Power m the Present

invented and produced for farmers. The Development Cyrus McCormick invented his reaper in 1831. It soon created a demand for belt power with which to of the Tractor thresh the mechanically harvested grain crops. By i860 more than 50 E. M. Dieffenbach and R. B. Gray shops from Maine to California were building threshers under license from the Pitts Brothers, American inventors who patented a thresher in 1837. A FARMER in 1910 needed 135 hours to Steel plows, mowers, shellers, fodder produce 100 bushels of corn, 106 hours cutters, and other machines were of- for 100 bushels of wheat, and 276 for fered to the farmer soon thereafter. a bale of cotton. The reaper and the thresher made The average for the United States obsolete the flail, which had been in in i960 was about 23 man-hours to common use for centuries in all parts produce 100 bushels of corn, 17 for 100 of the world for beating out the grain bushels of wheat, and 77 for a bale of from the heads. First it was a whip, cotton. sometimes with two or more lashes. A reason for this big drop in the The later versions consisted of a wood American farmer's labor requirement handle with a shorter stick hung at was the development of the tractor. the end so as to swing freely. Tractors were perfected because of Work animals also became obsolete, the need for mechanical power for in a manner of speaking, in time. Used the new machines that were being with sweeps and treadmills, they pro- 25 26 YEARBOOK OF AGRICULTURE 1960 vided some power, but not enough for and cheaper, or more rapidly, so as to operating the threshers and other belt- get through more perfectly in season; driven machines. Manufacturers of or in some way afford an advantage threshers and other machines under- over plowing with animals, else it is no took therefore the production of mov- success." able steam engines. Philander Standish built the Stan- The early steam engines furnished dish steam rotary plow, the Mayflower, belt power, but they had to be pulled at Pacheco, Calif., in 1868. It was from place to place by horses or oxen. offered for sale in several sizes, ranging One of the first to be produced in the from 10 to 60 horsepower. Operating United States was the Forty-Niner, It speed was i .7 to 3.4 miles an hour, and was built in Philadelphia in 1849 by the plowing rate was up to 5 acres an A. L. Archambault in 4-, 10-, and 30- hour. horsepower sizes. The smallest of these Also in 1868 Owen Redmond of weighed 2 tons, or a thousand pounds Rochester, N.Y,, patented a steam per horsepower. plow. A report of the Commissioner of The Baker and Hamilton Co. mar- Agriculture in 1870 announced that "a keted a movable threshing engine in gang of six plows, designed to go with 1880. The boiler had a jacket of 2-inch the engine, has since been constructed, staves, held in place by brass bands, intended to be operated by one man, and could burn wood, coal, or straw. who also might be the fireman." It had an Ames engine and Laufen- While the main efforts in providing burg boiler and was built by the Ames self-propulsion systems for steam trac- Iron Works of Oswego, N.Y. Henry tors seemed to center largely around Ames was one of the early builders and the use of wheel propulsion, many in- advocates of steampower on the farm, ventors were at work devising methods and he founded a factory to make for providing better traction through movable engines in 1854. the application of tracks and other de- The next step in the evolution of vices. They worked out many unusual farm power was the conversion of the ideas. portable steam engine into a self-pro- Gideon Morgan of Calhoun, Tenn., pelled steam traction engine. received a patent for a wheel substitute The first ones were developed pri- in 1850. The language of his patent marily for plowing. O bed Hussey of was for an improvement in track-type Baltimore invented and put into oper- tractor design; the development of the ation a ''steam plow" in 1855. J. S. crawder-type tractor in the United Fawkes of Christiana, Pa., produced States therefore must have begun be- a more successful steam plowing outfit fore 1850. in 1858. Its frame was of iron, 8 feet R. J. Nunn of Savannah, Ga., pat- wide and 12 feet long, and rested on ented an "improvement in land con- the axle of a roller (driver) 6 feet in veyance" in 1867. It was essentially diameter and 6 feet wide. two or more bands running over a President Abraham Lincoln, in an series of grooved rollers that were address before the Wisconsin State mounted in a frame and driven Agricultural Society at Milwaukee, in through a larger roller powered by a 1859, said: steam engine. "The successful application of steam- Thomas S. Minnisof Meadville, Pa., power to farm work is a desideratum— in 1867 patented a locomotive for especially a steam plow. It is not plowing and in 1870 a steam tractor enough that a machine operated by mounted on three tracks—two in the steam will really plow. To be success- rear and one in front. Each rear track ful, it must, all things considered, plow was driven by a steam engine, at- better than can be done by animal tached at the rear, through pinion and power. It must do all the work as well. drive gear. THE DEVELOPMENT OF THE TRACTOR 27 According to Hal Higgins, an au- the driving wheels wider and wider. thority on power farming, "Iowa's first Daniel Best sold his first steamer, a 'dirt farming tractor' was this Minnis three-wheeler with vertical boiler, in Crawler from Pennsylvania that came 1889. One big-wheel outfit which was out to the raw prairie within sight of made by the Best Manufacturing Co. the new Iowa State Agricultural Col- in 1900 for the Middle River Farming lege as the first students started attend- Co., Stockton, Calif., had two wood- ing classes within sight of its smoke." covered drive wheels 15 feet wide and Robert C. Parvin of Illinois in 1873 9 feet in diameter. The outfit weighed built a steam tractor propelled by an 41 tons. endless chain of steel plates to w^hich The Stockton Wheel Co. (later the ''feet," shod with 2-inch plank, were Holt Manufacturing Co.) built its attached. It pulled six plows. first steam traction engine (of a track Charles H. Stratton, Moscow, Pa., type) in 1890. Topography, soil, and in 1893 produced a steam-powered their large acreages led farmers on traction engine designed especially "to the Pacific Coast to accept this type travel readily over plowed ground, for of tractor more readily than farmers cross plowing, and other work." The in other sections. front end was supported by wheels on Benjamin Holt successfully demon- a pivoted axle and the rear by a pair of strated his first track-type tractor near compactly arranged tracks actuated Stockton in 1904 after considerable through gears and pinions from the experimentation, in which he devised horizontal engine. Besides driving the a pair of rough wooden tracks that he tracks, the engine could be used to installed on a steam engine from which drive a shaft that could be used to the wheels had been removed. drive threshers or other machines—a He made use of three clutches—the so-called power takeoff*. master clutch, for connecting the pow- One of the first attempts to manu- er source, and the track clutches. When facture track-type tractors commer- the track clutch was released on one cially was made by Al vin O. Lombard side, the power applied through the of Waterville, Me., in the early 1890's. track clutch on the other side caused He patented one of the first practical the tractor to pivot around the de- track-type tractors in 1901. Lombard clutched track. Application of brakes adopted the ball tread idea of John on the declutched side increased the B. Linn of Cleveland. speed