1940s Yield Contests

During the 1940s, hybrid corn continued to make significant yield gains. Richard Crabb’s book, The Hybrid-Corn Makers, references the Illinois Crop Improvement yield contest of 1942 and the previously unheard of 191 bushels per acre of presumably ear corn in Christian County, Illinois. The 1940s also saw the introduction of the soybean contest in Illinois. This contest was one of the state’s longest-running quality and yield endeavors. The Baltimore and Ohio Railroad sponsored the soybean contest, with Swift & Company helping to move the contest to yield-based in 1963. The program continued until 1984 as an extension program with the University of Illinois and Crop Improvement support. Notable entities supporting the soybean contest over the years included the Illinois Agricultural Association, the Land of Lincoln Soybean Association, and Elanco. The ten-acre corn contest continued until 1953 in conjunction with the University of Illinois College of Agriculture’s Farm and Home Week, which ended in 1957.