59 School Street, Box 1310, Edgartown MA 02539 - 508.627.4441
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A Finding Aid to the Martha's Vineyard Agricultural Society records, 1857-2012, undated

Descriptive Summary

Repository Martha's Vineyard Museum Gale Huntington Research Library
59 School Street
P.O. Box 1310
Edgartown, MA 02539
(508)627-4441
Call Number RU 233
Creator Martha's Vineyard Agricultural Society
Title Martha's Vineyard Agricultural Society records
Date [inclusive] 1857-2012, undated
Extent 10 boxes and 1 volume shelved unboxed (4.348 cubic feet).
Location For current information on the location of these materials, please consult the library's staff.
Language The materials are in English.
Abstract This collection consists of Martha's Vineyard Agricultural Society organizational records including, correspondence, meeting minutes, reports and publications.

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Administrative Information

Access Restrictions

Access to some of the organizational records acquired in 2011 is limited due to preservation concerns. Please contact the Chief Curator for further information regarding the availability of these materials.

Use and Reproduction Restrictions

Requests to reproduce material from this collection should be directed to the library's staff. Reproduction fees may apply.

Preferred Citation

Martha's Vineyard Museum, RU 233, Martha's Vineyard Agricultural Society Records.

Acquisition Information

  • Gift of Mrs. Charles Turner in 1972. (Accession no. 1972.058). [Donation]
  • Gift of Prudence Noon in 2003. (Accession no. 2003.015). [Donation]
  • Gift of Martha's Vineyard Agricultural Society in 2011. (Accession no. 2011.019). [Donation]
  • Gift of Dale McClure (President of the Martha's Vineyard Agricultural Society) in 2015. (Accession no. 2015.009). [Donation]

Publications are from various donors and continue to accrue.

Custodial History

Materials gifted by Prudence Noon were found in the donor's home on State Road in West Tisbury. The house was the former residence of the donor's great grandmother, Virginia Whiting Newhall, daughter of Henry L. Whiting, the Society's Secretary.

Charles A. Turner audited the accounts of the Society in the late 1920s and appears to have retained the Society's account book until Mrs. Charles Turner gifted it in 1972.

Accruals

Additional accruals are expected.

Bibliography

  • Bountiful: a history of the Martha's Vineyard Agricultural Society and the livestock show and fair, Canton, MA: Sherman Printing Co., 2012.

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Publication Information

Martha's Vineyard Museum

Gale Huntington Research Library
59 School Street
P.O. Box 1310
Edgartown, MA 02539
(508)627-4441

Revision Description

 Addition to the Collection; Addition of Series III: 2015.009 Accession, [CJ].  December 2015.

Processing Information

Finding aid prepared and machine-encoded by Clint Johnson in

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Related Materials

Related Materials

  • See also, RU 505, Town of Tisbury Records.
  • See also, RU 559, Theodore and Polly Meinelt Collection.
  • See also, Call no. 974.42 K12.5, Bountiful : a history of the Martha's Vineyard Agricultural Society and the Livestock Show and Fair : celebrating the community of life, family, and community.
  • See also, oral history collections for numerous related interviews.

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Index Terms

Genre(s)

  • Account books
  • Annual reports
  • Clippings
  • Competition entries
  • Constitutions
  • Correspondence
  • Minutes
  • Programs
  • Publications

Geographic Name(s)

  • Martha's Vineyard (Mass.)
  • West Tisbury (Mass.)

Subject(s)

  • Agricultural exhibitions
  • Agriculture--Massachusetts--Martha's Vineyard
  • Agriculture--Societies, etc.

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Biography/Historical Note

On the March 26, 1858 an announcement appeared in the Vineyard Gazette, for a meeting to be held on the subject of island farming. By that time many other counties in the Commonwealth had well-established agricultural societies. Martha's Vineyard was better known to seafarers and fishermen. The attendees at the April 3, 1858 meeting in West Tisbury resolved; "that the attainment and diffusion of scientific and practical knowledge in the cultivation of the soil, is a subject of such importance as to demand the associated effort of the farmers of Dukes County." A committee was established to draw up a constitution for the new Martha's Vineyard Agricultural Society; membership fees were set and ladies were admitted. As an 1865 publication states the Society's goal was: "To improve the agricultural interests in our county."

In an effort to encourage agricultural endeavors and promote farming knowledge, the Society held an annual agricultural fair beginning in 1858. The first fair was held at the Dukes County Academy in West Tisbury. By 1859, the Society had initiated fundraising efforts, sought State Board of Agriculture support, purchased land and built a new exhibition and meeting hall. The 1859 fair was held at the recently constructed West Tisbury Agricultural Hall, also known as the Grange Hall. As the fair grew in size and popularity, the Society realized it needed a new location. In 1994 the Society erected a new Agricultural Hall in West Tisbury on Panhandle Road. Since 1995 the Martha's Vineyard Livestock Show and Fair has been held at this location.

