History of Agriculture in The United States - World War I

World War I

The U.S. in World War I, was a critical supplier to other Allied nations, as millions of European farmers were in the army. The rapid expansion of the farms coupled with the diffusion of trucks and Model T cars, and the tractor, allowed the agricultural market to expand to an unprecedented size.

However, with the end of the war the European soldiers returned to their farms and market for American exports shrank. Farmers and economists alike had not foreseen the drop in demand for American goods. The abundant harvest coupled with falling demand left an excess of crops and not enough profit to pay for expenditures. This downturn was only very brief, as was the entire post World War I recession in North America.