To gain a better understanding of how commercial banks are meeting the changing credit demands of agriculture, the Federal Reserve System conducted a farm loan survey in mid-1966. The survey covered 159 banks in the Central Mississippi Valley and 1,607 banks in the United States. It was designed to obtain specific characteristics of bank loans: original and outstanding amounts, maturity, interest rates, purpose, and security. Various borrower characteristics such as age, tenure, income, asset and net-worth positions, type of operation, and location with respect to the bank were also sought.