The Granger movement began with a single individual, Oliver Hudson Kelley. Kelley was an employee of the Department of Agriculture (agriculture, origins of) in 1866 when he made a tour of the South. Shocked by the ignorance there of sound agricultural practices, Kelley in 1867 began an organization—the Patrons of Husbandry—he hoped would bring farmers together for educational discussions and social purposes.

The organization involved secret ritual and was divided into local units called “Granges.” At first only Kelley's home state of Minnesota seemed responsive to the Granger movement, but by 1870 nine states had Granges. By the mid-1870s nearly every state had at least one Grange, and national membership reached close to 800,000. What drew most farmers to the Granger movement was the need for unified action against the monopolistic railroads (railroad) and grain elevators (often owned by the railroads) that charged exorbitant rates for handling and transporting farmers' crops and other agricultural products. The movement picked up adherents as it became increasingly political after 1870.

In 1871 Illinois farmers were able to get their state legislature to pass a bill fixing maximum rates that railroads and grain-storage facilities could charge. Minnesota, Wisconsin, and Iowa later passed similar regulatory legislation. These laws were challenged in court, and what became known as the “Granger cases” reached the Supreme Court in 1877. The most significant of the Granger cases was Illinois (Munn v. Illinois) (q.v.), in which a Chicago grain-storage facility challenged the constitutionality of the 1871 Illinois law setting maximum rates. The court, with Chief Justice Morrison Remick Waite writing for the majority, upheld the state legislation on the grounds that a private enterprise that affects the public interest is subject to governmental regulation.

Meanwhile, independent farmers' political parties began appearing all over the country, outgrowths of the Granger movement. Ignatius Donnelly was one of the principal organizers, and his weekly newspaper Anti-Monopolist was highly influential. At their Grange meetings farmers were urged to vote only for candidates who would promote agricultural interests. If the two major parties would not check the monopolistic practices of railroads and grain elevators, the Grangers turned to their own parties for action.

With the rise of the Greenback Party and later organizations for the expression of agricultural protest, however, the Granger movement began to subside late in the 1870s. Ill-advised farmer-owned cooperatives for the manufacture of agricultural equipment sapped much of the group's strength and financial resources. By 1880 membership had dropped to slightly more than 100,000. The Granger movement rebounded in the 20th century, however, especially in the eastern part of the country. The National Grange, as it is called, remains a fraternal organization of farmers and takes an active stance on national legislation affecting the agricultural sector.