of turning. This method of trans- Lombard substituted rollers for the mission continues to be used by the balls. He built a workable tractor Caterpillar Tractor Co. and has been and sold a number of machines. The adopted by most other manufacturers unit was "designed specially for trans- of tracklaying tractors. porting lumber and logs over the Only eight of the track-type Holt rough roads and even cross country steamers were built. He had already in the Maine woods," It embodied made experiments to replace steam- half-track construction. The front was power by gasoline, and one model supported by runners in winter and tractor of the track type, which burned wheels in the summer. Two power- gasoline, was produced in 1907. driven tracks were in the rear. Inventors between 1870 and 1880 Another track tractor was the Cen- devised a suitable gearing for the rear tiped Log Hauler manufactured by wheels of portable steam engines of the Phoenix Manufacturing Co., Eau the w^heel type and also a chain or Claire, Wis. It resembled the Lombard belt drive from the engine flywheel to machine, 'but it used a vertical instead a countershaft of this gearing to pro- of horizontal engine. vide self-propulsion. Other early inventors tried to solve The bevel gear and inclined shaft- the problems of traction by making developed by C. and G. Cooper of 28 YEARBOOK OF AGRICULTURE 1960 Mt. Vernon, Ohio, was also a popular ing the burden of manually lifting the method of drive. It enabled the farmer plows by levers, which always were to convert his portable steam engine giving trouble. into a traction engine in the field. Before the abandonment of the A United States patent was issued steamer and the acceptance of the in 1880 for a steering device, although gasoline tractor, many improvements English tractors were fitted with steer- had been made, and the performance ing gears as early as 1863. There fol- of the huge self-propelled powerplants lowed the introduction of a clutch and was the pride of the traction-engine gear train between the engine and engineers who pioneered in the ulti- rear wheels. mate placing of power in the hands of The steering gears on these early the 6 million farmers in this country. steamers were not at first considered As a matter of fact, the interest is reliable by some manufacturers, and still so great that organizations, such operators were cautioned about their as the National Thresher Reunion in use on public highways. Ohio, Rough and Tumble Engineers The suggestion was made that it Association in Pennsylvania, Midwest might be safer to guide the machine Old Settlers and Threshers Associa- with a team of horses. Some said tion in Iowa, and others, composed horses were not frightened when they largely of oldtimer steam buffs, hold met a traction engine preceded by a annual picnics for their many members. steering team. Others felt that the ad- For these reunions they doll up old ditional horsepower provided by the traction engines and use them to drive team was advantageous—some of the threshers or pull plows. Some of the reasons why horse steering remained machines run idle; some are driven by for a while. the kids under supervision. The en- Many farmers started buying self- thusiasts swap yarns of the harrowing propelled steam engines in the late experiences when one man's outfit 1870's. About 3 thousand steam trac- broke through a wooden bridge, tors and almost that many steam another got mired down while crossing threshers were built in 1890. Several a sand creek, and another broke a plow manufacturers advertised mul- piston rod so that the piston crashed. tiple-bottom steam tractor plows or At least one periodical, the Iron- gangs in 1894. By 1900 more than 30 Men Album Magazine, Enola, Pa., is firms were manufacturing 5 thousand devoted almost entirely to these steam- large steam traction engines a year. engine men of a half century ago. These tractors were improvements over earlier models. The gearing, shaft- THE STEAM TRACTION engines, pio- ing, and other wearing parts were built neers in mechanization, often weighed to withstand the immense strains im- more than 45 thousand pounds and posed upon them in pulling large developed more than 120 horsepower. threshers and plowing many furrows They operated with a steam pressure at one time. Big wheat farms and of 150 to 200 pounds per square inch. ranches in the Dakotas, Colorado, Both the horizontal-tube boiler (the Montana, Nebraska, Kansas, Cali- more popular) and the vertical-tube fornia, and western Canada were using boiler were used in these early vehicles. steam traction engines. The two types were different in form About this time the Geiser and but had many operative points in Friede companies, both of Waynes- common. boro, Pa., offered steam lifts for engine The horizontal-type boiler was con- gangs. This development indicated, structed mainly with direct flue, with even this early, that thought was be- return flue, or with firebox return flue. ing given to cutting down labor re- The direct-flue boiler was known as quirements in plowing and to lighten- the locomotive firebox, straight-flue THE DEVELOPMENT OF THE TRACTOR 29 boiler. The flues passed horizontally of the sides of the firebox. In another from the firebox at the rear to the type, known as rear mounting, one smokebox in front. continuous axle was located back of The products of combustion in the the firebox. A continuous axle was return-flue boiler traveled first through often mounted ahead of the firebox on the main flue to the combustion cham- return-flue boilers. It was known as ber in the front end of the boiler and under mounting. then back through the many small The power of the steam traction flues to the smokebox in the rear. engine was transmitted usually to the Little space was provided under the traction wheels by a simple train of grates of all three types to catch ashes spur gears made of cast iron. A driving and cinders. Grates were always in pinion attached to the friction clutch danger of burning out. This danger engaged an intermediate gear, which was overcome in the firebox return- in turn engaged a large compensating flue boiler, in which water surrounded gear on the countershaft. Pinions on the heated surfaces, the grate area was either end of the countershaft drove larger, and the boiler had a larger large master gears, which were fas- heating surface. tened in the drive wheels by rigid or Boilers of the vertical type had a spring connections. cylindrical shell with a firebox at the Traction engines first were geared lower end. Fire flues extended verti- with one forward speed to make 2 or cally from the fiue sheet above the fire 3 miles an hour on the road. Later to the top of the boiler or horizontal some—especially on those used in hilly water tubes placed in courses, so that country—were geared with two for- each course was at right angles to the ward speeds, one slow and one fast. course next below and next above. The front or steering wheels often These tubes and circulation plates were of steel, with the outer ends of maintained constant circulation. the spokes riveted to a flange inside Of the two main approaches in con- the rim, and the inner ends riveted to structing the steam traction engine, arms on the hub. A flange, or collar, one was to make the boiler the central around the middle of the outside of structure and attach all other parts— the front wheels tended to prevent engine, drive gears, steering gear, main lateral slippage. Steering was done by truck—to it. The other was to provide guiding the front wheels with a chain, a separate framework on which to winding shaft (roller), worm gear, and mount the boiler and attach all the hand