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4-H Clubs, West Polk County

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Polk County Historical Society
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Color image of 4-H club member Hannah Rolf showing off her three-year-old Holstein dairy cow at the Minnesota State Fair, 2015.

4-H club member Hannah Rolf shows off her three-year-old Holstein dairy cow at the Minnesota State Fair, 2015.

Since their origin in 1902, 4-H clubs have helped American youth explore various professional fields—many related to farming—while mastering practical skills. In Minnesota’s West Polk County, 4-H branches formed in the late 1920s to train and inspire the next generation of local farmers.

In the late 1800s and early 1900s, much of the US was still agricultural. Young people, however, were leaving their families’ farms to look for jobs in cities. The first 4-H clubs were part of an effort to keep these young people involved in farming. 4-H began in 1902 in multiple states as a loosely connected network of community clubs in rural areas. Over time, the network expanded to encourage young people’s development in cities as well.

4-H clubs began to appear in West Polk County in the late 1920s. They formed in the Crookston area and in small towns like Eldred, East Grand Forks, and Neilsville; there, they spread throughout the region. By 1947, there were nineteen clubs; by 1952, that number had increased to twenty-eight. Some clubs, like Angus 4-H from Angus, Minnesota, represented local towns and villages. Others, like Cottonwood Shelter, Worthwhile, and North Star, chose more symbolic names. By 1979, West Polk County had 425 4-H members.

Young people were important members of their 4-H clubs, but their leaders were also key participants. Parents often shared responsibilities in guiding members in different projects. They, along with club leaders, worked towards the goal of developing each member’s potential. Carl Ash, the Polk County Extension Agent during the 1930s and 1940s, attended an annual 4-H recognition banquet every November to give credit to each of the West Polk County clubs and their leaders.

During the summer season, many 4-H members in West Polk County toured other members’ work sites to observe the progress of their projects. Participants engaged in a wide range of activities according to their personal interests. Some sewed and gardened; others trained horses or dogs while learning cooking techniques. All members kept records throughout the year to track project developments.

Participating in the West Polk County Fair, held every summer in Fertile, Minnesota, was another goal for 4-H members, who practiced their project presentations at monthly club meetings in order to prepare. Those who won purple ribbons qualified to go on to the Minnesota State Fair in August. Members also gathered annually at an Achievement Day event to present their projects.

West Polk County 4-H leaders introduced club members to the latest in agricultural technology. In competitions and contests, young members exhibited at fairs with the incentive of receiving ribbons or prizes. In the early twentieth century, activities were separated by gender. Boys entered gardening contests and showed their livestock to judges while girls learned how to sew, cook, bake, and efficiently preserve food through canning.

The 4-H emblem, a four-leaf clover, symbolizes the club’s origins in agriculture. The 4-H colors are green, which represents springtime, life, and youth, and white, which represents purity and idealism. The pledge recited at each monthly meeting references the four core entities for which the club is named: head, heart, hands, and health.

The key life skills of citizenship and leadership are built into every 4-H project, activity, and event. Members take on leadership roles as officers after yearly elections. Roles may differ from club to club, but common offices are president, vice president, secretary, treasurer, reporter, song leader, and historian. The 4-H motto is “To Make the Best Better.”

In the 2010s, opportunities for 4-H members have expanded to include art, music, communications, leadership, career development, home improvement, and computer technology. In total, the organization’s programs reach 7 million youth worldwide. 4-H programs are active in both rural and urban settings throughout the US as well as in other countries of the world. They remain focused on developing future citizens and leaders committed to making their best even better.

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"21 Polk 4-H Youths to Attend Fair." Crookston Daily Times, Aug. 25, 1951.

“232 4-H Clubbers Enroll for A. C. Events.” Crookston Daily Times, June 22, 1951.

“338 Attend 4-H Camp at Northwest School.” Crookston Daily Times, June 19, 1951.

“4-H Clubs Make Fine Showing at Polk Fair: Club Members Win Many Prizes in all Departments at Fair at Fertile.” Crookston Daily Times, July 6, 1928.

“Angus to Present Play at Camp.” Crookston Daily Times, May 15, 1950.

"Area 4-H Club Members Conclude Program at AC." Crookston Daily Times, June, 20, 1951

“Eldred 4-H Club Organized for Boys, Girls.” Crookston Daily Times, April 12, 1928.

“Eldred Organizes 4-H Club; Neilsville is Next in Organization.” Crookston Daily Times, April 12, 1928.

