Originally devoted to agricultural issues in the Tar Heel State, the Progressive Farmer started publication in Winston, North Carolina, on February 10, 1886. Farmer, Confederate veteran, newspaperman, and former North Carolina Commissioner of Agriculture, Leonidas L. Polk (1837–1892) founded the journal.
The periodical resembled other Polk editorial ventures, most notably the Farmer and Mechanic, a publication of the Department of Agriculture in 1877–79. From the beginning, Progressive Farmer offered essays with practical advice for farm families. The paper also included poetry, politics, and humor that related to farming issues. In 1891, for instance, the tales and sketches of “Zeke Bilkins,” a fictional farmer with political interests, appeared regularly. A common practice of “Uncle Zeke” was to use the newly invented telephone to call, pester, and debate politicians on popular and contentious issues. “Uncle Zeke” always won.
Polk and his Progressive Farmer were widely credited with creating an agricultural school in North Carolina. The journal frequently included essays calling for the establishment of a separate college for agriculture and the mechanical arts under the Morrill Act of 1862. The University of North Carolina had been collecting the allotted Morrill money since 1875, but the institution never created a department of agriculture. To meet an increasing need, the North Carolina College of Agriculture and Mechanic Arts (currently North Carolina State University) opened its doors in 1889.
During the 1890s, the journal gained national importance and experienced leadership changes. Between 1890 and 1892, as Polk’s fame spread—he was president of the National Farmers’ Alliance and rising star of the burgeoning Populist Party—so too did the popularity of the Progressive Farmer, the official organ of the Farmers’ Alliance. When Polk suddenly died in 1892, John L. Ramsey of Statesville, who had been managing the periodical in Polk’s absence, took over as editor. In 1897 Ramsey hired a young 16-year old farm boy from Chatham County named Clarence H. Poe (1881–1964) to work for the Progressive Farmer. In 1899, at the age of 18 and with little formal education, Poe became editor of the periodical, located in Raleigh.
In spite of its popularity, the Progressive Farmer struggled financially. So, Poe and three partners bought the newspaper for $7,500 in 1903. Poe ushered in many changes that encouraged continued growth. By 1908, Progressive Farmer changed from a weekly newspaper with a readership of 5,000 to a magazine with over 36,000 subscribers; separate editions were printed for the Mid-South and Southeast.
Their partnership became known as the Agricultural Publishing Company, and later as the Progressive Farmer Company. In 1911 the growth and expanded readership of the journal led Poe to move the printing facilities from Raleigh to Birmingham, Alabama. Poe, however, remained in Raleigh, which continued to be the head office; he directed company operations from the office at 119 Hargett Street. By the 1930s, Progressive Farmer had absorbed numerous small farm papers and magazines, thereby increasing circulation to 1,400,000 and emerging as the major farm periodical in the South. It also published regional editions.
Clarence Poe remained as president and editor until he retired in 1954, but he continued to write for the magazine until he died in 1964. As the Progressive Farmer grew, it featured stories by famous authors such as Jesse Stuart (1907–1984). Indeed, the periodical’s emphasis on books and the importance of reading, prompted Edward K. Graham (1876–1918), president of UNC, to comment: “It combines culture and agriculture.”
A misunderstanding has arisen over the location of the head office in 1911—over whether it was in Raleigh or Birmingham. A number of sources, especially in Alabama but not only there (and including this article until now), state that the entire headquarters moved to Birmingham in 1911. However, Mary LaRue, whose grandfather, William C. LaRue, worked with Clarence Poe in Raleigh, has provided solid evidence that the central headquarters remained in Raleigh for many years.
The masthead of the magazine stated in 1912 that the home office was in Raleigh, even after the printing facilities moved to Birmingham..A few years later, the name was changed to The Progressive Farmer Company, but headquarters remained in Raleigh, as shown on the 1915 masthead on this page.
Alabamian Emory Cunningham (1921–2000) had joined the company in 1948 and became its president in 1968. In 1966, on his recommendation, the company introduced a “lifestyle” periodical, Southern Living. The editors had started focusing more on “the unique challenges and joys of living in the country” and used that approach in marketing Progressive Farmer and in launching Southern Living. The company became the Southern Progress Corporation in 1980.
In 2004, the Progressive Farmer had a sizable circulation of 630,000. In 2026, according to its current owner, the magazine has 276,000 print subscribers. The magazine is now part of a company, DTN, that provides a variety of agricultural and weather services.
(Note: This article was updated by Jane Shaw Stroup on June 4, 2026.)