About The Mississippi Union advocate and Southern farm and home. (Jackson, Miss.) 1907-1909
Jackson, Miss. (1907-1909)

The Mississippi Union Advocate and Southern Farm and Home

After the Civil War, several national organizations were formed to help farmers. In Mississippi and other parts of the South, they addressed the crippling crop-lien debt system that had replaced slavery. One such group, the Farmers' Union, was chartered in the early 1900s. As with the Farmers' Alliance before it, the Farmers' Union reached its maximum membership in the state quickly, but by 1910 it was in steep decline.

The official organ of the Farmers' Union, the Mississippi Union Advocate and Southern Farm and Home was first published in August 1907 by Henry E. Blakeslee. A former proprietor of the New Albany Gazette (1890-current), Blakeslee was appointed commissioner of the Mississippi Department of Agriculture and Commerce (1906-16) by Governor James K. Vardaman (1904-08). Shortly after the Union Advocate was established, its place of publication moved from Hazlehurst to the state capital, Jackson. Dues were raised so that members of the Farmers' Union in Mississippi could receive the paper at no additional cost. In May 1909, the title was shortened to the Mississippi Union Advocate; by the time the Union Advocate ceased publication in 1915, it was a monthly.

One objective of the Farmers' Union was to raise the price that farmers received for their cotton. To help achieve this goal, warehouses were established throughout Mississippi in which farmers could store their cotton while waiting for better prices. In September 1908, when the price of cotton was very low, the Union Advocate reported on contention between those farmers who chose to delay selling their cotton and those who did not. The September 2 issue of the Advocate accused farmers unwilling to cooperate in the boycott of being traitors. Later the same month, however, the Union Advocate advised Union members not to participate in the night raids to destroy the crops and property of uncooperative farmers. The rumored raids turned out to be a hoax. The Mississippi Union Advocate and Southern Farm and Home also supported training for future farmers through agricultural high schools and increasing the public's knowledge about agriculture in general. Furthermore, the Union Advocate published correspondence from Farmers' Union members all over Mississippi. While the paper focused on state and national news pertinent to farmers' interests, it also featured a children's column and a veterinary department. Another column, entitled "Birds and the Farmer," was dedicated to the study and preservation of feathered creatures.

Provided by: Mississippi Department of Archives and History