Delta Farm Press: From Clarksdale Supplement to Farm Progress Brand, Coverage and Staff
Profile updated November 2026
Delta Farm Press began in 1943 as a weekly farm supplement tucked inside the Clarksdale Daily Press in the Mississippi Delta. A Farm Progress retrospective called it the ugly duckling afterthought that became the bible of Delta agriculture. It grew into the parent of a family of Farm Press titles across the South and West, and today it is a Farm Progress brand for Mid-South row crop farmers.
| First edition | 1943, weekly supplement to The Clarksdale Daily Press |
|---|---|
| Birthplace | Clarksdale, Mississippi |
| Builder | William S. McNamee, Farm Press founder and longtime owner |
| Sister titles | Southeast Farm Press and Southwest Farm Press (1974), Western Farm Press (1979) |
| Publisher | Farm Progress, part of Informa |
| Format | Print and digital issues; some issues digital-only since January 2023 |
| Official website | Delta Farm Press on FarmProgress.com |
History of Delta Farm Press
The first edition appeared in 1943 as a weekly agricultural supplement to The Clarksdale Daily Press in Clarksdale, Mississippi. In the 1960s the farm paper separated from the daily and expanded across the Mid-South, and in 1974 its owners created Southeast Farm Press and Southwest Farm Press. In 1979 the company moved into the Arizona and California market with what became Western Farm Press.
William S. McNamee, remembered as a demanding pioneer of farm journalism on matters of business and ethics, ran the company as president and sole stockholder of Farm Press Publications in Clarksdale. The University of Missouri School of Journalism honored him with its Honor Medal, noting that his four papers reached about 250,000 farmers and agribusiness people across 20 states. At one time about 40 people worked out of the Clarksdale office on each issue, and longtime editor Ron Smith recalled that Farm Press never missed a publication date, even running a generator through an ice storm.
The Farm Press titles are now part of Informa's Farm Progress division. Delta Farm Press marked 75 years in 2018 with anniversary coverage that included a review of the drastic changes in farm programs over those decades and a look at how farming in the Mid-South had changed.
Delta Farm Press Today
Farm Progress lists Delta Farm Press among its 14 state and regional brands. Since January 2023 some issues have been digital-only, keeping the print layout but appearing only online, while every printed edition is also posted as a flip-through digital issue. Special editions have included production guides and agricultural digest issues.
The Clarksdale office is now empty. During the pandemic the staff moved to remote work, and Farm Press is now produced electronically from home offices across four regions.
What Delta Farm Press Is Publishing Now
Row crops
Cotton, rice, soybean, corn and peanut production in Mississippi, Arkansas, Louisiana, Tennessee and Missouri's Bootheel.
Research and Extension
Field days, variety trials and land-grant research from Mid-South universities and experiment stations.
Policy and farm business
Farm bill changes, which the magazine tracked across 75 years of programs, plus markets and farm finance.
Delta Farm Press Editors and Staff
Farm Progress materials, editorial contact lists and Farm Press commentary name these people:
- Brent Murphree - Farm Press writer; author of the digital issues announcement
- Raney Rapp - Editorial contact, Delta Farm Press
- Whitney Haigwood - Farm Press, Farm Progress South region
- Ron Smith - Former Farm Press editor
- William S. McNamee - Founder and longtime owner of Farm Press
Farm Press stories are filed from home offices across the Mid-South and shared with the other Farm Press titles.
Who Reads Delta Farm Press
Readers are commercial row crop farmers and agribusiness people in the Mississippi Delta and wider Mid-South. USDA NASS Quick Stats documents the cotton, rice and soybean acreage that defines the region, and USDA's Economic Research Service farm income statistics track the state-level returns that Delta Farm Press readers watch every season.
Delta Farm Press readers know heat, humidity and a cotton picker at midnight, so they appreciate anything that lightens the load. farm.FM offers farm satire straight out of the flat Delta, farm humor about rice levees, ranch humor for the few cattle on the ridges and farm jokes to trade at the gin. Clarksdale is blues country, after all, and every good blues song has a punch line somewhere.
farm.FM, the nation's first satirical farm site, also runs Tractor Tunes, a country music lineup for farmers. For a sample of the writing, try the archive of one of its staff humorists.
Delta Farm Press Sources and Agriculture Authority Links
- Farm Progress: Ugly duckling farm paper becomes bible of Delta agriculture - the Delta Farm Press origin story.
- Delta Farm Press: Digital issues now available - 1943 founding, expansion and the move to digital.
- Missouri School of Journalism: William S. McNamee - Honor Medal profile of the Farm Press owner.
- USDA NASS Quick Stats - Mid-South cotton, rice and soybean statistics.
- USDA ERS: Farm income and wealth statistics - state-level farm income data.
Delta Farm Press FAQ
When did Delta Farm Press start?
In 1943, as a weekly supplement to The Clarksdale Daily Press in Clarksdale, Mississippi.
Who publishes Delta Farm Press?
Farm Progress, a division of Informa.
Is Delta Farm Press still printed?
Yes, though since January 2023 some issues are digital-only and all print issues are also online.
What are the other Farm Press titles?
Southeast Farm Press and Southwest Farm Press, launched in 1974, and Western Farm Press, launched in 1979.
From a Clarksdale newspaper insert to a regional institution, Delta Farm Press has been reporting on Mid-South fields for more than 80 years.