wheel. Sometimes power from parts. the engine helped in steering. To spare the engine from damage The rear traction, or drive, wheels from heavy shocks and jars on rough usually had steel tires, round or flat roads, heavy coil springs were placed spokes, and a cast-iron hub. Cleats of between the boiler and front and rear steel or iron were mounted diagonally axles. Springs in the steering gear on the outside of the rims to increase helped prevent breakage when the traction. On rims that were cast, the front wheels hit an obstruction. cleats were part of the cast. The early engine usually was mounted on the boiler, called top-mounted, and EARLY ATTEMPTS to develop gasoline the boiler was mounted on the truck. tractors were sparked by the need to Sometimes the engines in the locomo- reduce the size of the threshing crews. tive type were mounted under the Such crews included two men to boiler. operate the steam engine, two to haul One common method of mounting coal and water, two to operate the the boilers, known as side mounting, thresher, a waterboy, and several men was to attach stub axles of the drivers to haul bundles to the thresher and the to brackets placed at about the middle grain away by horses and wagons. 30 YEARBOOK OF AGRICULTURE 1960 Not the least of the problems was to English, and American engineers de- feed them. Days, maybe weeks, before veloped many and various ideas for the threshing crew was due at a farm, producing power. the farmer's wife started to plan and Finally Nicholas Otto, a German, prepare the gargantuan meals she was devised a practical power unit of the going to serve them—hams, a side of internal-combustion type. It had one beef, chickens, fried potatoes, gallons cylinder. Counting the movement of of milk, at least three kinds of pie, the piston in one direction as one stroke, maybe homemade ice cream. Her rep- his engine made four piston strokes per utation as a cook was at stake, she explosion in the same manner as the knew, and the feasts she fixed were four-cycle (''Otto cycle") engines used something to be proud of and marvel today in all American-made automo- at. Still in our language are terms that biles. Those in the cars have more recall her and them—"a meal fit for cylinders, but they arc four cycle. a threshing crew" and ''eat like a This development did not begin to bunch of threshers." assume importance until 1876, when Most of the first attempts to develop it reached a reasonably satisfactory liquid-fuel tractors consisted of mount- stage. The patents of the Otto cycle ing a stationary gasoline engine on engine, however, were so basic in a chassis patterned after that of the character that not until they expired steam traction engine. This combina- in 1890 did other companies start to tion became the self-propelled gas work on similar engines. engine. One hundred firms in the United Experimenters even built a gasoline States were making internal-combus- tractor that looked like a steam trac- tion engines by 1899. tion engine with the rather strange idea Anotherearly and important develop- that thereby they would not scare the ment was the compression-ignition en- horses so much. Also with horses in gine. It was the work of Rudolph Die- mind (why, we do not know), some put sel, a German scientist, who patented a whistle on the rig. his first engine in 1892. Before invent- ing the engine that bears his name, he BEFORE A TRACTOR could be fully had considerable experience with air realized, there had to be a promising compressors and with internal-com- internal-combustion engine. The early bustion engines with spark ignition. He experimenters used gunpowder, tur- used coal dust, a useless byproduct in pentine, and natural and artificial gas mining, which was blown into the cyl- for fuel. inder with compressed air. He found The discovery of petroleum fuel in out that it was not feasible to use coal quantity speeded the development of dust as a fuel. the gasoline engine. In 185g, at Titus- Before long Diesel came out with an ville, Pa., Edwin L. Drake drilled his oil-burning, compression-ignition en- first oil well and got the petroleum gine that proved successful. His idea product that paved the way for the was adopted quickly as a source of creation of a great industry. The in- power. In the diesel engine, the fuel is ternal-combustion engine made rapid injected after compression is practically strides when petroleum fuel was avail- completed, and is ignited by the heat able. of compression of the air supplied for About the first internal-combustion combustion. engine on record was the one credited to Abbe Hautefeuille, a French phys- PROBABLY THE FIRST gasoline tractor icist, who in 1678 conceived the idea of that was an operating success was the burning a small amount of gunpowder one built in 189Í2 by John Froelich. A in a chamber. While he continued ex- good businessman, he ran a grain ele- perimenting, other French, Dutch, vator, a well-drilling outfit, and a THE DEVELOPMENT OP THE TRACTOR 31 threshing outfit powered with a steam 1906, the Transit and the Ford in traction engine. He wanted to build a 1907, and the Russell, Olds, Joy- smaller tractor—one that would run McVicker, and the Geiser in 1909. The on gasoline. Ford tractor of 1907, an experimental He mounted a single-cylinder, ver- machine made by the Ford Motor Co. tical-type gasoline engine, made by the of Detroit, used parts of a Ford car and Van Duzen Gas and Gasoline Engine a binder. The front wheels and axle Co. of Cincinnati, on a Robinson run- and steering were from the car. The ning gear equipped with a traction ar- rear wheels were binder bullwheels. rangement of his own manufacture. The origin of the word "tractor" was It completed a 50-day threshing run originally credited to the Hart-Parr belted to a Case 40 x 58 thresher, Co. in 1906 to replace the longer ex- pulled the thresher over rough ground, pression "gasoline traction engine," and operated in temperatures of -— 3 ^ which W. H. Williams, the company's to 100° F. The Froelich was the fore- sales manager, who wrote the adver- runner of the John Deere tractors. tisements, considered too cumbersome. Some of the other tractors of this The word actually was coined pre- period were the Patterson, 1892; the viously and was used in 1890 in patent Hockett (Sterling), 1893; the Van No. 425,600, issued on a tractor in- Duzen, the Otto, and the Lambert, in vented by George H. Edwards of 1894; the Huber, 1898; and the Mor- Chicago. ton in 1899. The Patterson became the Although tractors powered with in- foundation for the Case line of trac- ternal-combustion engines had been tors, and Morton became the fore- manufactured for about 20 years, runner of the International Harvester people generally had no chance to line. compare field operations of steam and C. W. Hart and C. H. Parr built gasoline tractors until the first Winni- their first tractor model in 1902. Their peg trial in 1908, conducted under the second model a year later was con- auspices of the Winnipeg Industrial siderably improved. Their 30-60 ''Old Exhibition in Canada. In that and in Reliable" appeared in 1907; in 1909 tests in 1909-1912, representatives of came the Hart-Parr 15-30, a tricycle many countries witnessed the compe- type. Even their early models were de- tition of gasoline tractors plowing in signed for pulling (drawbar work) the same fields with steam tractors. rather than for belt work—^they made The first Winnipeg trials were main- their transmissions rugged to with- ly contents of hauling and plowing for stand the heavy strains of plowing. comparison of such factors as the Hart and Parr formed a company thousand foot-pounds hauled per pint that was to become a part of the Oliver