Happy Anniversary to the Morrill Act

July 2nd marks the 155th anniversary of the passage of the Morrill Act, the basis of the land-grant university system. Signed into law by President Abraham Lincoln on July 2, 1862, the Morrill Act enabled states to use proceeds from the sale of the federal "land-grants" to establish colleges in engineering, agriculture and military science. The land-grant university system provided the framework to give working class families critical access to higher education, which it continues to do today.

NIFA celebrates our partnership with the nation’s land-grant universities (LGUs), which play a critical role in teaching the next generation of agricultural science professionals and developing the groundbreaking research to produce our nation’s food, fuel, and fiber. The success stories you read in this week’s Fresh from the Field and beyond are the legacy of this groundbreaking legislation.