Brown in the Great War

“THERE ARE 35 BUSHELS OF DRY BEANS BAGGED IN THE BACK PART OF MY LECTURE ROOM THAT WERE RAISED BY THE FACULTY   LAST SUMMER, THAT IS SOME AMMUNITION ANYWAY.                                     –H. E. Walters, 1917¹1. BUA. MS-IUF-W1. H.E. Walters Papers. Review Hints 1917

The arrival of Spring in 1917 brought new opportunities for members of the University community to contribute to the war effort. Nationwide, the planting and cultivation of back-yard and empty lot gardens were depicted as ways in which to win the war. Gardens were thought of as back-yard munition plants.²2. Annual program for the observance of Arbor day in the schools of Rhode Island. Providence, R.I. 1919 Many war gardens were cultivated in Providence, including 30 acres along Pleasant Valley Parkway, and in the front yards of many East Side residences.³3.https://https://www.providencejournal.com/article/20140721/LIFESTYLE/307219996 The University community was encouraged to “Raise the American flag in your front yard and potatoes in the back.”⁴4. BUA. Brunonian, LV:1. May, 1917

In his April 21st address at chapel, President Faunce announced plans for a “Faculty farm” at the Metcalf Botanical Garden on land near Andrews field. Faunce informed listeners that after plowing, seven acres of land would be planted with potatoes and beans — vegetables selected for their food value.⁵5 The faculty might well have expanded from potatoes and string beans, in favor of a crop of carrots or cabbage. Gardeners all over Rhode Island make the same nutritional choice in the spring of 1917, resulting in a complete glut of beans.  https://www.providencejournal.com/article/20140721/LIFESTYLE/307219996.

Faunce explained that “The plan is to have the entire work of cultivation done, as far as possible, by members of the faculty during the spring and summer. I, myself, shall be glad to offer whatever capacity for unskilled labor I may possess.”⁶6. BUA. BAM, 17:10. May, 1917. p250

The faculty gardeners got off to a rough start, when they began cultivating on a cold rainy day with a chill slashing wind. Many of the beginners were driven away. Later, the faculty were, perhaps mockingly, suspected of “gardening by proxy” when three individuals were discovered working the faculty plot without any connection to the University whatsoever.⁷7. BUA. SB-1E-1. College Scrapbooks. vol. 15

In another move to promote agricultural preparedness, the University announced that it would offer academic credit, and a medal, for farm work. The program was designed ease the national shortage of farm labor; a result of so many young men in enlisted service.⁸8. In May of 1918, it was estimated by the government that at least 600,000 men trained in farm work had been taken from the country’s farms since the beginning of its participation in the war. Annual program for the observance of Arbor day in the schools of Rhode Island, 1919. pg. 17 One hundred and fifty qualified Brown students took advantage of the program and left to work on farms, many nearby in Rhode Island and Massachusetts. ⁹9. BUA. BDH 26:153. April 27, 1917 At commencement, Herbert C. Hoover, the Federal Food Administrator, spoke to a filled Sayles hall about America’s food problems. “We must feed the allies in order that they remain in the war and not leave the U.S. alone as an enemy of Germany.” …[ ] “The man who is producing food for this nation and the allies is doing his bit for the nation quite as much as anyone else. [ ]…The wolf is at the door of the world. Brown has never failed in the time of need.”¹⁰10. BUA. BDH. June 21, 1917

The biological laboratory stayed open for the summer and was turned into a “canning factory.” The lab was crowded every day with women taking lessons on the canning of fruits and vegetables. The Housewives League of Providence and the Committee on Food Conservation came to campus and gave daily lectures and demonstrations.¹¹11. BUA. OF-1E-3, box 4. II.4. Files of W.H.P. Faunce The Providence Journal ran weekly menus to stretch food. Monday and Thursday were deemed “wheatless” and Tuesday “beefless.” Shoppers bought Victory Bread, and substituted cornmeal for flour.¹²12. https://rifoodwars.tumblr.com/page/9. Food conservation, rationing, and the cultivation of war gardens were promoted in a variety of media. News bulletins listed local events which taught homemakers how best to conserve food, cook wartime recipes, and can fruits and vegetables. Recipes for cornbread were printed in the Brown Alumni Monthly.

Parents reported to President Faunce on their son’s activities in contributing to the nation’s food supply. “He has been quite successful, if some allowance is made for disadvantages he worked under, in growing potatoes, onions, corn and beans for the main crop, caring for fruit trees, livestock, and canning.” – C.S. Sisson. November 28, 1917. Providence’s Food Administrator reported to the public on the amount of beef, lamb and pork saved.¹³13. 342,119 lbs. of beef, 2016,186 lbs. of lamb, and 10,018 lbs. of pork in November and December of 1918. BUA. BAM, 18:7. February, 1918 Placards were placed before restaurant patrons as a reminder to eat less and conserve food. The Intercollegiate Prohibition Association initiated a college offensive for war temperance aimed at enlisting college men in the anti-liquor movement.

Biology Professor H. E. Walters wrote to the servicemen that “Professor Harkness and I are raising an acre of beans and potatoes for you. They are measurable now by the acre and not by the bushell. You many not like beans very well and we propose to eat them and send you the equivalent in wheat.” By the time Autumn rolled around, Walters was able to report to the servicemen that the rooms of the Summer Biological Laboratory were filled with the products of the faculty gardens, including 35 bushels of dry beans bagged in the back part of his lecture room. Walters went on to mention that “Dr. Mitchell is running an emergency course for the girls on how to cook beans and why. That is not the title of the course but it is the general idea.”¹⁴14. BUA. MS-IUF-W1. H.E. Walters Papers. Review Hints #5 & #6. Feb. 18, 1918

Daylight savings time was instituted on March 19th, 1918 in order to have an extra hours to cultivate soil; an initiative President Faunce had hoped the country would adopt back in January. Once again the faculty tended to their gardens on campus, and on personal farms around New England. “The food production of the country will be materially increased if the efforts of 6 faculty members prove successful.” Professor Hastings farmed at Saylesville with large plantings of potatoes and field corn; Professor Palmer farmed in Pascoag; Professor Emeritus Poland worked on his farm at Grasmere, N.H.; Professor Bronson divided his time between farming and publishing; Professor Fowler did his war gardening at Blue Hill in Maine; and Professor Koopman divided his summer between gardening, writing, and the John Hay Library.”¹⁵15. BUA. BAM, 19:2. July, 1918. p38