History Timeline

The answer to the question “Why seed certification?” requires a general understanding of farming history. In the 1920s, a survey of Illinois wheat growers struggling at the time showed no efforts to sow uniform seed. In one field, more than 20 different varieties of wheat were discovered. Lack of uniformity creates difficulties that will not be detailed here as they should be evident to anyone with a passing interest in agronomy. The solution to the uniformity issue was to produce seed of known identity and superior purity through seed certification. To this end, Fulhio wheat was “standardized.” The wheat industry, from growers to millers, was dramatically improved under this standardization effort. The story of the Manchu soybean and its success also tells the story of early seed certification efforts. First introduced in 1922, several Champaign County farmers advanced a superior strain of Manchu soybean, eventually reaching 2,000 acres of seed production. Field inspected by Illinois Crop, the variety was “standardized” and became Grand Champion at the 1924 International Hay and Grain Show. By 1926, four additional Championship titles had been achieved, and by 1927, nearly 75% of all known soybean growers in Illinois were using the Illinois-Manchu cultivar.

The first paying member of the Illinois Crop Improvement Association was “L. K. Ellsberry.” A.L. Lang, the author of Illinois Crop’s 50-year history may have assumed that Ellsberry’s name would forever stir a memory in the minds of its readers. But who was Lloyd Ellsberry of Mason County, Illinois?

In the early days of the seed corn business, companies such as W. T. Ainsworth and G. D. Sutton hand-picked and rack-dried ears of corn. By 1922, W. T. Ainsworth & Sons had “14 years of successful growth.” In this pre-hybrid era, seed corn catalogs promoted the ability “to supply seed from the highest yielding strains of the best varieties.” Guarantees of “germination 95 percent or better” allowed the customer 12 days to test and return the seed if unsatisfied.

A fourth-generation Illinois seedsman, Tom Ainsworth recalls the stories of friendship and shared business interests of G. D. Sutton and W. T. Ainsworth. It was mainly through the ability of Mason City’s pioneers in the seed corn industry that modern drying and processing methods have developed. Adding to the process of rack-dried ears, forced-air driers in the 1930s were an early glimpse of modern seed corn production. While others may now claim the title “seed corn capital of the world,” Mason City, Illinois, was likely the first. According to Mason City’s 125-year history, the seed corn business was built on trial and error, experienced unprecedented growth, and generated tremendous changes in agriculture.

When Mr. Sutton became interested in other ventures, he delegated a large share of his company management to Lloyd G. Ellsberry. Mr. Ellsberry appeared to be a proactive community member. He was also the chairman of a committee that celebrated the opening of 81 miles of hard road between Peoria and Springfield in 1920. He also served on the University of Illinois Board of Trustees. We can assume Lloyd’s motivation for joining Illinois Crop Improvement was work-related, but his feelings about the new association are forever his own.

What is likely lost to history is whether the association sprang to life as part of the roaring 20s or quietly joined the seed certification movement that began in earnest at the turn of the century (1900). The first year seed was certified in Illinois was actually 1921 by the Illinois Corn Growers Association. Professor A.L. Lang’s 50-year history includes the “Proposed Methods of Seed Certification-Season 1921” in Appendix B. The 1921 acreage was considered “insignificant.” By 1923, the Illinois Corn Growers Association voted to transfer its membership roll and remaining funds to the newly formed Illinois Crop Improvement Association. Since the modern-day Illinois Corn Growers Association proclaimed its inception in 1972, there appears to be no connection between the organizations beyond using the same name.

We all view the history of the Illinois Crop Improvement Association from our personal experiences. Its history is infinitely more complex than any treatise can address when considering how many people worked for and with the organization over the years. Many who guided the organization have left us. Fortunately, the thoughts and dreams of four generations of Illinois Crop Improvement visionaries, members, leaders, and staff remain in the history books provided by J. C. Hackleman, W. O. Scott, A.L. Lang, and James R. Shearl. In recent times, newsletters and related publications have documented the history of the association. What emerges from these works is a monument to Illinois Crop Improvement’s singular purpose of improving agriculture.

With this online timeline history, we hope you can see the purpose and accomplishments of the Illinois Crop Improvement Association. We encourage you to share any stories, photos, or insights into the association’s history. In developing our 100-year timeline, we have found a commonality between the published histories of related organizations. The authors look back at the state of affairs that preceded the current subject, providing a history before history.

