Congressional seed distribution

Responsibility transferred to the United States Department of Agriculture (USDA) upon its formation in 1862, and was eventually placed under the Office of Congressional Seed Distribution.

The program grew throughout the late 1800s despite some criticism of it as unconstitutional overreach of a too-large government and an instrument of political corruption.

The United States federal government became involved in the process in 1819, when William H. Crawford, the secretary of the treasury, asked American ambassadors and military officers to get seeds as they traveled around the world and bring them back to the US.

The same year the Morrill Land-Grant Act of 1862 was passed, establishing many state agricultural colleges that would work to develop better seeds.

"[7] United States Commissioner of Agriculture Frederick Watts resolved the issue by creating protocols to ensure high quality seeds and it gained some support.

[8] William Gates LeDuc, Watts' successor, unsuccessfully proposed creating labs around the country to manage seed testing and distribution.

That year, Vick's Illustrated Magazine condemned "silence and tacit acquiescence" that allowed “this farce of a free seed distribution" as an example of political corruption.

[5] When Julius Sterling Morton became agriculture secretary in 1893, he fought to end congressional seed distribution.

[10] Morton's replacement, James Wilson, also favored ending the program but worked to spend the majority of money allotted to him.

[18][19] Historian Daniel Carpenter called congressional seed distribution “the dominant federal agricultural program of the nineteenth century.” Deborah Fitzgerald wrote that it was “a way for Congressmen to enhance their images by appearing sympathetic to agricultural interests in their districts.”[3] The program provided for the introduction of sorghum, Japanese rice, durum wheat, and other new plant varieties to the US.