n 1890, Oklahoma A&M College faculty, students and staff set out to educate the next generation of Oklahomans on 200 acres of land dedicated to the campus and agricultural experiment station. Now, 130 years later these acres have become a part of the family legacy of Oklahoma State University’s Ferguson College of Agriculture for students from around the world. “Agriculture has always been a big part of OSU, especially back in the day when it was known as Oklahoma A&M College,” said David Peters, OSU 18 | COWBOY JOURNAL
Archives department head and assistant professor. Even though much has changed, OSU has always been a significant location for agricultural instruction and research, Peters said. “Initially, students were looking for information on how to help their families and themselves survive because agriculture was the main way of life,” Peters said. “Back then, it was very hands-on, practical teaching. You’d grab a hoe, and go out and weed or plant fruit trees.” During the Great Depression,
students sometimes would show up at OAMC without shoes, which showed the need Oklahomans had for stable employment and the importance of agriculture to the state, Peters said. Most college of agriculture students in the early years of OSU came from a small country high school, said Curtis Richardson, dairy specialist emeritus who also graduated from Oklahoma A&M. “When I went to OSU, I didn’t have money,” Richardson said. “I had to work my way through college at the dairy farm where 16 boys lived there in