“Expect 2,500 Picnic of Farm Bureau and 4-H Clubs.” Crookston Daily Times, June 11, 1937.

“4-H Good Grooming Contest Held Here.” Crookston Daily Times, November 28, 1967.

“History of Area 4-H and School of Agriculture ‘U’ Farm.” Crookston Daily Times, November 30, 1956.

“Key West 4-H Club Elects New Officers at Recent Meeting.” Crookston Daily Times, October 2, 1947.

“Local 4-Hers Make Good Showing at County Fair.” Crookston Daily Times, July 6, 1928.

"Polk 4-H Contestants Win Six Blue Ribbons." Crookston Daily Times, Sept. 7, 1950.

“Polk County Youth Wins Cattle First: Royal Champion of Angus Takes Prize at St. Paul.” Crookston Daily Times, November 12, 1929.

“To Make the Best Better is Goal of 4-H Clubs.” Crookston Daily Times, November 30, 1956.

“Winners Listed in Fall Roundup.” Crookston Daily Times, September 24, 1951.

"Youths Auction Prize Livestock." Crookston Daily Times, Sept. 21, 1951.

Zarkin, David A. “Boys and Girls Clubs Grow Up.” Minnesota Science 31, no. 1 (Spring 1975): 32–33.

Related Images

Color image of 4-H club member Hannah Rolf showing off her three-year-old Holstein dairy cow at the Minnesota State Fair, 2015.
Color image of 4-H club member Hannah Rolf showing off her three-year-old Holstein dairy cow at the Minnesota State Fair, 2015.
Minnesota 4-H logo. The 4 Hs represent head, heart, hands, and health.
Minnesota 4-H logo. The 4 Hs represent head, heart, hands, and health.
4-H family garden record kept by Worthwhile 4-H Club member Glen Torkelson, 1945.
4-H family garden record kept by Worthwhile 4-H Club member Glen Torkelson, 1945.
4-H beef record kept by Worthwhile 4-H Club member Glen Torkelson, 1947.
4-H beef record kept by Worthwhile 4-H Club member Glen Torkelson, 1947.
Worthwhile 4-H Club members, 1949.
Worthwhile 4-H Club members, 1949.
Map of 4H clubs in West Polk County published in the Crookston Daily Times, 1980.
Map of 4H clubs in West Polk County published in the Crookston Daily Times, 1980.
Color image of 4-H club member Alyssa Schwede at the West Polk County Fair with her hydroponic vegetable garden exhibit, 2015. The exhibit was awarded a purple ribbon.
Color image of 4-H club member Alyssa Schwede at the West Polk County Fair with her hydroponic vegetable garden exhibit, 2015. The exhibit was awarded a purple ribbon.
Color image of 4-H club member and her prize-winning steer at the Polk County Fair, 2015.
Color image of 4-H club member and her prize-winning steer at the Polk County Fair, 2015.

Turning Point

In the 1960s and 1970s, 4-H clubs in West Polk County (and throughout the United States) shift their focus from livestock and agriculture programs to more general education related to a range of arts and sciences.

Chronology

1902

A. B. Graham starts a youth program in Ohio considered to be the first 4-H club in the US.

1902

T. A. Erickson begins to organize after-school agriculture clubs in Douglas County, Minnesota.

1910

Jessie Field Shambaugh develops the 4H organization’s symbol: a four-leaf-clover pin with an “H” on each leaf. The leaves symbolize hands, head, heart, and health, respectively.

1914

The Smith-Lever Act creates funding for the Agriculture Extension program in Minnesota.

1919

4-H leaders meet in Kansas City to establish an organizational structure.

1924

The first agricultural boys’ and girls’ groups become known as 4-H clubs. The Cooperative Extension System at the US Department of Agriculture combines the expertise and resources of federal, state, and local governments to meet the needs of 4-H programs.

1928

4-H Clubs in Fertile, Fisher, Mallory, Eldred, Neilsville, and Crookston are among the first clubs organized in West Polk County.

1944

4-H projects in gardening encourage 4-H members to consider their Victory Gardens part of the fight for freedom during World War II.

1952

4-H celebrates its fiftieth anniversary.

1956

Twenty-three 4-H clubs in West Polk County are organized on a community basis. They meet in schools and members’ homes.

1980

Twenty-one 4-H clubs are active throughout West Polk County.

1987

Over 130,000 young people in Minnesota are involved in 4-H projects and activities, which range from expressive arts to animal science to horseback riding. More than 24,000 adults share their skills and expertise as 4-H leaders.

2002

4-H celebrates its 100th anniversary.