of fuel and the pints of fuel used per Corp. They established in 1905 the acre. The trials became more compre- first business in the United States de- hensive with the years, until in 1912 voted exclusively to making tractors. the score sheet included an economy Other tractors were the Electric brake test, maximum brake test, plow- Wheel, 1904; the Dissinger, 1904; the ing test, and a rating on design and Eason-Wysong Auto-Tractor, 1905; construction. The contests showed, and the Ohio, 1905. even at that early stage, the possibili- The Ohio Manufacturing Co. later ties of the gasoline tractor. The interest bought the patent rights for the Mor- created by the trials encouraged ex- ton and in 1905 built a few tractors for perimenters and manufacturers to the International Harvester Co., which continue their pioneer efí^orts. in 1907 built its first tractor. Like the Most of the gasoline tractors before Ohio tractor, it was friction drive for 191 o had automatic intake valves, hit- both forward and reverse. and-miss governors, and make-and- Other models were the Waterous in break ignition systems. Electric current 32 YEARBOOK OF AGRICULTURE 1960 for ignition usually was supplied by early attempts to design a machine dry batteries for starting and low-volt- suitable for smaller farms. age, direct-current magneto or gen- The International Harvester Go. in- erator (auto sparker) for furnishing troduced a practical power takeoff for current thereafter. In a few, a low- its tractors in 1918. It permitted direct voltage oscillating magneto furnished transmission power from the engine to the spark for starting and running. such equipment as mowers, small com- The frames of the wheel tractors bines, and sprayers. That was an im- were built up of channel iron, to which portant development. Most tractor the engine and other parts were bolted. manufacturers soon had their tractors Most large drive gears were of cast so equipped, and they started to fit iron, exposed to the dust and dirt, and many of their field machines for power wore rapidly. The built-up drive- takeofif drive. wheels, often 6 feet and sometimes 8 Deere & Co. brought out the Water- feet in diameter, turned on a one-piece loo Boy in 1916 and a twin horizontal- "dead," or floating, axle. Selective- cylinder kerosene-burning engine and type transmission, where there were i8o-degree crankshaft, and so inau- any gears to select (many had only one gurated a basic engine design that is speed forward), was common, al- to be found in most of its current though friction drive and planetary- models. The machine performed well gear transmissions were not uncom- at the National Tractor Demonstra- mon. Clutches varied. tion in 1918 at Wichita, Kans. Makers of steam tractors and makers The Bear, produced by the Wallis of gasoline tractors competed strongly Tractor Co. in 1912, proved to be the during 1910-1920, when the number advance guard of the Massey-Harris of tractor manufacturing companies line. It had one front steering wheel, a increased from 15 to more than 160 directional vane, and two rear driving and existing companies began to pre- wheels. sent more than one model. The presi- The Wallis Cub appeared in 1913. dent of a gasoline tractor company It also was a three-wheeler, but it had said that when he first went into busi- a more compact design and intro- ness the manufacturers of steam trac- duced a revolutionary development— tors refused to load their machines on a frameless-type construction. The the same freight cars with gasoline one-piece, U-shaped crankcase and tractors. transmission housing of boiler-plate The International Harvest^: Go. in steel was the backbone of the machine. 191 o produced its 45-horsepower Mo- The industry liked it, and soon designs gul, which had a two-cylinder hori- by various manufacturers were intro- zontal opposed engine, with gear drive duced. forward and friction reverse; in 1911, the 45-horsepower Titan, with a two- THE FORD MOTOR GO., after consider- cylinder twin horizontal engine, with able experimentation, in 1917 started gear drive forward and reverse; in production of the Fordson. It also was 1912, the 15-30 single-cylinder Mogul; of unit-frame construction but of cast in 1914, the 10-20 Titan with a twin iron instead of boiler-plate steel. The horizontal-cylinder engine, and the tractor was light for its power and 8-16 Mogul with a one-cylinder hori- relatively low in price. This unit-frame zontal engine and planetary-gear drive type was practicable. Most manufac- forv/ard and reverse; and in 1915, the turers soon adopted the idea. 15-30 Titan, with four-cylinder hori- This Fordson development came zontal engine. The 8-16 International, at an opportune time—the year the with a four-cylinder vertical engine, United States became involved in the the first to bear the company's name, First World War. Boatloads of horses appeared in 1918. It was one of the were being shipped abroad. Labor was THE DEVELOPMENT OF THE TRACTOR 33 becoming scarce. Materiais were re- Co. and the Minneapolis Threshing stricted. Power became more vital than Machine Co. started producing trac- ever. The manufacture of more than tors in 1911. In 1914 the Moline Plow 34 thousand Fordsons in 1918 and 100 Co. started production of the Moline- thousand by 1925 (25 and 75 percent, Universal, which was one of the earli- respectively, of the tractors produced est practical approaches to a general- by all companies) helped greatly to purpose tractor. A later edition of the meet difficulties caused by the war. Moline-Universal, the Model D in After 1925, with returning normalcy 1917, probably was the first tractor to and the increasing interest in the gen- make use of a storage battery for igni- eral-purpose tractor, production of the tion, starting, and lighting. The three Fordson dropped, and its manufacture companies merged in 1929 into the was discontinued in this country in Minneapolis-Moline Power Implement 1928. Co., which later became the Minne- The J. I. Case Co., which had built apolis-Moline Co. its first machine in 1892, resumed building tractors in 1911, when the THE LARGE TRACTOR, seemingly the Case 30-60 appeared. It produced in predominant type in 1910-1920, could 1912 the Case 20-40, which performed not accomplish the many tasks neces- exceedingly well at the Winnipeg sary to mechanize the farm—it could Trials that year. Case built its first only plow, drive threshers, and pull tractor with a four-cylinder vertical large headers. Much thought had been engine in 1915. It had three wheels—a given to the problem. Manufacturers single front steering wheel, the right began experimenting with light trac- rear a driver, and the left rear an idler. tors suitable only for cultivating, and Case produced the 9-18 model in 1918 some eight or ten companies produced and in 1919 the 15-27, both of one- them. piece frame, or unit, construction. Light tractors did not fill the need, The AUis-Chalmers Co. built its first however, for two tractors thus were tractor in 1914. It had three wheels necessary on the farm, and that was and 10-18 horsepower. In 1916 AUis- beyond the farmer's needs and pocket- Chalmers introduced a cultivating trac- book. tor of 6-12 horsepower, which also A machine was needed that would could pull a plow. The company soon plow and thresh and with proper at- became an active contender in the tachments would also cultivate, sow, business. and perform other field operations—an A significant development in 1913 all-purpose tractor. was the introduction of the Bull tractor Experimentation continued mean- by the Bull Tractor Co. of Minneapolis. while on track-type tractors. Various It was powered by a small engine of 12 models appeared: The Bullock Creep- horsepower. It started a trend toward ing Grip ( 1910) by the Bullock Tractor smaller units, which practically all Co. of Chicago; the Yuba (1912) by manufacturers followed. Several hun- the Yuba Manufacturing Co., Marys- dred machines were sold in its first viile, Calif., with the tracks mounted year; within a year Bull ranked first on *'balls that rolled in a race"; an im- among all tractor manufacturers in the proved model (1912) by Holt; the number produced. Its relative position Killen-Strait (1914) by the Killen- declined from year to year, though, Strait Manufacturing Co., Applcton, and in 1918 it ceased production. This Wis., with two track drivers in the rear tractor had one drive wheel, making a and one front steering track; the Bates difi'erential unnecessary, and an idler Steel Mule C (1916) by the Bates Ma- wheel mounted on a crank axle on the chinery and Tractor Co., Joliet, 111., left side for leveling. with a single track in the rear for driv- The Minneapolis Steel & Machinery ing and two widely spaced front steer- 528981°—GO 4. 