The leadership of a modern country church minister brought about just such an improvement in the community life of Old Fort. This pastor came to realize the needs of his community by taking part in the Ohio Rural Life Survey. One direct result of his work is a centralized agricultural high school, which will become the means of keeping the best families on the land instead of letting them move to the larger towns in search of better schools for the children. Once gone they rarely return.
The young men of Old Fort, who formerly had little to do with the church, are now active in its work. Special attention has been given, in a neighboring parish served by the same minister, to the farm laborers and tenants. Whereas formerly these people rarely went to church, now as large a proportion of them take part in the activities of the church as of any other class. This is an achievement of real importance. It appears from Map 12, which is based on data from the United States Census, that, in no less than 54 of the 88 counties of Ohio, more than 25 per cent of the farms in the year 1910 were operated by tenants. On Map 13 it appears that in no less than 50 counties the number of farms operated by tenants is increasing. Here is one of the great obstacles in the way of church progress in the State, for it is well known that farm tenants usually take little interest in the community where they live, while only a small proportion of them are members of the church. Until reform in the system of land tenure can be brought to pass through legislation, it is most important that the church shall give special attention to the tenant families.
Map 12
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Map 13
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