With the industrial revolution and the development of a large, complex, impersonal, urban society, earlier approaches to keeping an eye on problem members of society no longer worked, and more formal mechanisms were required. Massachusetts passed the first probation statute in 1878; and by 1920, 33 states had implemented adult probation and all States allowed for juvenile probation. As probation became institutionalized, it also grew away from careful monitoring because it became a supplement, rather than an alternative, to incarceration. Current interest in intensive probation supervision suggests a return to the earlier times when probation was viewed as an alternative, when caseloads were small, and when the goal was to help the offender modify his behavior in such a way as to be law abiding and self-sufficient. While the future is difficult to predict, the opportunities for reform have never been better. Remembering the past may facilitate moving forward. 22 references.