Artist: Robert Wadsworth Grafton (1876–1936)
Henry Cullen Adams
ADAMS, HENRY CULLEN (1850–1906), inducted by 1920
Henry Cullen Adams was born in Verona, New York, and raised in Wisconsin. A dairy and fruit farmer, Adams was a leader in several state agricultural organizations, including the board of agriculture, horticulture society, and dairymen’s association. He also served two terms in the Wisconsin State Assembly. In 1902, he was elected to the US House of Representatives, where he worked on the Meat Inspection Act, Pure Food and Drug Act, and oleomargarine bill. Just before his unexpected death, Adams authored a bill to gradually double federal appropriations to agriculture experiment stations established under the Hatch Act of 1887. The Adams Act, unanimously passed in 1906, was a major boost to agricultural research. This portrait is framed as a triptych, with two other agricultural policy leaders, William Hatch and Justin Morrill.
Source: Saddle & Sirloin Guidebook 2026, p. 36