Greenville in Floyd County, Indiana — The American Midwest (Great Lakes)

Norman J. Colman

First U.S. Secretary of Agriculture

Photographed by Duane and Tracy Marsteller, June 16, 2024

1. Norman J. Colman Marker, Side One

Inscription. Born in New York State, Norman Colman began a successful professional career in Greenville as principal of the Floyd County Seminary. Later moving to New Albany to practice law and then Missouri to farm, he was elected Alderman for St. Louis in 1854. After serving as Captain in the Civil War, Colman began publishing Colman's Rural World magazine.

In 1875, he was elected as Lt. Governor of Missouri. Nominated as U.S. Agriculture Commissioner in 1885, Colman's push for agricultural experiment stations assisted in passage of the Hatch Act of 1887. Colman later became the 1st U.S. Secretary of Agriculture in 1889. His impact on education in the early Seminary years and nationally in the field of agriculture is momentous.

Erected 2020 by Greenville Historic Preservation Commission.

Topics. This historical marker is listed in these topic lists: Agriculture • Education • Government & Politics. A significant historical year for this entry is 1889.

Location. 38° 22.557′ N, 85° 59.392′ W. Marker is in Greenville, Indiana, in Floyd County. It is on Cross Street north of Glen Riesert Drive, on the

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left when traveling north. Marker is in front of Greenville Elementary School. Touch for map. Marker is at or near this postal address: 7025 Cross St, Greenville IN 47124, United States of America. Touch for directions.

Regionally, this marker is in Southern Indiana.

It is also in the American Midwest,

in the Ohio River Valley,

and in the Corn Belt.

Globally, it is in North America,

the Western Hemisphere,

the Western World,

and the Anglosphere.

Historically, it finds itself in what was once the territory of the Mississippian Culture

and also the Northwest Territory.

Other nearby markers. At least 8 other markers are within 6 miles of this marker, measured as the crow flies: Greenville (about 400 feet away, measured in a direct line); John B. Ford (approx. 0.2 miles away); Simpson Memorial Chapel (approx. 0.2 miles away); Sherman Minton (approx. 5.7 miles away); Patrick Shields (approx. 5.8 miles away); Veterans Memorial (approx. 5.8 miles away); George W. Waltz (approx. 5.8 miles away); Georgetown (approx. 5.8 miles away). Touch for a list and map of all markers in Greenville.

Also see . . .
1. Norman J. Colman and the Floyd County Seminary (PDF).

Norman J. Colman Marker, Side Two image. Click for full size.

Photographed by Duane and Tracy Marsteller, June 16, 2024

2. Norman J. Colman Marker, Side Two

In the mid-nineteenth century school teachers often began their careers at an early age – often in their teens. And when the Floyd County Seminary, an institution of higher learning, opened in 1850 Principal Norman J. Colman was only 22. (Town of Greenville, Indiana) (Submitted on July 10, 2024, by Duane and Tracy Marsteller of Murfreesboro, Tennessee.)

2. First Secretary of Ag pushed for research farms. On Feb. 15, 1889, Norman Jay Colman became the first U.S. Secretary of Agriculture. Colman was a Missourian, and the position was part of a long career in agriculture and politics. He was a longtime advocate of research farms, or “ag experiment stations,” and also ran farm newspapers.(Benjamin Herrold, Missouri Farmer Today, Jan. 27, 2021) (Submitted on July 10, 2024, by Duane and Tracy Marsteller of Murfreesboro, Tennessee.)

Norman J. Colman Marker image. Click for full size.

Photographed by Duane and Tracy Marsteller, June 16, 2024

3. Norman J. Colman Marker

Norman Jay Colman (1827-1911) image. Click for full size.

via U.S. Department of Agriculture (Public Domain), circa 1890

4. Norman Jay Colman (1827-1911)

Coleman pushed for the expansion of the agriculture bureau and supported scientific agricultural research.

Credits. This page was last revised on July 10, 2024. It was originally submitted on July 9, 2024, by Duane and Tracy Marsteller of Murfreesboro, Tennessee. This page has been viewed 198 times since then and 43 times this year. Photos: 1, 2, 3. submitted on July 9, 2024, by Duane and Tracy Marsteller of Murfreesboro, Tennessee. 4. submitted on July 10, 2024, by Duane and Tracy Marsteller of Murfreesboro, Tennessee.