On December 4, 1867, Oliver Hudson Kelley established the National Grange of the Order of Patrons of Husbandry. Born in Boston in 1826, Kelley decided in his 20s to become a farmer. So in 1849, he took a steamboat to St. Paul, Minnesota. While the area was mostly one of Indian trade at the time, Kelley recognized that it held great agricultural potential. Kelley soon proved himself to be a talented and pioneering farmer, impressing the locals with his experimentation with new crops, elaborate irrigation systems, and the use of one of the first mechanical reapers in the state. Soon Kelly was writing popular columns about his ideas on scientific farming for national newspapers. By 1864, he was awarded a position in the federal commissioner of agriculture’s office in Washington, DC.