Historic Omaha

It was July 17, 1916, when President
Woodrow Wilson appended his signature on a
piece of legislation that would open the gates
to an agricultural revolution. That document
he signed would later become known as the
Federal Farm Loan Act.
Established at a time when credit for
agriculture was difficult to come by in the
existing banking community, the new
legislation heralded the beginning of financial
independence for farmers and ranchers and
created what is known today as the Farm
Credit System.
Within that System, Farm Credit Services
of America, known then as the Federal Land
Bank of Omaha, was formed to provide
farmers and ranchers long-term mortgage
loans. Sixty thousand applications and
inquiries awaited the company on its opening
day, March 18, 1917. The first loan of $1,000
was made for the purchase of 160 acres in Red
Willow County. Five years later, over fifteen
thousand loans totaling nearly $75 million
had been made.
In the decades to come, capital
became essential to survive in rural
America. By deferring and extending loan
payments and with the help of federal
funds, which were repaid in full in 1953,
Farm Credit Services of America made it
possible for thousands of hard-pressed
farmers and ranchers to survive the Great
Depression and prevail with better
financial health. With newly available
operating and equipment loans, financial
freedom and prosperity took hold.
By the 1950s, sophistication and
modernization was fueling economic
growth. Although the costs of farming
continued to mount, borrowers began
seeking larger loans for more land and
new machinery. Farm Credit Services of
America kept pace by making loans at a
rate, which topped that of the troubled
’30s. The company also expanded its
services to include rural home mortgages
and variable interest rate programs
helping farmers and ranchers expand
well into the ’70s.
By the mid-1980s, rising inflation and
collapsing farmland values forced
American agriculture into a four year long
recession. As a result, Farm Credit Services of
America, along with commercial banks and
producers, experienced severe financial stress.
Through financial assistance, which was
repaid in 1992, and changes in legislation, the
company began its recovery in 1988 and set
in motion a commitment to help distressed
customers pull through the recession. The
company returned to its strong financial
health—a trend that continues today.
The late 1990s sparked a chain of process
enhancements, changed lending philosophies,
new product introductions, a new market
delivery structure, and technology
improvements. Beginning the turn of the
century, with assets exceeding $6.4 billion and
serving nearly fifty thousand customers, Farm
Credit Services of America has become one of
the largest providers of credit and insurance
services to farmers, ranchers, agribusinesses
and rural residents in Nebraska, Iowa, South
Dakota and Wyoming.
FARM CREDIT
SERVICES OF
AMERICA
✧
Above: The corporate seal of the Federal
Land Bank of Omaha, predecessor of today’s
Farm Credit Services of America.
Below: Farm Credit Services of America
headquarters in Omaha in the
mid-twentieth century.
THE MARKETPLACE
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