A professor of history and a farmer storyteller are coming to Washington for a free program looking at agriculture from the past and today in Iowa. The Washington Public Library is hosting the program called Earth’s Bounty in Iowa: Then and Now. Librarian Allie Paarsmith says the event with two speakers is important in an area like Washington County, “We are a community built on farming and built on agriculture, so I think it’s really exciting for us to have this opportunity brought to us to celebrate our heritage here in the state.”

The two guest speakers are Dr. Pamela Riney-Kehrberg a Professor of History at Iowa State University and Darcy Maulsby a fifth-generation farmer, business owner, author, marketing specialist, historian and speaker. Each will give a short presentation about the history of agriculture in Iowa and the current challenges and triumphs, followed by a discussion with attendees.

This program was developed by the Iowa Center for the Book at the State Library of Iowa, and is the result of a grant from the National Endowment for the Humanities for a two-year program on the agricultural heritage of Iowa. Earth’s Bounty in Iowa is a free event at the library this Thursday from 7 to 8:30 p.m. in the Nicola Stoufer Room.