34 YEARBOOK OF AGRICULTURE 1960 ing wheels; the Trundaar (1916) by in 1910. The number of manufac- the Buckeye Manufacturing Co., An- turers reached a peak of i86 in 1921.) derson, Ind.; the Leader (1917) by the Many makes and types of tractors Dayton-Dowd Co.; the Bear (i918) by were on the market. Many turned out the Bear Tractor Co., N.Y.; the Cleve- to be impracticable, and often the land H (1918), later to be made by farmers were the scapegoats—many the Oliver Corp.; the Monarch (1918) fence corners harbored so-called trac- by the Monarch Tractor Co., Water- tors, abandoned as useless, often even town, Wis., later to merge with the before they were fully paid for. Allis-Chalmers Manufacturing Co.; The farm equipment industry and and the Best (1913) by the C. L. Best others began to work for a standard- Gas Traction Co., San Leandro, Calif., ized rating of tractors. Nebraska in which in 1925 combined with the Holt 1919 passed a bill that in effect re- Manufacturing Co. to form the Cater- quired that all makes and models of pillar Tractor Co. tractors to be sold in Nebraska pass It is of interest that during the First certain tests. World War the Holt Caterpillar tractor The Nebraska Tractor Law specifies: was important as an artillery and sup- ". . . Each and every tractor pre- ply tractor and also was the inspira- sented for testing, shall be a stock tion of Gen. E. D. Swinton, a Briton, model and shall not be equipped with who invented the tank, which worked any special appliance or apparatus not havoc among enemy troops and in- regularly supplied to the trade. . . . stallations. This tank consisted of two ''Such tests shall consist of endurance, large motor-driven tracks, one on each official rating of horsepower for con- side, between which was mounted an tinuous load, and consumption of fuel armor-plated housing, which protected per hour or per acre of farm operations. the crew, turret, and guns. The results of such tests shall be open at all times to public inspection. ..." TRACTORS in 1920, considered col- The tests began in 1920. With modi- lectively, embodied fundamental prin- fications, they have continued since, ciples of engineering and design that except during the war. The test codes exist, perhaps in more refined form, in used in Nebraska were developed by today's tractors. engineers in the University of Ne- The one-piece cast-iron frame, re- braska, the Society of Automotive placeable wearing parts, force-feed Engineers, and the American Society and pressure-gun lubrication, enclosed of Agricultural Engineers. transmission, carburetor manifolding, The tests, which have been used all air cleaner, electric lighting and start- over this country and in many other ing, high-tension magneto ignition with countries, have provided standards for impulse starter, enclosed cooling sys- rating tractors, have speeded up im- tem, antifriction bearings, alloy and provements on many of them, and heat-treated steels, and the power take- have eliminated many that were in- off had all been introduced. Some ferior in design and performance. experiments had been made with rub- ber tires. The light-weight, low-price A DROP IN production of tractors oc- tractor had been designed and widely curred during the postwar depression. accepted. Several fairly successful Manufacturers, instead of just marking motor cultivator-type units were on time, took this chance to incorporate the market. new features. In the keen competition The advantages of the tractor as a that followed, the tractor was im- farm power unit had been well estab- proved steadily, although a number of lished. More than 160 companies pro- companies had to discontinue business. duced 200 thousand units. (Fifteen The depression brought a big drop companies made 4 thousand tractors in prices: Fordson tractors sold for 395 THE DEVELOPMENT OF THE TRACTOR 35 dollars in 1932—a 35-perccnt drop It produced in 1928 its first general- from the price in 1921. The Moline purpose tractor, the 10-20, with tractor, which sold for 1,325 dollars arched front axle and high-clearance in 1920, was reduced to 650 dollars. rear axle and three-row planting and One result was that many farmers who cultivating equipment. Deere in 1929 otherwise would not have been able put on the market its GP tricycle to take advantage of power farming tractor, equipped with a mechanical got good equipment. power lift for lifting integrally mounted Attention had to be given to air implements. It was the first tractor so cleaners used on the engines. Dust equipped. that enters the engine from the intake Several companies developed refine- can damage the working parts— ments: The Oliver tricycle row-crop particularly the pistons, rings, and tractor, with tiptoe wheels; the Mas- cylinders. sey-Harris F WD (four-wheel drive); Many makes and types of air clean- the Allis-Chalmcrs all-crop, and the ers appeared. They differed in ability Case. to remove dust, the degree to which Mechanical power farming slowed their use imposed vacuum or choking down in 1931, but even in that depres- on the carburetor intake, and their sion year several more companies effect on the maximum power to be offered row-crop machines, among obtained from the engine. them Huber, Caterpillar (a high- To determine the dust separation clearance, track-type machine), and efhciency, vacuum imposition, and ef- Sears, Roebuck and Co. fect on power, tests were made at the Another advance in 1931 was Cater- University of California at Davis. The pillar's Diesel 65, the first diesel-pow- dust-separating efficiency of the 26 ered tractor in the United States to be cleaners tested in 1922 varied between put on the market. It was an important 42.7 percent and 99.8 percent. Fifteen step, and several companies, after cleaners had more than 95 percent experiments, put out diesel-powered efficiency. tractors in 1934. Most of the tractor companies now have diesel-powered THE INTERNATIONAL HARVESTER GO. tractors in their lines. in 1924 produced the Farmall, prob- ably the first successful attempt to build THE WHEEL TRACTOR was rough to a real all-purpose tractor. It could ride. A farmer, after a day on one, was plow (two-plow size), cultivate four well shaken up; he had had it. rows, and, as attachments were devel- Relief came in pneumatic tires, which oped, do other jobs. It probably did made riding easier and reduced vibra- more than any other to broaden the tion. They also meant less wear on usefulness of the tractor and thus to tractor parts, permitted higher speeds further mechanization on the farm. in the fields and on roads, and reduced The Farmall had high rear-axle rolling resistance—all in all, more ef- clearance; small, closely spaced front ficient operation. wheels to run between rows for cultiva- Citrus growers in Florida, having tion; and a hitch for attaching a cul- noted that the tractors damaged the tivator or other equipment. Industry roots of the trees, in 1928 or so started accepted it readily. Soon similar ma- putting discarded casings (without chines appeared, designated as Gen- inner tubes) on steel wheels. That eral-Purpose, Universal, AU-Around, seemed to help. Row-Crop, Ro-Trac, Do-AU, and so Tiremakers watched this develop- on. ment, and in 1931 the B. F. Goodrich Deere & Co. in 1923 offered the Co. developed a zero-pressure tire. It rugged Model D tractor, which be- consisted of a rubber arch built on came one of the company's standbys. a perforated steel base for attachment 36 YEARBOOK OF AGRICULTURE 1960 CHANGING SOURCES OF FARM POWER Tractors TRACTORS, HORSES, AND MULES {Millions) 4.8

