Do ya think it was like during the Civil War when civilians took a picnic lunch out to watch the battles? Kinda like a sporting match.
That's exactly what happened. I have a painting of ladies and young children having a picnic on a hill overlooking men bailing hay with a steam engine belching black smoke.
It was a sign of industrial might, in addition to the prestige value for the farmer, and carried none of the negative connotations we attach today.