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Scope and Content of Collection

The records of the Martha's Vineyard Agricultural Society include organizational correspondence, minutes from several early meetings and accounting records kept in handwritten volumes. A form developed in 1862 called "Statements of Crop," uniformly gathered information on produce and livestock from across the island. These reports tell of growing conditions and harvest rates of many crops on the island. Handwritten notes, entries and lists appear to be the basis of official publications. The publications from 1865-1917 called Transactions are an annual report of the society containing committee reports and listing awards of premiums (monetary prizes) issued for crops and livestock. Later publications are fair programs listing times of events and potential awards.

Arrangement

  • Series I: Organizational Records
  • Series II: Publications
  • Series III: 2015.009 Accession

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Contents of Collection

Series I: Organizational Records, 1857- circa 1950, undated, bulk 1857-1876 

Scope and Content

The records in Series I concern the formation and administration of the Martha's Vineyard Agricultural Society and the management of its annual agricultural fair and livestock show. Records include the organization's constitution, correspondence, minutes, reports, fair entries, premiums and statements of crops. These materials reflect contemporary farming practices and conditions and demonstrate the array of crops and livestock raised on the island. The letters are between President Leavitt Thaxter and Secretary Henry L. Whiting, as well as the Massachusetts Board of Agriculture and other societies in the state. The series also includes papers related to the construction of the Agricultural Hall in West Tisbury in 1859. An account book, An Account of the Disbursement of the State Bounty by the M. V. Agricultural Society, tracks funding received from the state, receipts and bills paid and premiums awarded, 1893-1933. The "Statements of Crop" cover the years 1862-1871, giving detailed information on the farming practices at that time.

Arrangement

The series is arranged chronologically. Discrepancies in the order of box and folder numbers reflect the fact that the material was acquired in separate accessions.
Box Folder

Minutes, Constitution, Correspondence, 1857-1859 

 1 1

Premiums and Membership Lists, 1858-1859, 1876, 1879 

 1 3

Correspondence, 1858-1860 

 1 4

Building Correspondence, 1859 

 1 5

Entries and Premiums, 1859, undated 

 1 6

Entry Clerk's Book, 1859-1863 

 5 1

Premium Notebooks, 1860 

 6 1

Statements of Crop, 1860 

 7 1

Entries, 1860-1861 

 6 2

Statements of Crop, 1860-1865 

 6 3

Premiums, 1861 

 6 4

Newspaper, Vineyard Gazette, 1861 March 15 

 5 3

Correspondence, 1861-1875 

 5 2

Meeting Minutes, 1861-1864 

 6 5

Entry Notebooks, 1861-1866 

 5 4

Statement of Crop, 1862 

 7 2

Premium Notebooks, 1862 

 7 3

Statements of Crop, 1862 

 5 10

Statements of Crop, 1863-1899 

 5 11

Premiums, 1863 

 7 4

Statements of Crop, 1863 

 7 5

Statements of Crop, 1864 

 7 6

Statements of Crop, 1864 

 5 12

Statements of Crop, 1865-1866 

 7 7

Envelopes and Entries, circa 1865-1875 

 6 6

Miscellaneous Envelopes, circa 1865-1876 

 6 7

Statements of Crop, 1867 

 5 13

Statements of Crop, 1869-1876 

 5 14

Cranberry Report, 1869-1870 

 7 8

Statements of Crop, 1870 

 7 9

Draft of Revised Constitution, 1870 

 1 2

Entries, 1871 

 7 10

Statements of Crop, 1871 

 7 11

Statements of Crop, 1871 

 5 15

Entry and Premium Notebooks, 1871-1872 

 5 6

Entry and Premium Notebooks, 1871-1873 

 5 7

Notebook of Entries, 1871-1878 

 7 12

Statements of Crop, 1872 

 8 1

Statements of Crop and Entries, 1872 

 8 2

Entry and Premium Notebooks, 1872-1873 

 5 8

Statements of Crop, 1873 

 8 3

Premiums and Statements of Crop, 1874 

 8 4

Premium Notebooks, 1875 

 8 5

Statements of Crop, 1876 

 8 6

Premium Notebooks, 1876 

 8 7

Premium Notebooks, 1876 

 8 8

Entry and Premium Notebooks, 1876 

 5 9

"Report on Martha's Vineyard Agricultural Society, 1883 
Author/Creator:  Grinnell, James S.

 1 7

Account Book, 1893-1896 

Note

Includes lists of premiums awarded.

