Grorge Washington Carver born into slavery before 1865 in Newton County, Missouri. In 1886 GWC homesteaded a claim in Ness, County, Kansas where he raised rice, corn, vegetables, fruit trees, forest trees, and shrubbery.

      GWC was a talented painter of plants and flowers and in 1891was the first black student accepted at Iowa State Agricultural College in Ames Iowa.  At Iowa State GWC and the Iowa Experiment station studied plant pathology and mycology where earned national respect as a botanist. He received a Master's of Science degree. His Bachelor's thesis for his degree in agriculture was titled, "Plants As Modified by Man". He authored over 40 practical bulletins for farmers.

     While he is best known for his experiments with peanuts and sweet potatoes GWC's work with other crops led to many innovation in agronomy. He was instrumental is teaching farmes to restore restore Nitrogen to their soils by using legumes such as soybeans in crop rotation other crops. He developed an extension service in Alabama to trained farmers in better farming practices. The start of the modern "organic" movement can trace it's beginning back to GWC.

      Henry Ford was an admirer of GWC and supported his experiments at the Tuskegee Institute and GWC helped the Ford plantation in Georgia with crop production. Experiments by GWC led to developing plastic from soybeans and worked to develop bio-fuels such as ethanol.

  In 1942 Henry Ford set up a laboratory for GWC in Michigan he helped develop a rubber substitute from the weed, goldenrod.

GWC professed he became a Christian as a young boy. He claimed his faith in Jesus was the only mechanism by which he could effectively pursue and perform the art of science. He stated "I am not interested in science or any thing else that leaves God out of it." 

Sources:

• Man of science--and of God: George Washington Carver believed that Providence guided his scientific investigations and that those investigations led to a better understanding of God and His handiwork. - Free Online Library (thefreelibrary.com);

• George Washington Carver - Wikipedia;

• George Washington Carver | Biography, Education, Early Life, Inventions, & Facts | Britannica;

• George Washington Carver begins experimental project with Henry Ford - HISTORY;

• George Washington Carver - Visionaries on Innovation - The Henry Ford

• George Washington Carver - The Henry Ford

• George Washington Carver: Facts, Inventions & Quotes | HISTORY

Gustavus Franklin Swift, Sr,, born June 4, 1839 in Sagamore, Massachusetts. He was the son of William and Sally (Crowell) Swift. He was the 9th of 12 children. He was the descendant of British settlers who immigrated to New England in the 17th century. Swift developed his interest in the meat packing industry while working with his family on a farm in West Sandwich, Massachusetts where they slaughtered cattle, hogs, and sheep.

      GFS married Annie Maria Higgins in 1861. Nine of their eleven children reached adulthood. They soon opened a small slaughterhouse and butcher shop in Boston, MA.

   In 1872 DFS partnered with well known meat dealer, James A. Hathaway to form the business Hathaway and Swift in Albany, NY and moved the company to Buffalo, NY. Hathaway and Swift moved to Chicago in 1875 and 1878 GFS partnered with his younger brother, Edwin, and Hathaway to form the company Swift Bros and Company  The company became a driving force in the Chicago meat packing industry, and was incorporated in 1885 as Swift & Co. By the time of his death in 1903 Swift and Company, often referred to as "The house of Swift", employed over 21,000 people and slaughtered as many as 4 million hogs, 2 million cattle, 2 and million sheep. 

       GFS is credited with developing the first ice-cooled reefer (refrigerated) railroad car making the long distance shipment of fresh meats possible. He also led in pioneering the use of animal by-products for the manufacture of soap, glue, fertilizer, various types of sundries, and even medical products.

Intent on monopolizing the meat packing industry joined with J.O. Armour and Edward Morris in 1902 to form the National Packing Company referred to as "The Beef Trust". The combine declared an illegal monoply in 1905 and was dissolved in by the U.S. Supreme Court.

Sources: Gustavus Franklin Swift (fostasandwich.com); Gustavus Franklin Swift - Wikipedia; Gustavus Swift | Biography & Facts | Britannica;

Gustavus Franklin Swift - Biography (swiftpapers.com)

Eli Whitney

December 8, 1765-January 8, 1825 

     In 1794 Eli Whitney patented the cotton gin, a machine that revolutionized the production of cotton by greatly speeding up the process of removing seeds from cotton fiber. 

     Whitney is also credited as a pioneer of American manufacturing for promoting the idea of interchangeable parts; standardized, identical parts that made for faster assembly and easier repair of various devices. This concept was developed through his contract with the U.S. government to produce muskets. This allowed for mass production of muskets and other machines.

Cotton Gin and Eli Whitney - HISTORY

Eli Whitney - Wikipedia

Eli Whitney | Biography, Inventions, Cotton Gin, Interchangeable Parts, Significance, & Facts | Britannica

Cyrus Hall McCormick born on February 15, 1809, in Raphine, Virginia, the son of  inventor Robert McCormick Jr. (1780–1846) and Mary Ann "Polly" Hall (1780–1853) was an inventor and businessman who founded the McCormick Harvesting Machine Company, which later became part of the International Harvester Company in 1902.

      CHM is credited with inventing the mechanical reaper for which he was granted a patent 1834. His reaper was actually an improvement of a model started by his father. 

Cyrus McCormick | Biography, Invention, Reaper, & Facts | Britannica

Cyrus McCormick - Wikipedia

Cyrus McCormick, Inventor of the Mechanical Reaper (thoughtco.com)

John Lorain

1753 - 1823

John Lorain an American farmer, merchant, agricultural writer was the first person to create a hybrid by combining two types of corn. His experiments anticipated the methods employed in the century following his death. In 1825, his book, Nature and Reason Harmonized in the Practice of Husbandry, was published by his widow. The book had descriptions of his experiments with hybrids.

     The concept of the high producing, hybred field corn produced on most American farms started with Lorain's experiments.