Weighing Milk, c. 1940
Suggested Teaching Instructions
Document Description
Department of Agriculture milk inspector weighs milk in a barn and a farmer milks a cow, circa 1940.
Historical Context
New York is the nation's third-largest producer of dairy products, and milk is New York's leading agricultural product. Dairy farms can be found all across the state. The dairy industry accounts for one-half of the state's agricultural receipts. In 2004, New York produced 11.7 billion pounds of dairy products, worth $1.95 billion.
Essential Question
How does industrialization change a society?
Check for Understanding
Describe the scene in the photograph and evaluate the impact of industrialization on these workers and their local community.
Historical Challenges
New York is the nation's third-largest dairy producer. What other states are in the top ten? Graph the top ten by production and make a key.
Interdisciplinary Connections
Math: A cow on Farmer Brown’s dairy farm can produce 1 pint a day of milk. How many cows would be needed to produce 1 gallon of milk?
Science: What kind of scale is being used in this picture? How does this scale work? Who invented it?
English Language Arts: Write a daily schedule for a dairy worker.