A fascinating example of the history before history comes from Richard Gordon Moores’ Fields of Rich Toil, a history of the College of Agriculture at the University of Illinois. Chapter One starts with several insights into farming in the 1800s, including persisting superstitions and a lack of mechanization. “Corn planted during the new moon would have large stalks but bear only a few ears; corn planted when the moon was old would yield heavily even if the stalks were small.”

Moores asserts that despite significant advances in other areas of science, “there was no agricultural science worthy of the name, and the very richness of the soil in Illinois worked against the development of that science.” While farmers in other states were essentially sustenance farmers, the prairie farmer only needed to “tickle the earth with a hoe, and it would laugh with a harvest.”

A History of Seed Certification in the United States and Canada by J. C. Hackleman and W. O. Scott rightly points out how “hazy” the concept of varietal identity and purity was before seed certification. Hackleman describes the practice of congressional seed distribution, where members of Congress would furnish new crops or varieties in the form of small packets of seed to farmers in their districts. We should feel fortunate that this is over two centuries removed from current practices. But regardless of the source, varieties were more often than not contaminated beyond recognition within a few seasons of farm-based seed production before seed certification.

Fifty Years of Service- A History of Seed Certification in Illinois 1922 to 1972 by A. L. Lang notes that seed for planting was “first inspected in Illinois in 1921 by the Illinois Corn Breeder’s Association.” But despite merging with this organization, the work of the Illinois Corn Breeder’s Association does not appear to count towards Illinois Crop’s years of service. Perhaps subjective by today’s standards, the standards used were evidence of a desire to improve seed quality nonetheless. Subsequent seed certification standards evolved to include production requirements designed to maintain the identity and purity of what plant breeders and experiment stations had released to the public.

Honoring an Era –A History of Illinois Crop Improvement Association, Inc. 1973-1997 by James R. Shearl rightly states that it is not a rehash of the first 50 years of the association but a tribute to the members and staff from 1973 to 1997. Chapter one looks back at the Plant Variety Protection Act of 1970 and its importance to this era of family seed businesses, public varieties, and additional programs offered by Illinois Crop Improvement, including Quality Assurance services, the winter farm, grain lab, and greenhouse.

Professor J. C. Hackleman is rightly considered the driving force behind the founding of Illinois Crop. He once wrote that “a Crop Improvement Association itself is a semi-public organization that accepts custody of a new variety or strain as it comes from the plant breeder. These plant breeders are, in most cases, in public employ and have therefore produced this grain at public expense. The members of the Crop Improvement Association then obligate themselves to have it inspected for purity, genuineness, and quality.”

One of Professor Hackleman’s more memorable dissertations states, “Seed grain is not like pig iron or buckshot, in that its real value is merely a matter of determining its weight. The seed problem is much more complicated because in every seed, there is the possibility of good-or-bad-quality and high-or-low yield, depending upon the breeding behind it. The real value of seed cannot be determined entirely by its weight, its appearance or mechanical condition. Of equal importance is the breeding or the germ of life that is represented in that bulk of golden grain which may or may not look like many other lots. It is this indistinguishable value which was placed in this variety or kind of seed by the breeder which the Crop Improvement Association is endeavoring to perpetuate through its inspection and certification service.”

It is heartening to see the dramatic improvements in agriculture and the freedom Illinois Crop Improvement has exercised to meet the challenges of change. Therefore, with the encouragement of its past, the Illinois Crop Improvement Association looks to the future and celebrates 100 years of service to the seed industry under its sweeping vision of improving agriculture through quality and dependability.

As a tribute to the past 100 years, this history focuses on the very concept that the value of seed cannot be entirely determined by its weight. Above and beyond the weight of the association, we will share the mission, core values, and goals, which are some of the most essential pieces of history that can be carried forward. This timeline includes out-of-the-ordinary stories and shares the pivotal moments that shaped the organization. It is provided here as an interesting look at the past. If you have any stories, photos, or insights into the association’s history, we encourage you to share them with us at ilcrop@ilcrop.com.

Doug Miller, CEO of the Illinois Crop Improvement Association, Inc.