The Brown Creek Soil Conservation District was the first district in America established for a systematic program of land erosion control, and as the Brown Creek District, covering the Brown Creek Watershed, it marked the beginning of a national program of soil conservation districts. The district included the plantation birthplace of Hugh H. Bennett, the “father of soil conservation.” Born in 1881, Bennett graduated from the University of North Carolina in 1903 and became a soil surveyor in the Bureau of Soils, Department of Agriculture. After observing that soil erosion ruined much good land throughout the United States, he gradually initiated a program to prevent this waste. On April 27, 1935, Bennett became director of the Soil Conservation Service and held that position until his retirement in 1952. By then, soil conservation had become a national concern, largely because of the work of Hugh Bennett and his associates. The success of the soil conservation district program depended on local participation by farmers and landowners, and conservation districts were created throughout the United States as Bennett and his specialists worked with farmers for an effective program. The Brown Creek District was established in 1937. In May, thirty local property owners petitioned the State Soil Conservation Committee that a soil conservation district was needed in the interest of public health, safety, and welfare. The proposed district would include 120,000 acres, much of it badly eroded. The petition was approved on May 31. A public hearing at Wadesboro on July 3, followed by mailed ballots to local farmers, produced an overwhelmingly favorable vote to create the district. On August 4, the North Carolina Secretary of State issued a certificate establishing it, and the Brown Creek District became the example for future districts.