Georgia Magazine - January 2015 - 21B

First series of historic
farm photos released
The nationwide 4-H pledge
defi nes what the four H's stand
for: "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,
my country and my world."
learning programs offered at school,
after school and at 4-H camp and
conferences.
"On the 4-H side of Extension,
we've always been in the schools,
work in concert with 4-H and are
ultimately responsible for the program,"
says Hall County Extension
Agent Michael Wheeler. "With 4-H,
we're always trying not only to do
leadership training and teach the
core values of 4-H, but we're getting
kids used to knowing their county
agent offi ce, so they can use it when
they're older."
In Georgia, says Steve Brown,
interim associate dean of Extension,
(Continued on page 21C)
For as long as there have been portable
cameras, University of Georgia Extension agents
and Extension photographers have used them
to help identify crop diseases, demonstrate best
farming practices and document community events.
With at least one agent in most Georgia counties, UGA Extension agents and
their photographers have produced more than 60,000 sleeves of negatives. For the
fi rst time, some of these photos are available to the public online through the Digital
Library of Georgia.
"The 100-year history of UGA Extension is the history of thousands of individual
Georgians who spent their youth at 4-H summer camps, helped to organize an Extension
fi eld day or hosted a demonstration fi eld for their community," says Beverly
Sparks, retired associate dean for Extension in the UGA College of Agricultural and
Environmental Sciences. "These photos tell the stories of the Georgians whose
lives and livelihoods were touched by UGA Extension over the past century and
illustrate the vital role UGA Extension has had in shaping Georgia's history."
The fi rst 1,292 photos of the collection were released in June and include shots
of grain crops, livestock shows and forage fi elds from across the state. Most of the
prints date from the 1930s to 1960s, but some are from the early 1900s.
Archivists continue to scan and catalogue the remaining negatives and documents
in the UGA Extension collection. The size and scope of the collection provides
an excellent photographic record of Georgia folk life and farm life, according
to UGA archivist Caroline Killens, project manager.
"What makes this collection so valuable is that many of the photos came with
some type of documentation," says Killens. "Many of these negatives came with
notes about the event and subject of the photos and often with the place where
they were taken and the photographer's name."
Many of the photos were used as part of UGA Extension's centennial multimedia
exhibit and can be viewed online at 100years.extension.uga.edu.
Prints and negatives stored in the Hargrett Rare Book and Manuscript Library
in the Russell Special Collections Building at the University of Georgia were used
to make the photographs available to the public through the Digital Library of
Georgia. The Digital Library of Georgia includes digitized and searchable versions
of newspapers, photographs, books, offi cial documents and other pieces of
Georgia's history.
"I think many people will enjoy
these, not just those who are
interested in agriculture," Killens
says. "There are a lot of photos in
this collection that people have
never seen. People researching
their genealogy or the history of
their town or county will fi nd a lot
of information in here."
To view the collection, visit
dlg.galileo.usg.edu/Collections
A-Z/caes_search.html.
1952
A 4-H county fat cattle show parades
through Commerce.
January 2015
1967
A young entrant shows off his winning cow at the
20th annual Georgia Cattle Show.
More online at www.georgiamagazine.org
Merritt Melancon is a news
editor with the University of Georgia
College of Agricultural and
Environmental Sciences.
21B
VIRGIL ADAMS / CAES
COLLEGE OF AGRICULTURE AND ENVIRONMENTAL
SCIENCES PHOTOGRAPH COLLECTION
http://100years.extension.uga.edu http://dlg.galileo.usg.edu/CollectionsA-Z/caes_search.html http://www.georgiamagazine.org
Georgia Magazine - January 2015

Table of Contents for the Digital Edition of Georgia Magazine - January 2015
