wife, Anna Meredith, on April 28, 1870. During the war, Henry Meredith served as a second lieutenant and '' aide-de-camp'' on his father's staff. Henry's two brothers, Samuel and David, died from battlefield injuries.[
Following their marriage the young couple resided at General Meredith's Oakland Farm, settling into the family's Federal-style home along the ]National Road
The National Road (also known as the Cumberland Road) was the first major improved highway in the United States built by the Federal Government of the United States, federal government. Built between 1811 and 1837, the road connected the Pot ...
near Cambridge City, Indiana
Cambridge City is a town in Jackson Township, Wayne County, in the U.S. state of Indiana. The population was 1,870 at the 2010 census.
History
Cambridge City was laid out and platted in 1836. The community was named after the city of Cambridge, ...
. When Anna Meredith died about eighteen months after Virginia and Henry Meredith's marriage, twenty-three-year-old Virginia took charge of running the household. She also learned about raising livestock and running a farming operation from her father-in-law and husband. Henry Meredith managed the farm following the death of his father in 1875 and became active in politics, serving as president of the Indiana Board of Agriculture and was elected in 1881 to the Indiana General Assembly
The Indiana General Assembly is the state legislature, or legislative branch, of the state of Indiana. It is a bicameral legislature that consists of a lower house, the Indiana House of Representatives, and an upper house, the Indiana Senate. ...
. While her husband served in the state legislature, Virginia Meredith oversaw the management of the family farm and began to show and sell livestock.
When she was widowed at the age of thirty-three, after her thirty-eight-year-old husband died from pneumonia on July 5, 1882, Virginia Meredith became sole owner of the family farm and assumed management of its operation.[Klink, pp. 8–9.]
Four years after the death of her husband, Meredith took on the additional responsibilities of single motherhood.[ After the death of Hattie Beach Matthews, a close friend, Meredith adopted her friend's two young children, a daughter, Mary L. Matthews, who became the first Dean of the School of Home Economics at Purdue University, and a son, Meredith Matthews, who attended Purdue University, worked as an engineer, and later moved to California.][Klink, p. 13.]
Career
Meredith became a nationally known woman farmer. For more than three decades she managed her Indiana farms and raised two adopted children. In the 1880s Meredith began speaking at Farmers' Institutes, forerunner to the Cooperative Extension Service
The Cooperative State Research, Education, and Extension Service (CSREES) was an extension agency within the U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA), part of the executive branch of the federal government. The 1994 Department Reorganization Act, ...
, addressing audiences on various agricultural subjects. Her speeches on the topic of livestock management were a novelty for that time, when women rarely delivered public addresses and even fewer managed their own farms. The experience launched her career as a public speaker and writer. Meredith was a writer and editor for several years for the ''Breeders' Gazette'', a livestock journal,[Bartholomew, pp. 54–55.] and is considered the first woman to be hired by Purdue University's Agricultural Extension Department.[Klink, p. 10.]
Beginning in 1882 Meredith assumed management responsibilities of Oakland Farm, which she inherited after the death of her husband. The family farm near Cambridge City, Indiana, was known for its find herds of Shorthorn
The Shorthorn breed of cattle originated in the North East of England in the late eighteenth century. The breed was developed as dual-purpose, suitable for both dairy and beef production; however, certain blood lines within the breed always emp ...
cattle and Southdown and Shropshire sheep
The Shropshire breed of domestic sheep originated from the hills of Shropshire, and North Staffordshire, England, during the 1840s. The breeders in the area used the local horned black-faced sheep and crossed them with a few breeds of white-faced ...
.[.] In addition to managing the farm she became a livestock breeder
A breeder is a person who selectively breeds carefully selected mates, normally of the same breed to sexually reproduce offspring with specific, consistently replicable qualities and characteristics. This might be as a farmer, agriculturalist, or ...
, an unlikely vocational choice for a woman at that time, and won several prizes for her entries at livestock competitions.[ From 1890 to 1894 Meredith was also active on the Women's Board (also known as the Board of Lady Managers) of the ]World's Columbian Exposition
The World's Columbian Exposition (also known as the Chicago World's Fair) was a world's fair held in Chicago
(''City in a Garden''); I Will
, image_map =
, map_caption = Interactive Map of Chicago
, coordi ...
, which took place in Chicago, Illinois, in 1893. Meredith served as the Board's vice chair and chair of its awards committee.[Klink, p. 11.][.] She authored "The Work of the Board of Lady Managers" describing their work. In 1895 Meredith was invited to speak at a farmers' institute at Vicksburg, Mississippi
Vicksburg is a historic city in Warren County, Mississippi, United States. It is the county seat, and the population at the 2010 census was 23,856.
Located on a high bluff on the east bank of the Mississippi River across from Louisiana, Vic ...
, where she delivered a speech titled "Profitable Sheep Husbandry" during a time in the Deep South
The Deep South or the Lower South is a cultural and geographic subregion in the Southern United States. The term was first used to describe the states most dependent on plantations and slavery prior to the American Civil War. Following the war ...
when it was considered inappropriate for women to speak in public. On the final evening of the conference, Meredith was surprised with a gold medal that proclaimed her "the Queen of American Agriculture."[Klink, p. 12.]
In 1896 Meredith moved to Minnesota
Minnesota () is a state in the upper midwestern region of the United States. It is the 12th largest U.S. state in area and the 22nd most populous, with over 5.75 million residents. Minnesota is home to western prairies, now given over to ...
