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Title
Date(s)
- 1914-2014 (Creation)
Extent
3.78 linear feet (9 document cases)
Name of creator
Biographical history
Edgar Sharp McFadden was born on February 3, 1891, in Day County, South Dakota, to James Edgar and Beatrice (Stocking) McFadden. His father had arrived in South Dakota in 1882 to homestead and constructed a combined granary and dwelling on the property. In 1903, James McFadden was seriously injured by a bull, leaving thirteen-year-old Edgar responsible for much of the spring planting in 1904. That year he planted a small experimental plot using seed selected from several beardless wheat plants he had noticed the previous season. Although the crop was later destroyed by black stem rust, the experience began his long interest in developing improved wheat varieties.
During the winter of 1908–1909 the McFadden family relocated to the West Pecos region of Texas, where Edgar worked with his father in the cattle ranching business. In the following years he traveled seasonally along wheat harvesting routes from Texas northward through South Dakota and into the Red River Valley of North Dakota and Minnesota. During this work he observed patterns in the spread of wheat rust, noting that infections appeared first in southern regions and progressed northward during the growing season.
In 1911 McFadden enrolled in courses in the School of Agriculture at South Dakota State College and completed the program in 1914. He entered the college as a freshman that fall and worked as an assistant in the agronomy laboratory and in experimental plots operated by the South Dakota Agricultural Experiment Station. While a student he began experiments aimed at transferring rust resistance from Yaroslav emmer wheat to the Marquis wheat variety. McFadden received a Bachelor of Science degree in agriculture from South Dakota State College on March 1, 1918.
After graduating, McFadden worked for the United States Department of Agriculture as a field assistant at the Agricultural Experiment Station in Highmore, South Dakota, where he continued research on rust-resistant wheat. During World War I he served in the United States Army from May 25, 1918, to February 25, 1919. Following his military service he returned to the Highmore station and later resumed work on his family’s farm near Webster, South Dakota, where he continued wheat breeding experiments while farming from 1920 to 1929. Despite crop losses caused by drought, hail, and rust in successive years, he continued his research and developed the rust-resistant wheat varieties Hope and H44.
In 1929 McFadden returned to federal service as an Associate Agronomist with the United States Department of Agriculture, stationed in Redfield, South Dakota, and later working at University Farm in St. Paul, Minnesota. In 1935 he accepted a joint position with the USDA and the Texas Agricultural Experiment Station at Texas A&M University in College Station, Texas. There he continued research on wheat and other small grains, including oats, barley, and flax.
McFadden became widely known for developing Hope wheat, which served as the parent line for numerous disease-resistant wheat varieties used in breeding programs. During his career he received several honors, including the Reader’s Digest award for meritorious contributions to public welfare (1946), the American Agricultural Editors’ Award for service to agriculture (1947), the USDA Distinguished Service Award (1949), and an honorary Doctor of Science degree from South Dakota State College in 1950. In 1955 he received the John Scott Legacy Medal and Premium. A granite memorial to McFadden was later erected in Webster, South Dakota, in 1966.
In 1918 McFadden married Mabel Blakeslee, and the couple had three children: Carol, Phyllis, and James. Edgar S. McFadden died on January 5, 1956, at his home in College Station, Texas.
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Scope and content
The E.S. McFadden Papers document the career, research, and legacy of Edgar Sharp McFadden (1891–1956), a pioneering American plant breeder best known for developing Hope Wheat, the first variety resistant to stem rust. McFadden’s work in genetics and agronomy spanned South Dakota and Texas, and he contributed significantly to agricultural science through federal and academic research programs, including with the USDA and Texas A&M.
The collection spans McFadden’s professional life and includes research notebooks, writings, correspondence, photographs, honors, and biographical materials. Of particular note are research materials related to wheat breeding and rust resistance, including field data, experimental notes, and correspondence concerning Hope Wheat. Writings include published and unpublished scientific and popular articles, speeches, and autobiographical pieces. Also included are awards and certificates from scientific societies, clippings about McFadden’s achievements, and documentation of public recognition such as “McFadden Appreciation Day.” The papers provide insight into 20th-century advancements in crop improvement and agricultural science in the United States.
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Reproduction of materials from the collection is subject to the following conditions:
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Languages of the material
English
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RELATED COLLECTIONS
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Edgar S. McFadden Collection, South Dakota Agricultural Heritage Museum, Brookings, South Dakota.
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Norman E. Borlaug papers. UA-01014. Archives and Special Collections, Elmer L. Andersen Library, University of Minnesota,
Minneapolis, Minnesota. -
Rockefeller Foundation records
ONLINE CONTENT
- Edgar S. McFadden collection on the Digital Library of South Dakota: https://explore.digitalsd.org/digital/collection/mcfadden
PUBLICATIONS
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McFadden, Edgar A. Wheat-Rye Hybrids. Journal of Heredity 8, no. 7, (July 1917): 335
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Champlin, Manley, and E. S. McFadden. Acme Wheat / [Manley Champlin and Edgar McFadden]. In Bulletin / South Dakota
Agricultural Experiment Station ; No. 194, [325]-356. Brookings, S.D. : Agricultural Experiment Station, South Dakota State College of
Agriculture and Mechanic Arts, 1921. -
McFadden, E.S. A Successful Transfer of Emmer Characters to Vulgare Wheat. Journal of the American Society of Agronomy 22,
no. 12 (December 1930): 1020–34. -
McFadden, E.S. Brown Necrosis, a Discoloration Associated With Rust Infection in Certain Rust-Resistant Wheats. Journal of
Agricultural Research 58, no. 11 (June 1, 1939) -
McFadden, E. S., and E. R. Sears. The Origin of Triticum Spelta and Its Free-Threshing Hexaploid Relatives. Journal of Heredity 37,
no. 4, (April 1946): 107–116 -
Erickson, A. W., and Edgar Sharp McFadden. McFadden’s Hope : Fighting Plant Breeders Win Battle for Bread. [Minneapolis, MN :
Field Notes Crop Reporting Service], 1945. -
Atkins, Irvin Milburn, and E. S. McFadden. Oat Production in Texas / I.M. Atkins and E.S. McFadden. In Bulletin / Texas Agricultural
Experiment Station ; No. 691. College Station, Tex. : Texas Agricultural Experiment Station, 1947. -
McFadden, E.S., and E.R. Sears. The Genome Approach in Radical Wheat Breeding. Journal of the American Society of Agronomy 39,
no. 11 (November 1947): 1011–26.
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Copyright and Use Statement
In Copyright This Item is protected by copyright and/or related rights. You are free to use this Item in any way that is permitted by the copyright and related rights legislation that applies to your use. For other uses, you need to obtain permission from the rights-holder(s).
Materials in this collection may be subject to Title 17, Section 108 of the United States Copyright Act. Users are responsible for ensuring compliance with copyright, privacy, trademark, and other applicable rights for their intended use. Obtaining all necessary permissions is the user's responsibility. Written authorization from the copyright and/or other rights holders is required for publication, distribution, or any use of protected materials beyond what is permitted under fair use.
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Name access points
- McFadden, E. S. (Edgar Sharp), 1891-1956 (Subject)
- United States. Department of Agriculture (Subject)