The Wayne County Agricultural and Horticultural Society Minute was the first such organization formed in the state of Indiana, organized in 1858. One account makes it the model for the statewide organization that was formed in 1861. Its records document agricultural life and practices in east-central Indiana in the 19th century.The Richmond Horticultural Association was formed at a meeting on December 4, 1958. It was part od a nationwide movement to encourage interest in "scientific agriculture". Many of the early members were proprietors of nurseries around Richmond. In 1881, the name of the group was changed to Wayne County Agricultural Horticultural, and in 1883 the name was altered again to become the Wayne County Agricultural and Horticultural Society. The date of its dissolution is not known; the group was still in existence in 1912. The Minute Books contain a variety of material. All include minutes of monthy business meetings, prizes awarded in contest, and names of members. The later books consist largely of newspaper clippings reporting meetins, with synopses of addresses given by speakers. The collection is of 6 minute books. It is believed that they were passed to charter memeber Joseph C. Ratliff (1827-1909) and then to John Nixon (1883-1983) who was a book and document collector of Centervill, IN. Earlham purchased them from Nixon's grandson, Craig Wiechman, in 2003. No records have been found for 187901881. It is possible that a volume has been lost during the years of different ownership.