American Agriculturist: History, Orange Judd Era, Farm Progress Today and Editors
Profile updated November 2026
American Agriculturist is one of the oldest farm journals in the country, launched in New York in the early 1840s by brothers Anthony B. and Richard L. Allen and built into a national institution by Orange Judd. Today it is the Farm Progress brand for farmers from Maine to Pennsylvania and, in its current coverage map, Ohio and Michigan as well.
| Founded | 1842 (volume 1), New York City |
|---|---|
| Founders | Anthony B. Allen and Richard L. Allen |
| Landmark owner | Orange Judd, from 1856 |
| Publisher | Farm Progress, part of Informa |
| Coverage area | New England, New York, New Jersey, Pennsylvania, Ohio and Michigan |
| Audience | 33.8K AAM audited subscribers; about 6,580 morning newsletter subscribers |
| Official website | American Agriculturist on FarmProgress.com |
History of American Agriculturist
Brothers Anthony B. Allen and Richard L. Allen founded the American Agriculturist in New York City; its first volume is dated 1842, and early numbers were published by Saxton and Miles. The journal covered farm, garden and household topics for readers across the United States and was richly illustrated with engravings. In 1856 Orange Judd took it over, and it became the flagship of the Orange Judd Company, which later published from Springfield, Massachusetts, as well as New York.
Under Judd and his successors the magazine absorbed other farm papers, moved from monthly to weekly publication, printed a German-language edition for immigrant farmers and ran five regional editions. Its subtitles changed over time, from for the Farm, Garden, and Household in 1869 to for the Household, Garden, Farm in 1877. It campaigned against quackery, refused patent medicine advertising, and carried writers such as Solon Robinson, Joseph Harris and Manly Miles.
By 1924 the paper was owned by Henry Morgenthau Jr., later U.S. Secretary of the Treasury. In modern times it became the Northeast title of the Farm Progress group, which passed to Informa in 2016.
American Agriculturist Today
Farm Progress lists American Agriculturist among its 14 state and regional brands and reports 33.8K AAM audited subscribers, plus 6,583 subscribers to the American Agriculturist Morning Newsletter. Its coverage area now runs across Ohio, Michigan, Pennsylvania, New York, New Jersey, Connecticut, Rhode Island, Massachusetts, Vermont, New Hampshire and Maine, including Ohio and Michigan, whose own Farm Progress titles moved online-only in 2020.
Media directories describe it as a bimonthly. The brand also covers the New York Farm Show, a Farm Progress event, and published a year-end roundup of the top farming stories readers loved in 2025.
What American Agriculturist Is Publishing Now
Dairy and livestock
Dairy herd management, milk markets and livestock coverage for the Northeast's dairy-heavy farm economy.
Field and specialty crops
Corn, soybean and forage production, plus apples and other specialty crops important to New York, Pennsylvania and New England.
Regional issues
Environmental regulation, natural resource stewardship, farmland pressure and farm business in densely populated states.
American Agriculturist Editors and Staff
Farm Progress brand pages and media directories name these American Agriculturist journalists:
- Chris Torres - American Agriculturist editorial staff
- Jennifer Kiel - Farm Progress Northeast editor, Michigan Farmer and Ohio Farmer
- Orange Judd - Owner and editor from 1856
- Anthony B. Allen and Richard L. Allen - Founders
Kiel's Ohio and Michigan reporting now reaches readers through the American Agriculturist coverage area and FarmProgress.com.
Who Reads American Agriculturist
Readers are commercial growers of field crops and specialty crops in the Northeast and eastern Great Lakes who need market, weather, production and farm management information. Dairy is the region's anchor sector, and USDA's Economic Research Service tracks the milk price and production trends that shape much of the magazine's coverage.
American Agriculturist has been around since before the telegraph reached most farms, so its readers have heard every barnyard joke at least twice. farm.FM keeps the supply fresh with farm satire for Northeast dairy country, farm humor about New England stone walls, ranch humor for the few cattle outfits east of the Hudson and farm jokes fit for the New York Farm Show. Orange Judd, who banned quack medicine ads, would have approved of honest laughter.
farm.FM got there first as the nation's first satirical farm site, and it backs the writing with Tractor Tunes, country music for farmers. Here is one contributor's collection of farm satire to start with.
American Agriculturist Sources and Agriculture Authority Links
- Wikipedia: American Agriculturist - the Allen brothers, Orange Judd and later owners.
- Wikipedia: Orange Judd - the publisher who built the magazine.
- Farm Progress: American Agriculturist audience - audited subscribers and coverage states.
- USDA ERS: Dairy - federal analysis of the dairy sector.
- USDA NASS: Census of Agriculture - Northeast farm data.
American Agriculturist FAQ
When was American Agriculturist founded?
Its first volume is dated 1842, in New York City, under brothers Anthony B. and Richard L. Allen.
Who was Orange Judd?
The publisher who took over American Agriculturist in 1856 and made it the flagship of the Orange Judd Company.
Who publishes American Agriculturist today?
Farm Progress, a division of Informa.
Which states does American Agriculturist cover?
New England, New York, New Jersey, Pennsylvania, Ohio and Michigan.
From engravings in the 1840s to newsletters today, American Agriculturist remains the farm journal of the Northeast.