Pierce County 4-H is celebrating their 100th birthday in 2021. We are looking for Pierce County 4-H Alumni to serve on a planning committee to organize a few events to celebrate this milestone.

Pierce County 4-H’s beginnings started at the end of WW I, when the Pierce County Board, appropriated money for an Extension Agent through the cooperation of the College of Agriculture and the U.S. Department of Agriculture. On August 1, 1920, H.G. Seyforth was appointed to fill this position and held it for 37 years until October 1, 1957.

In the Spring of 1921 the first 4-H club members were signed up and by July 1 there were 82 4-H members. These members were organized into project clubs with the most popular being Corn, Potato, Calf, Poultry, and Sewing.

In September 1921, the first 4-H projects were presented at the Pierce County Fair. For the first five years, H.G. Seyforth was “the leader,” working almost entirely alone. He visited many of the 100 rural schools. Most of these schools had to be visited in the spring as the roads were not kept open for winter driving.

Today there are over 700 youth and 170 adult volunteers enrolled in the 21 4-H clubs in Pierce County.

If interested in helping plan events for this historical milestone of Pierce County 4-H, please contact Pierce County 4-H agent Frank Ginther at [email protected] or Committee Chair Beth Ingli at [email protected] or her home at 715-639-2630.