Scope and Contents:
Ezra E. Chester was born near Columbus, Ohio, in 1837. In 1857, he moved to Champaign County, Ill., where he bred shorthorn cattle and grew seed corn. He served as a member of the State Board of Agriculture, the Illinois Board of World's Fair Commissioners, the Illinois Farmer's Institute, and several breeders associations. For nine years he was director of the University of Illinois agricultural experiment station, and he was mayor of Champaign in 1895-96.
The Chester collection contains four letters, two of which are from the University of Illinois Department of Agriculture discussing experimental corn yields. Also included is a small notebook Chester used to record daily expenses for part of 1895-96. Other items in the collection are Chester's address on the purpose of the Corn Growers Association, three pamphlets on his seed corns, and a corn planting plan.
The University Archives transferred the collection to the Survey in 1975.
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