, where she was the first preceptress at the University of Minnesota
The University of Minnesota, formally the University of Minnesota, Twin Cities, (UMN Twin Cities, the U of M, or Minnesota) is a public university, public Land-grant university, land-grant research university in the Minneapolis–Saint Paul, Tw ...
's School of Agriculture. Meredith was responsible for forming the university's home economics
Home economics, also called domestic science or family and consumer sciences, is a subject concerning human development, personal and family finances, consumer issues, housing and interior design, nutrition and food preparation, as well as texti ...
program and also served as the program's first professor. Between 1897 and 1903 Meredith served for six years as head of the home economic department at Minnesota, in addition to spending time at her Indiana farm when school was not in session. In May 1900 she sold Oakland Farm and purchased a farm south of Cambridge City. Meredith named the property Narborough Farm.[ Meredith returned to Indiana on a permanent basis following a disagreement with Frederich D. Ticker, the School of Agriculture's principal, that later led the University of Minnesota's board to request both of their resignations. Meredith resigned in 1903.][Klink, p. 13.]
After returning to Indiana, Meredith resumed speaking at farmers' institutes while lobbying for support to establish a home economics program at Purdue University.
Her involvement with Purdue had begun in 1899, when she first began speaking for the Farmer's Institute. Meredith's lectures across Indiana offered "to educate farmers on the latest science and technology in agriculture." She gave up day-to-day management of her Cambridge City farm in 1915 due to her advancing age and moved to West Lafayette, Indiana
West Lafayette () is a city in Wabash Township, Tippecanoe County, Indiana, United States, about northwest of the state capital of Indianapolis and southeast of Chicago. West Lafayette is directly across the Wabash River from its sister city, ...
, in 1916 to live with her adopted daughter, Mary Matthews. After the move Meredith continued speaking and wrote articles for agricultural journals.[ In 1921 she became the first woman appointed to Purdue's board of trustees and served in that capacity until her death in 1936.][
In addition to her agricultural work, Meredith was an active ]clubwoman
The woman's club movement was a social movement that took place throughout the United States that established the idea that women had a moral duty and responsibility to transform public policy. While women's organizations had always been a part ...
. She was president of the Helen Hunt Club, a Cambridge City literary group, and the Cambridge City chapter of the Equal Franchise League. She was also president of the Indiana Union of Literary Clubs and a founder of the Indiana Federation of Women's Clubs. Meredith was named an honorary president of the Federation in 1918 when the two organizations merged. In addition, Meredith was the first president of the Indiana Home Economics Association, founded in 1913.[
]
Death and legacy
Meredith died at her home in West Lafayette, Indiana, on December 10, 1936, at the age of eighty-eight.[Bartholomew, p. 56.]
Purdue University's Board of Trustees paid tribute to her service at the time of her death, calling her "a woman of rare qualities" with "wide interests" who "created her own enduring memorial" through her public service and agricultural work.[Bartholomew, p. 57.] A collection of Meredith's papers are housed at the Purdue University Libraries, Archives and Special Collections in West Lafayette, Indiana.
Dubbed "Queen of American Agriculture" in the 1890s, Meredith was a successful stock-raiser who also oversaw the day-to-day operation of her Indiana farm, an unusual occupation for an American woman in the late-nineteenth century. She was also a pioneer in agricultural education. Meredith established the University of Minnesota's home economics program and served as the program's first professor. Her public lectures and lobbying efforts also helped to pave the way toward the establishment in 1905 of a home economics department at Purdue University, predecessor to its present-day College of Consumer and Family Sciences. Meredith became the first woman appointed to the Board of Trustees at Purdue, serving from 1921 to 1936. She believed that women had the right to work outside the home, as well as recognizing the important role that women had in caring for a home and family. Meredith, an active clubwoman, was involved with several civic organizations, most notably on the Women's Board of the World's Columbian Exposition from 1890 to 1894, as the first president of the Indiana Home Economics Association in 1913, and as an organizer of the Indiana Federation of Women's Clubs.[
]
Honors and tributes
* In the 1890s the State of Mississippi awarded a medal proclaiming her the "Queen of American Agriculture."[
* In 1930 the State of ]Wisconsin
Wisconsin () is a state in the upper Midwestern United States. Wisconsin is the 25th-largest state by total area and the 20th-most populous. It is bordered by Minnesota to the west, Iowa to the southwest, Illinois to the south, Lake M ...
gave her an award for her "eminent service."[
* Meredith Hall, a women's residence hall at Purdue University in West Lafayette, Indiana, is named in her memory.][
* The Virginia Claypool Meredith Memorial Forest, a project of the Indiana Federation of Clubs near ]Shoals, Indiana
Shoals is a town in Center and Halbert townships and the county seat of Martin County, in the U.S. state of Indiana. The population was 756 at the 2010 census.
The Shoals community is best known for the Jug Rock, the only free-standing table ro ...
, was dedicated on May 27, 1938.
* A state historical marker installed on Main Street in Cambridge City, Indiana, was dedicated to Meredith in 2014.[
]
Notes
References
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Further reading
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External links
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{{DEFAULTSORT:Meredith, Virginia Claypool
1848 births
1936 deaths
People from Fayette County, Indiana
Purdue University people
University of Minnesota people
Clubwomen