In 2004, the Department of Biosystems and Agricultural Engineering celebrated
its 95th year as a unit at the University of Minnesota. On July 1, 1909, the
Division of Farm Structures and Farm Mechanics and the Division of Agricultural
Physics in the University Department of Agriculture were united to form the
Division of Agricultural Engineering.
The Bio-based Products programs and the former department
traces its origins to the work on biological deterioration and preservation of
wood by Dr. Frank Kaufert, one of the founding fathers of the Department and
the college, in the 1930’s. The Wood Technology Program began in the School of
Forestry about 1938.
Here you can read about the department and view photos taken over the years.
The quick history is divided into a number of "chapters," with links to sidebars
of interest. For more in depth information, look at "Agricultural Engineering at the University of
Minnesota to 1942," by Harry B. Roe, William Boss, and Hall B. White; edited
by A. J. Schwantes.
After his retirement, A. J. Schwantes began work on "Agricultural Engineering
at the University of Minnesota since 1942."
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