1910 1920 1930 1940 1950 1960 to standard steel tire drive wheels. The Among the tools developed for use tire was not under air pressure and with the motor lift were two- and four- so was not subject to puncture. row corn and cotton cultivators, two- A few companies experimented with row potato cultivators, ten-row truck pneumatic rubber tires. The Firestone crop seeders and cultivators, six-row Tire and Rubber Co. fitted an Allis- beet planters and cultivators, four- Ghalmers tractor with pneumatic tires. row corn and cotton planters, three- Their advantages were evident, and row middlebusters, two-row listers, rubber tires soon were accepted. Four- and 7-foot mower attachments. teen percent of the wheel tractors were mounted on rubber by 1935; by 1940, ALLIS-CHALMERS in 1938 made a one- 85 percent; and by 1950, nearly 100 plow, general-purpose tractor. Model percent. B, that weighed less than 2 thousand The advantage of using water in pounds. It sold for 495 dollars at the tires to add weight for better traction factory—the first small farm tractor, became clear. The water could replace mounted on rubber, to sell for less than the iron weights on the wheels, which 500 dollars. often caused trouble, especially under Another development that improved high road speeds. An antifreezing solu- the usefulness of tractors was the three- tion had to be provided when tractors point hydraulic hitch developed by were used during freezing weather. Harry Ferguson in Ireland and brought Commercial calcium chloride added to this country in 1939 after many to the water made an economical and tests. It was a revolution in implement satisfactory solution. control. It strongly influenced the Case tractors were equipped in 1935 whole trend of design of tractors and with a motor lift for lifting or lowering equipment. implements. Pressure on a trip button After a demonstration before Henry would cause the implement to be low- Ford, a working agreement was es- ered. Tripping the button again raised tablished between Mr. Ford and Mr. the implement. The lift was driven by Ferguson for mass production of a engine power through an enclosed tractor incorporating the Ferguson worm and gear operated by a starter system. button near the driver's heel. Hydraulic systems have become THE DEVELOPMENT OF THE TRACTOR 37 Standard or optional equipment on It was a continuous-running power practically all models of tractors. The takeoff (direct engine-driven power hydraulic system includes an oil recep- takeoff), which continued to operate tacle, pump, valves, and a control even when the clutch was released. lever within reach of the driver, con- Heretofore, machinery operated by nected by means of high-pressure hose the regular power takeoff, such as to a power cylinder (a piston within a sprayers, drawn cornpickers, and com- cylinder), which can be located on any bines, would stop when the clutch part of the tractor or trailed imple- was released. The continuous-running ment where a control is desired. The power takeofi* allows one to stop the hydraulic systems can control mount- travel of the tractor without stopping ed and drawn implements, govern the the power takeofi*. The same can be depth of ullage implements, operate done with the independent power take- loaders, and activate power steering. off', which was developed later. Sometimes they can be used to in- AH major manufacturers of farm crease the traction of the rear wheels tractors now furnish one or more by transferring a part of the weight of models of their tractors with either the implement to the rear wheels of the continuous-running or independent tractor. power takeofi". Another use of hydraulic control THE MINNE APOLIS-MOLINE GO. in came in 1947, when Allis-Chalmers 1941 introduced the first standard offered its Model WD tractor, fitted tractor fitted at the factory for burning with a device for power adjusting the another type of fuel for- tractors—I^P rear wheel tread. It permitted the op- (liquefied petroleum) gas. Some com- erator to use the engine power for panies previously had offered kits for changing the spacing of the rear converting the tractors in the field wheels while sitting on the tractor from gasoline or kerosene to LP gas. seat. He was spared the strenuous and This LP gas, a light end of the crude time-costly job of making tread altera- oil, had been largely a waste product tions by the hand-and-jack method. until means had been developed to All but one of the major American liquefy it by compression. When the manufacturers of tractors ofi'ered mod- cost of the two fuels is similar per unit els with power-adjusted rear wheel of work, LP gas has advantages in that tread as standard or optional equip- it burns cleaner and causes less oil ment in 1959. dilution. Gasoline is usually more read- ily available, and the engine is easier to THE INTERNATIONAL HARVESTER GO. start with it on cold days. in 1954 announced a new source of All major manufacturers of wheel farm electrical power, the Electrall, tractors produced one or more LP gas- that can be mounted on its tractors. burning models in i960. It is an electric generator driven by Experimental work on tractors was the tractor engine. Besides supplying again curtailed during the Second electric power for tractor-drawn ma- World War. Few new models ap- chinery, such, as hay balers, and for peared. Many tractor plants were farming operations where the utility converted to make war materials. companies' wires did not reach, it can Tractor production increased rapidly also serve as a standby unit in case of after the war; 793,497 tractors were failure of electric service. made for farm use in 1951. It is provided with outlets that sup- A marked improvement in the ex- ply three types of current: 220-volt5 tremely important power takeoff, three-phase 6o-cycle alternating cur- which we mentioned, was ofí'ered by rent, mainly for driving electric mo- the Cockshutt Plow Co., Brantford, tors; i20-volt, single-phase current to Ontario, in 1947. attach to house wiring circuits; and 38 YEARBOOK OF AGRICULTURE 1960 TRACTORS MANUFACTURED IN THP] UNITED STATES, 1909-1958 (Exclusive of steam and garden) for agricultural, industrial, and military use 7'housand iinils 600

500

400

300

200

1910 1915 1920 1925 1930 1935 1940 1945 1950 1955 1960

220-volt single-phase current for such nounced by Ford in 1959. The trans- heavy requirements as the electric mission is a lo-speed, fully selective range. power shift unit. It is controlled by one Later a trailing model of the Elec- small hand lever. There is no clutch trall was announced, mounted on a pedal, and yet shifting can be made two-wheeled trailer and driven from with the tractor in motion with almost the power takeoff of the tractor. no interruption.

