This Day in Conservation History: Oklahoma Encompassed By Conservation Districts

This 1959 photo from Beaver County shows the conservation partnership in action. Farmer, H.J. Becker, and SCS Work Unit Conservationist, Fred Hindman, check on the amount of stubble mulch left on a field after it was drilled with wheat. (Photograph from the Oklahoma Conservation Historical Society Collection at the Gateway to Oklahoma History, https://gateway.okhistory.org/ark:/67531/metadc1773175/m1/1/?q=Beaver%20County)

In January 1961, Oklahoma became the 23rd state to have its entire geographic area incorporated into conservation districts, when a small area of land was added to the Beaver County Soil Conservation District.

Under the framework set up by Oklahoma’s 1937 Conservation District Law, landowners were empowered to voluntarily organize themselves into conservation districts.

The 1961 addition of the last portion of the Panhandle into the conservation district system meant that every farm in Oklahoma would have access to the benefits of the conservation partnership.