This plaque, honoring John Young (1773-1837), is mounted on the south west wall of the Almon Street Post Office in Halifax, at the south corner of the building.
While a merchant and trader, Young, we suppose, saw the potential benefit to himself in fomenting improvement in the lot of the farmer and of agriculture in general. With this in mind he began to write letters to the Halifax
Acadian Recorder on July 25, 1818, under the pseudonym
Agricola. The letters made many suggestions on how to improve local agriculture by forming agricultural societies and establishing a central board of agriculture. He invited farmers to also write the newspaper with stories of their own successes, while offering suggestions of his own as to the various ways in which agricultural practices could be improved.
He ultimately wrote a total of 64 letters to the newspaper, 38 of which were collected in a book, which was published in 1822. Though the campaign was initially almost spectacularly successful, it eventually lost steam as many of Young's shortcomings and motivations rose to the surface.
Young was a man who, in spite of his vanity and self serving actions, managed to garner a certain amount of support, both from the farmers he was purportedly attempting to aid and from members of the business and political communities. Though many of the aims of both Young and the agricultural societies remained unfulfilled, the campaign nevertheless had a major positive impact on Nova Scotia agriculture.
Read a lengthy biography of
John 'Agricola' Young.
The CNHS plaque reads as follows:
JOHN YOUNG "AGRICOLA"
1773-1837
In July 1818 letters of the Scottish-born scholar and merchant Jonn Young first appeared in the Halifax press. Using the pseudonym "Agricola" he pointed to the debased condition of Nova Scotia farming and outlined methods for improvement. The immediate response was remarkable: new agricultural societies were organized; and Central Board, with Young as secretary, was established; livestock and machinery were imported and a model farm set up; prizes were offered to encourage farmers. Public enthusiasm soon waned and Young turned to politics, serving in the Assembly from 1826 until his death.