The Progressive Movement in the United States was a complex, multifaceted, and organic reform movement, comprised of diverse reformers who instituted unique social and educational initiatives to improve society. This historical study focused on the establishment and success of the Children's School Farm of New York, an early twentieth-century school garden program that utilized John Dewey's emergent educational theories. The application of John Dewey's nascent theories in this school garden program revealed that institutions of higher education, national publications, and academic journals influenced the swift and dynamic spread of pioneering Progressive ideals and reforms, reinforcing the organic and grassroots nature of the Movement and its imprint on society. The Children's School Farm of New York was a vital social and educational reform of the Progressive Movement; influenced the spread of the national School Garden Movement, and provided value to the urban poor, especially in New York City. This scholarship also scrutinized the role and contributions of its founder, Fannie Griscom Parsons, who was a Progressive New Woman, a category of Progressive reformer that has received limited recognition in Progressive Era scholarship. Additionally, this study examined the complex and multilayered influences of the municipal government and the federal government in sustaining the Children's School Farm of New York and the School Garden Movement, which eclipsed the minimal support the local school boards provided for this innovative Progressive reform initiative. Evidence from this research suggests that school gardens were a vital social and educational program of the Progressive Movement; and that the Progressive New Woman and the municipal government were instrumental in implementing and sustaining these valuable, often minimally-researched, Progressive reforms. [The dissertation citations contained here are published with the permission of ProQuest LLC. Further reproduction is prohibited without permission. Copies of dissertations may be obtained by Telephone (800) 1-800-521-0600. Web page: http://bibliotheek.ehb.be:2222/en-US/products/dissertations/individuals.shtml.]