January 23, 2025

The Memphis Agriculture Club was organized in 1926, a time when the city limits of Memphis didn’t extend much beyond the Parkways and the city was surrounded by cotton fields and gins and dairy farms.
The Ag Club, which survived World War II and the expansion of the Memphis metropolitan area beyond the boundaries of Shelby County, appears to have held its last meeting, a victim of the Covid-19 pandemic and consolidation in the agricultural world.
“After deep consideration of member feedback, the observation of the level of post-pandemic participation and consultation with key stakeholders, the members of the board feel it’s unfair to appoint new leadership to an organization struggling to maintain its existence,” Club President Pete Nelson said in an email to members.
“Given that the club’s participation never rebounded post-pandemic, the current board of directors can’t in good conscience hand the responsibility of maintaining a 98-year-old organization to a new board when it appears interest has severely waned.”
Meeting attendance
Nelson said participation at the club’s monthly meetings at the Memphis Agricenter facilities was “hovering around 10 to 15 attendees on a good month.” Prior to the pandemic in 2020, attendance often reached 40 to 50 persons.
Consolidation among agricultural companies had also taken its toll on the club’s membership with the number of agricultural chemical companies dropping from 15 to 20 entities to five or six major suppliers.
In its heyday, membership included several agricultural leaders such as Bill Skinner, president of Turner Dairy in Memphis and later vice president in the Trust Division at First Tennessee Bank where he oversaw all the farmland in trust with the bank.
Skinner, who grew up on a farm in the Forest Hill Community near where the Fed Ex World Headquarters is now located, was president of the club and began its tradition of serving eggnog with and without the “nog” during the club’s annual Christmas meeting. The tradition continued until the December 2023 meeting. (He passed away in 2012.)
“My Dad really enjoyed the camaraderie of the Memphis Ag Club,” said Skinner’s son, Rob. “I remember going to one of the Christmas meetings where he made homemade eggnog with the eggs and whipped cream. He looked forward to that every year.”
Other past presidents included Earl Manning, Mid-South editor of Progressive Farmer; Lee Todd, former executive vice president of the Southern Cotton Ginners Association and the Mid-South Farm and Gin Show; Dave Rhylander, regional manager for Monsanto; and Bruce Kirksey, director of research at Agricenter International.
Christmas meeting
This year’s Christmas meeting was scheduled for Dec. 16 but was canceled after the club’s board decided not to continue its operation. Nelson, president of Memphis-based AgLaunch; Vice President Toni Barnes, senior vice president at Truist Bank; and Treasurer Michael Boyd, farm loan specialist with USDA’s Farm Service Agency, submitted their resignations after the decision was announced.
Nelson, who served as the club’s president for three years after it resumed its meetings following the pandemic, left the door open for anyone who wanted to help restart the nearly 100-year-old organization’s activities.
“If anyone is interested in taking the reins of Memphis Ag Club, please reach out to Pete Nelson ([email protected]),” he said. “If a volunteer steps up to take over organizing and leading Memphis Ag Club, we’ll make sure all applicable documentation and lists are properly transferred.
“All funds currently in the Memphis Ag Club account will be used to finish out any payments owed on behalf of the club such as catering bills, and the rest will be donated to GreenLeaf Learning Farm as an end-of-year gift.”
Members who have questions may contact [email protected].
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