Henry A. Wallace, an Iowan with deep roots in agriculture, profoundly impacted farming across Iowa, the United States, and globally. Born into a family passionate about the land, Wallace became a significant, though sometimes controversial, public figure. Yet, one thing remained undisputed: Henry A. Wallace possessed an unparalleled understanding of farming, especially when it came to corn and the company he pioneered, the Pioneer Corn Company.
Early Life and a Passion for Learning
Born on October 8, 1888, on a farm near Orient, Iowa, in Adair County, Henry Agard Wallace was part of the renowned Wallace farming lineage. From a young age, science and agriculture captivated him. At eight, his family relocated to a farm on the outskirts of Des Moines, where his daily tasks included milking cows and tending to chickens and livestock. By ten, he managed his own garden, providing food for his family. Strawberries remained a lifelong favorite.
A pivotal influence in young Henry’s life was George Washington Carver. He met Carver at the age of six. Carver, then a student and colleague of Wallace’s father at Iowa State College, was invited to stay with the family. Carver ignited Wallace’s scientific curiosity and love for plants. He would take young Henry on nature walks, identifying plant species and parts in the fields around Ames. In the greenhouse, Carver introduced him to plant breeding and they experimented together with plant diseases and crop improvement.
Pioneering Corn Innovation
During his high school years, Wallace began experimenting with corn, aiming to develop hybrids that would dramatically increase yields per acre. Corn shows were a popular event in Iowa between 1910 and 1930, where farmers entered their best ten ears of corn for judging based on appearance. It was widely believed that the most visually appealing corn would also produce the highest yields. At just 16, Wallace challenged this notion by testing visually appealing, prize-winning corn against less attractive corn. His experiments demonstrated conclusively that there was no correlation between the appearance of corn ears and their yield potential.
College further fueled Wallace’s fascination with genetics, a burgeoning science at the time. Gifted in mathematics, he taught himself statistics. Henry A. Wallace played a crucial role in integrating statistics into the curriculum at Iowa State. He applied statistical analysis to understand the economic relationship between corn prices and pig farming.
After graduating from Iowa State in 1910, Wallace dedicated himself to corn-breeding experiments. By 1920, he was among the few in the nation who grasped the immense potential of hybrid corn. Hybrids are created by cross-breeding different corn varieties to produce a new strain with enhanced characteristics. By 1924, Wallace developed a high-yielding hybrid called Copper Cross. This marked a milestone when Copper Cross became the first hybrid to win a gold medal at the Iowa Corn Yield Contest at Iowa State in 1924.
From Research to Pioneer Hi-Bred Corn Company
Henry A. Wallace’s grandfather, “Uncle Henry” Wallace, had founded the influential weekly publication Wallaces’ Farmer. Henry A. took on the role of editor from 1921 to 1933. As editor, he championed initiatives like the state corn yield contest, the annual corn husking contest, and the Master Farmer Awards, establishing Wallaces’ Farmer as the nation’s leading agricultural journal.
In Wallaces’ Farmer, Wallace relentlessly advocated for the benefits of hybrid seed. Initially, many farmers were skeptical and struggled to understand the concept. Wallace, while not the inventor of hybrid seed corn, recognized its commercial viability and was determined to prove its value.
However, hybrid seed corn was not commercially available to farmers. In 1926, Wallace addressed this gap by establishing the Hi-Bred Corn Company. This company, later renamed Pioneer Hi-Bred Corn Company in 1935, became the world’s first hybrid seed company and the largest, forever changing the landscape of agriculture. Wallace’s pioneering research is recognized as one of the most significant contributions to plant genetics between 1920 and 1940.
The adoption of hybrid seed corn was initially slow. In 1933, only about one percent of Iowa’s farmland was planted with hybrid seed. However, within a decade, by 1943, this figure soared to almost one hundred percent. This widespread adoption of hybrid seed led to a significant increase in corn yields, rising from 24.1 bushels per acre to 31 bushels per acre during the same period, demonstrating the profound impact of Pioneer Corn Company’s innovations.
Public Service and Continued Influence
From 1933 to 1940, Wallace served as Secretary of Agriculture, becoming a strong voice for farmers in Washington D.C. Under President Roosevelt’s New Deal, he was instrumental in shaping and implementing policies focused on controlled production, soil conservation, and ensuring fair farm prices. The New Deal aimed to alleviate the hardships of the Great Depression. Wallace initiated the first food stamp program and developed crop subsidy and soil conservation programs that shaped farm policy for decades. His commitment was evident in his first year as Secretary, where he traveled 40,000 miles, visited every state, delivered 88 speeches, wrote 22 articles, and authored three books, all dedicated to addressing farm issues, foreign trade, and related matters.
In 1940, Wallace became Vice President under Franklin Roosevelt, redefining the role as a modern “working vice president.” Beyond presiding over the Senate, President Roosevelt appointed Wallace head of the Board of Economic Warfare, supporting the U.S. war efforts. He also served as a goodwill ambassador to Latin America, the Soviet Union, and China, marking the first time a vice president became deeply involved in the executive branch and represented the U.S. in foreign relations.
A trip to Mexico in 1940 exposed Wallace to the dire state of Mexican agriculture. He urged the Rockefeller Foundation to establish an experimental station to improve agricultural conditions and productivity in Mexico. This led to the establishment of the International Maize and Wheat Improvement Center (CIMMYT), where Iowan Norman Borlaug was hired. Borlaug’s subsequent “Green Revolution,” aimed at combating global hunger through agricultural advancements, began to spread worldwide, further extending the impact of agricultural innovation that Wallace championed with Pioneer Corn Company.
Despite his significant contributions, Wallace was not renominated as Vice President in 1944. Harry Truman was selected, and upon President Roosevelt’s death in 1945, Truman became president. Wallace briefly served as Secretary of Commerce in 1945-1946 before resigning.
Return to Agricultural Roots
In 1948, Wallace ran for president on the Progressive Party ticket, receiving over a million votes but no electoral votes. He later retired from politics and returned to his true passion: farming.
Wallace spent his final years at his South Salem, New York home, running an experimental farm. He resumed experimenting with plant varieties, including corn, strawberries, and gladioli, and achieved remarkable success in chicken breeding. It was once said that “half of the egg-laying hens in the world were genetically related to Henry Wallace’s chickens.” He remained a scientist until his death in 1965, even documenting his experience with ALS (Lou Gehrig’s disease) to aid scientific understanding.
Legacy and Remembrance
Henry A. Wallace’s legacy is enduring. He left an indelible mark on American agriculture as a scientist, agriculturalist, journalist, statesman, and the founder of Pioneer Corn Company. In 1999, the Des Moines Register recognized him as the “Most Influential Iowan of the 20th Century.” In 1966, he posthumously received the Iowa Award, the state’s highest honor for outstanding leadership and contributions. Today, the Henry A. Wallace Country Life Center, dedicated in 1996 at his birthplace farmstead in Adair County, stands as a testament to his remarkable life and achievements.
Source:
- Carolyn Hardesty, Ed., “Henry A., The Third Henry Wallace,” The Goldfinch 12, no. 3 (February 1991): 18-20.