AMONG THE MAJOR improvements in WE FEEL we should mention self- the transmission systems since 1954 are propelled machines although they are those that permit "on-the-go" shifts, not tractors—they take the place of a greater range of travel speeds, and tractors where they are used. Their automatic adjustment of speed to draft propelling power unit is an integral requirements. part of the implement. International Harvester put a new The self-propelled combine—har- torque amplifier on the Farmall Super vester-thresher—appeared in commer- M-TA. A lever near the driver allows cial production in 1944. About one- the operator instantly to reduce the fifth of the million combines on farms travel speed 33 percent when the going in the United States were of this type gets difficult and at the same time in- in 1958. crease the drawbar pull in any selected The Massey-Harris Co. received spe- gear without stopping, or declutching, cial authority in 1944 from Govern- or shifting and without touching the ment war agencies to make and dis- governor control or throttle setting. tribute 500 self-propelled combines to Another example of a new power experienced operators. This Harvest transmission is the one announced in Brigade began operations early in May 1958 by the J. I. Case Co. A direct- in Texas and California and worked drive clutch, a torque converter, and north. By the end of the season they a master clutch give the tractor oper- had harvested more than a million ator the option of the hydraulic torque acres, or an average of more than 2 converter or mechanical direct drive. thousand acres for each combine. Still another example of new trans- Self-propelled units are easier to mission is the ''Select-O-Speed" an- operate and have faster working speeds THE DEVELOPMENT OF THE TRACTOR 39 than trailed machines. They lose less disks are mounted in front of the front time in opening fields and moving wheels of the row-crop tractor and between jobs. Because they cost more, stay in the lister furrow. The operator single-purpose self-propelled machines watches his cotton boxes while going must have a relatively larger annual down the row and gets back on the use to be comparable to the trailed tractor seat to turn it around at the units in cost. end of the row." Self-propelled machines, sprayers, Tractor guides of the furrow type cornpickers, hay balers, windrowers, have been commercially available and forage harvesters also were made from manufacturers of tractor acces- in i960. sories for many years. Five were listed Another machine is the self-pro- in a 1959 directory of farm machinery pelled chassis, on which various har- manufacturers. vesting units can be mounted inter- The International Harvester Co. in changeably. 1931 equipped one of their Farmall 30 The Minneapolis-Moline Co. in tractors so that it could be controlled 1945 presented details for the Uni- by radio. The tractor was demon- Farmor system, which provided a strated to thousands of people at the chassis or Uni-Tractor equipped with Century of Progress exposition in a power unit upon which several types Chicago in 1933. of machines could be mounted. The A member of the staff of the Depart- company had four separate and inter- ment of Agricultural Engineering in changeable harvesting machines ready the University of Nebraska in 1958 in 1954 for use with the Uni-Tractor: equipped a farm tractor with radio A combine, cornpicker, cornpicker- controls, by means of which the trac- sheller, and forage harvester. Several tor could be started, stopped, and other manufacturers started to make steered and its gears shifted. The units that could be used with the Uni- operator was some distance away. Tractor, including forage harvesters, Another development for guiding a sugar beet harvester, and an appli- tractors is an automatic pilot. It is cator of anhydrous ammonia. actuated by lightweight feelers that can sense the position of the crop row ATTACHMENTS of several types have to be cultivated, the windrow to be been developed to make the operation baled, or the distance to any other row of the tractor more automatic. to be followed. This pilot was not One kind of tractor guide uses the intended to replace the operator but last plow furrow of the previous round to be an aid to make his work better as a guide to steer the tractor. The and easier. guides are most successful in large, Two research engineers who had level fields. worked independently announced in A Department of Agriculture en- 1958 that they had developed an auto- gineer in the Texas High Plains re- matic tractor pilot—L. A. Liljcdahl, ported: "Some farmers in the Ama- of the Department of Agriculture, and rillo and Lubbock area use guides for C. B. Richey, of the Ford Motor Co. flat breaking and planting. For flat The Ford Motor Co. demonstrated breaking, the operator makes the first a self-steering tractor at its testing few rounds driving the tractor. Then center at Birmingham, Mich., in 1958. he plows 24 hours a day, and comes The sensing antenna for the steering back to the field only to refuel. This is controls is between the front wheels accomplished with disks mounted of the tractor and picks up its signals ahead of the front wheels and running from a small wire buried under the in the furrow. If the guide or tractor test track. A second antenna receives gets out of the furrow, the ignition is start and stop signals over the same automatically cut off. For planting, the wire to control the clutch and brake. 40 YEARBOOK OF AGRICULTURE 1960 Engineers of the University of Read- Valves have been improved by the ing, England, in 1959 demonstrated use of better alloys, and their life has a tractor controlled by a wire laid been lengthened by the use of rotators along the ground or just under the and valve seat inserts. surface. Controls were available for Valve guides and spark plugs have steering, starting and stopping, operat- been improved. ing the clutch, power takeoff, horn, Bearings arc precision manufactured and other mechanisms. to carry greater loads with less sus- These and similar controls, which ceptibility to fatigue and greater re- depend on a wire for guidance, may sistance to corrosion. be useful on a test track or for per- Better oils and methods of lubrica- forming certain operations that are tion have been provided, as have im- repeated frequently in the barnyard proved ignition and cooling systems. or other fixed course. We question Such improvements give the farmer their value for work in the fields. more power from his tractor with little or no increase in cost or weight. THE EFFICIENCY of tractors has been The electric starter, rubber tires, improved greatly over the years. One motor lift, hydraulic controls, and measure of that is the amount of fuel easily attached hitches are among the used. pieces of equipment that have made Tests at the University of Nebraska operation easier. showed that in 1920 the average wheel- Many improvements contribute to type tractor tested delivered 5 draw- the operator's comfort. Deere & Co. bar horsepower-hours per gallon of came out in 1946 with a Powr-Trol gasoline or distillate. The average unit to be attached to trailing imple- wheel tractor tested in 1959 delivered ments so that they could be lifted and 10 horsepower-hours to the gallon. lowered by hydraulic power from the The average wheel-type tractor with tractor. Hydraulic remote controls diesel engine delivered 10 drawbar were common enough by 1949 so that horsepower-hours per gallon of fuel standards on them were adopted by in 1935 and 13.3 horsepower-hours per the American Society of Agricultural gallon in 1959. Engineers and the Society of Auto- A reason for the greater efficiency motive Engineers. has been the use of higher compression Power steering in automobiles in- ratios in many of the gasoline-burning spired power steering in