Fig. 1. Trends in U.S. demographics, farm numbers, farm size, and land in farms, 1850–2006. Source: U.S. Department of Commerce, Bureau of Census, 1975; Hoppe, 2001; USDA-NASS, 2006a, 2006b; USDA-ERS, 2007b. Note: Changes in census definition of farms and methodology account for some graph irregularities, e.g., 1974–1975 and 1994–2000. Farm number anomaly in 1935 reflects people returning to farming due to the Great Depression followed by the impact of WWII.