1862

A Department of Agriculture is introduced by Lincoln and established by the 1865 Morrill Act

1895

USDA begins collecting milk and fat production records of individual cows

1908

USDA hires Helmer Rabild PHOTO to organize a national milk-recording program after his success in organizing the first state program in Michigan PHOTO

1912

An inbreeding experiment begins with repeated sire-daughter matings PHOTO

1918

USDA leases many of its young bulls to other farmers to develop proven sires. A total of 1200 bulls were leased over the next 40 years PHOTO

1922

USDA's Bureau of Animal Industry (Sewall Wright) defines relationships among animals and inbreeding coefficients SITE 1 SITE 2 PHOTO

1925

Sorting and tabulating of cow records is done on electric machines PHOTO

1925

Dairy breeds are described and yields compared PHOTO

1935

A uniform series of eartags was developed to allow unique identification of all cows tested by DHIA PHOTO PHOTO PHOTO

1935

Milk records are available for only about two percent of dairy cows PHOTO PHOTO

1936

The first national sire evaluations are calculated from daughter-dam comparisons PHOTO PHOTO

1947

A crossbreeding trial of Holsteins, Jerseys, and Red Danes is completed PHOTO

1949

The research herd includes Holstein cows with 75% inbreeding, the highest ever recorded PHOTO

1959

An IBM 705 computer replaces more than 100 employees and 100 individual adding machines

1961

Laboratory moves from Washington, DC to Beltsville, MD

1962

Sire evaluations are computed using herdmate comparisons which better account for differences in management PHOTO

1964

National cow evaluations replace the regional evaluations of processing centers PHOTO

1974

The Modified Contemporary Comparison, which better accounted for genetic trend, is used in computing genetic evaluations PHOTO

1976

Mexican Holstein milk yield is evaluated by USDA for the next 20 years

1977

Protein and solid-not-fat evaluations are computed PHOTO

1978

Type evaluations for breeds other than Holstein are calculated at USDA

1981

Maternal ancestors are incorporated in cow evaluation

1989

Animal model evaluations use the relationships among all cows and bulls PHOTO

1997

A website replaces computer tapes for distribution of genetic evaluations

1999

Laboratory moves (within Beltsville) from Building 263 to Building 005

1999

National Dairy Shrine survey ranks genetic evaluations the second most positive and significant change in the last 50 years (AI is 1st)

2001

Laboratory survives a direct hit by a tornado SITE

Current

For recent changes in genetic evaluations (1989 - present) see the Changes in Evaluations page