 4 1

Fair Athletics, 1929-1933 

 6 8

Newspaper Clippings, 1950s 

 3 11

Entries and Envelopes, undated 

 8 9

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Series II: Publications, 1865-2012 

Scope and Content

The earliest fair publication in the collection is a broadside titled; Martha's Vineyard Agricultural Society, for the 1863 fair. This notice lists the Society's officers, as well as premiums to be awarded at the fair. A large number of the publications in the series consist of annual reports or transactions, 1865-1917. These contain reports from committees, a list of officers, members and judges for each competition and premiums paid for each category. The society subsequently produced programs for the fair, 1947-2012, which include a schedule of events, entry forms, a list of officers and the premiums offered for each agricultural category or competition.

Arrangement

The series is arranged chronologically.
Box Folder

Martha's Vineyard Agricultural Society broadside, 1863 

Note

There are some areas of loss, which render the text illegible.

 OS Gen 5 2

Transactions of the Martha's Vineyard Agricultural Society, for the Year, 1865-1870 

 1 8

Transactions of the Martha's Vineyard Agricultural Society, for the Year, 1865-1870 

 1 9

Transactions of the Martha's Vineyard Agricultural Society, for the Year, 1865-1870 

 1 10

Transactions of the Martha's Vineyard Agricultural Society, for the Year, 1871, 1873 

 1 11

Transactions of the Martha's Vineyard Agricultural Society, for the Year, 1874-1887 

 1 12

Transactions of the Martha's Vineyard Agricultural Society, for the Year, 1874-1888 

 1 13

Transactions of the Martha's Vineyard Agricultural Society, for the Year, 1874-1889 

 1 14

Transactions of the Martha's Vineyard Agricultural Society, for the Year, 1874-1890 

 1 15

Transactions of the Martha's Vineyard Agricultural Society, for the Year, 1874-1891 

 1 16

Transactions of the Martha's Vineyard Agricultural Society, for the Year, 1874-1892 

 1 17

Transactions of the Martha's Vineyard Agricultural Society, for the Year, 1874-1893 

 1 18

Transactions of the Martha's Vineyard Agricultural Society, for the Year, 1888-1907 

 2 1

Transactions of the Martha's Vineyard Agricultural Society, for the Year, 1888-1908 

 2 2

Transactions of the Martha's Vineyard Agricultural Society, for the Year, 1888-1909 

 2 3

Transactions of the Martha's Vineyard Agricultural Society, for the Year, 1888-1910 

 2 4

Transactions of the Martha's Vineyard Agricultural Society, for the Year, 1888-1911 

 2 5

Transactions of the Martha's Vineyard Agricultural Society, for the Year, 1888-1912 

 2 6

Transactions of the Martha's Vineyard Agricultural Society, for the Year, 1888-1913 

 2 7

Transactions of the Martha's Vineyard Agricultural Society, for the Year, 1888-1914 

 2 8

Transactions of the Martha's Vineyard Agricultural Society, for the Year, 1888-1915 

 2 9

Transactions of the Martha's Vineyard Agricultural Society, for the Year, 1888-1916 

 2 10

Transactions of the Martha's Vineyard Agricultural Society, for the Year, 1913, 1917 

 2 11

Premium List, 1918 

 2 12

Season Ticket and List of Premiums, 1935, 1941 

 3 1

Fair Programs, 1947, 1951-1952 

 3 2

Fair Programs, 1965-1967 

 3 3

Fair Programs, 1972-1974 

 3 4

Fair Programs, 1982-1983 

 3 5

Fair Programs, 1990, 1992 

 3 6

Fair Programs, 1994, 1999 

 3 12

Livestock '95 Benefit Concert program, 1995 

 3 7

Fair Programs, 2006, 2009 

 3 8

Fair Programs, 2010-2012 

 3 9

Fair Programs, 2010-2012 

 3 10

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Series III: 2015.009 Accession, 1858-1922, undated 

Scope and Content

The series was added to the collection in December 2015 by Clint Johnson. It contains fair registers, a member list and treasurer ledgers donated by the Martha's Vineyard Agricultural Society in 2015.

Arrangement

The series is arranged alphabetically by folder title and therein chronologically.
Box Folder

Fair Entry Register Farm Animals, etc, 1865-1878 

 8 10

Fair Entry Register Fruit and Flowers, 1871-1879 

 8 11

Fair Entr Register Mechanical and Agricultural Implements, etc., 1871-1879 

 9 1

Fair Entr Register Sheep, 1871-1878 

 9 2

Fair Entr Register Vegetables and Sample Grain, 1871-1879 

 9 3

Original Membership list, undated 

 9 4

Treauser's Ledger, 1858-1870 

 9 5

Treauser's Ledger, 1870-1881 

 9 6

Treauser's Ledger, 1881-1895 

 10 1

Treauser's Ledger, 1895-1922 

 10 2

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