Roots of Conservation: A soil legacy is returned home to OSU soil science teaching labs

Roots of Conservation: A soil legacy is returned home to OSU soil science teaching labs

Friday, December 19, 2025

Media Contact: Sophia Fahleson | Digital Communications Specialist | 405-744-7063 | [email protected]

At a university event in March 2025, Emily Warner sought out Sergio Abit, plant and soil sciences professor. She had some family heirlooms she thought the Ferguson College of Agriculture might be interested in.

From there, the story gusted into a living legacy of two families' stewardship of Oklahoma's soil history and donations connecting the past and future of soil science at OSU.

During the event, Emily Warner told Abit she was interested in donating a soil testing kit that belonged to her late father, Isaac Warner - one of the pioneers in soil mapping and conservation in the state.

Emily Warner also shared a family friend was interested in donating two hand-drawn soil maps from the 1920s.

The maps belonged to the Hollopeter family and had been cared for by Judy Turner.

Turner was one of eight siblings whose late father, Charlie Hollopeter, was known as a trailblazer within the state's soil and conservation history.

Isaac Warner and Hollopeter, both early 1930s Oklahoma A&M graduates, worked to shape the foundation of soil conservation and research in Oklahoma, getting their start during the height of the Dust Bowl.

"These families kept these items for nearly a century," Abit said. "They weren't just old tools - they were symbols of the beginning of soil conservation in Oklahoma. Having them here means we can show and tell students, 'This is where it all began.'"

Isaac Warner and Hollopeter's paths crossed when they were chosen to work as part of a national program tasked with mapping soils with the Stillwater Creek Watershed Project which was established Nov. 1, 1933.

"They were visionaries," Turner said. "The fact that Oklahoma A&M took on such a large project at the time speaks volumes. They understood the land before we even had the tools to measure it."

Together, their work went beyond science; it was an act of service, Emily Warner said.

"Those farmers were scientists," said Ruthie Stipe, who donated the soil testing kit with her sister, Emily Warner. "They saw the world differently, always improving the land."

Each family held onto their fathers' tools for decades. The soil testing kit is believed to be one of the first used in Oklahoma and was displayed in Emily Warner's home for years.

The maps, which predate the Dust Bowl-era creation of the Soil Conservation Service, were carefully stored by the Hollopeter family.

The families, who remained close since their fathers' days at the university, felt the choice was clear when it came to finding a permanent home for the artifacts, Emily Warner said.

"It's about posterity," Emily Warner said. "This is for our fathers, but it's also for OSU. Their work belongs here on campus."

Emily Warner, Stipe and Turner gathered in Agricultural Hall in October 2025, to officially donate the items to OSU.

For Abit, the donations are more than historical artifacts. They are teaching tools and conservation pieces, he said.

"Emily walked up to me and asked where she could give a donation," Abit said. "When she said it was a soil testing kit, I practically shouted, 'Me! I'll take it!'

"The problems our students face today, soil loss, erosion and sustainability, are the same challenges their fathers faced a century ago," Abit said. "The only difference is the tools we have now. Understanding history helps us appreciate how far we've come and how much responsibility we still have."

During the donation ceremony, the families spoke of their fathers' passion for conservation and how the friendship has spanned nearly a century.

Emily Warner said her father pointed out different types of soil during family car rides and was constantly teaching, observing and explaining the earth to those he was around.

Those little lessons planted a lifelong respect for the soil and land, Turner added.

The worn brass hinges on Isaac Warner's soil kit and the century-old maps tell more than a scientific story; they tell a story of people.

The men saw Oklahoma's soil not as just dirt, but the foundation of life itself, Turner said.

"We're here because of one inch of soil," Turner said. "Our fathers knew that. And now, others will, too."

Story by Rylee Glazier | Cowboy Journal