tractors. Allis- engines and the increased use of diesel Chalmers put power steering attach- engines. (The compression ratio is the ments on the WD-45 (wheel type) relation of the volume within the cyl- tractor in 1956. All major American inder when the piston is at its bottom manufacturers ofí"ered at least one dead center to the volume w^hen at model with power steering as standard the top.) or optional equipment in i960. The compression ratios of spark- Seats on tractors used to be simple ignition engines in 1941 varied from things of steel which soon became quite about 4 to 6; in 1959 the compression uncomfortable to the driver. Now they ratios of spark-ignition engines varied are of foam rubber or are equipped from about 4 to 8.5. Compression ra- with springs, some of which are ad- tios of current diesel tractor engines justable to the operator's weight. Some vary from about 15.5 to about 22. tractors are equipped with umbrellas, (American automobile engines in 1960 windshields, air-conditioned cabs, and had compression ratios from about 8 radios. They are a matter not only of to 10.5.) comfort, although that is important when days are from sunup to sundown, MANY OTHER IMPROVEMENTS have the thermometer stays at 100°, and been made in tractors. clouds of dust fill eyes, nose, and mouth. THE DEVELOPMENT OF THE TRACTOR 41 They increase eíFiciency and safety and it highly desirable to adopt certain are a matter of common sense, for a standards to provide for the inter- valuable crop, expensive machinery, changcability of various brands of im- and a man's life may be involved. plements between tractors. One example: It w^ould not be hard SAFETY is more important than com- to imagine the confusion that would fort. In a great number of farm acci- be created if the tractor power takeoffs dents, tractors have been a factor. The were not uniform in speed, location, National Safety Council, professional and drive shaft. The adoption of these engineering societies, manufacturers, standards in manufacture is voluntary and individuals have worked constantly on the manufacturers' part, but they for greater safety. cooperate with the professional socie- An important step was the adoption ties and other organizations that strive of standards for the location of the to achieve uniformity of many of the tractor hitch to help prevent the rear- components of their units. Hydraulic ing of the tractor when under load. control, power takeoff, lighting, and Design standards have been adopted wheels are examples of components also for the power takeoff and for safety covered by standards and recommen- lighting for combinations of farm trac- dations sponsored by joint action of tors and implements. The improve- the American Society of Agricultural ments in hitches and the wide adoption Engineers and the Society of Automo- of hydraulic power also have done tive Engineers. much toward making the tractor safer To develop some of the recommen- to operate. dations for standardization is not al- Nevertheless, every farmer should ways a simple task. One, for example, pay more attention to safety. The trac- recommended preferred drive wheel tor replaces the horse, but the use of tire and rim sizes for general-purpose some horsesense would help prevent farm tractors. The recommendation accidents. Only a fool works in front was developed chiefly by four groups, of the cutterbar of a mow^er, binder, the American Society of Agricultural or comVjine when the tractor engine is Engineers, the Society of Automotive running, drives too close to a ditch, or Engineers, the Farm Equipment Insti- hitches a load to the rear axle and tute, and the Tire and Rim Associa- jumps into it with the full power of the tion. Besides adopting certain stand- tractor. The load should be hitched to ards that pertain to their own industry, the drawbar, and the clutch should be tractor manufacturers also adopt some eased in. of the standards developed for auto- The manufacturers put protective mobile and other manufacturers so guards on machines for a purpose— that there is general uniformity in cer- they should be kept there. tain components, such as pistons, anti- Professional engineering societies and friction bearings, oil filters, spark plugs, industry groups have contributed great- bolts, and screws. ly to the development of the tractor. Among them are the American Society THE USUAL channel of distribution of Agricultural Engineers ; the Society of farm tractors and repair parts of Automotive Engineers; the Farm involves manufacturer, branch, dealer, Equipment Institute, which has a mem- and farmer. bership of more than 100 manufactur- The manufacturer owns the branch. ers of tractors, bearings, pistons, steel, It is in an important regional center aluminum, and tires; and the Tire and and carries a large stock of the equip- Rim Association, Inc., whose members ment and repair parts that may be are makers of tires, rims, wheels, and needed in. the territory. related parts. The local dealer, selected or ap- Manufacturers of tractors have found proved by the manufacturer, usually 42 YEARBOOK OF AGRICULTURE 1960 sells and services the full line of farm firms were merged to form it. The machinery of the manufacturer for company maintains a dozen or more which there is a demand in his com- factories in this country and several in munity. He is an important link in Canada and other countries. Tractors the distribution of tractors and other are manufactured at plants in Chicago, farm machines. He must be a good Louisville, and Rock Island. merchant and he must also know the Deere & Co., Moline, 111., the larg- functions of each implement he sells est manufacturer of steel plows and and the size and type of equipment our second largest manufacturer of required. He has to be able to furnish agricultural machinery, bought the good service to keep them running. Waterloo Gasoline Engine Co. in His repair shop is much more than 1918 and began to build tractors. The the old type of blacksmith shop. It is name of the gasoline engine company equipped to service and repair gasoline was changed to John Deere Tractor and diesel engines, combines, and Co. in 1926 and later to Deere & Co. others of the more complicated, preci- Back of this tractor company was an sion-built implements that have be- organization originally established by come commonplace in farm operation. John Deere in 1837. Prompt service is so important in The J. I. Case Co., Racine, Wis., connection with tractors and other the third largest, was incorporated in important farm machinery that many 1880 as the J. I. Case Threshing successful dealers have service shops Machine Co. The business was origi- at their retail stores and provide nally established by Jerome I. Case in specially equipped trucks whose 1842. The J. I. Case Threshing drivers can make repairs and adjust- Machine Co. was actively engaged in ments in the field In emergency, the building of steam tractors in the repair parts are delivered by air from 1890's and was among the first to the factory or branch. turn to the gasoline tractor. The All of the large manufacturers of plant at Racine was enlarged in 1912 tractors have grown to their present to permit the production of tractors. stature by developing new and im- Engines were bought from the Davis proved types of tractors and other Motor Co., Milwaukee. In 1913 they farm equipment and by acquiring started building their own engines. other companies engaged in the In 1919 it merged with the Grand manufacture of items which they Detour Plow Co. It purchased the wished to add to their lines. Expansion implement plant of the Emerson- enabled them to increase their volume Brantingham Corp. at Rockford, 111., and provide complete lines to offer to in 1928, when the J. I. Case Plow distributors and dealers. Co. of Racine was taken over by the Massey-Harris Co. of Toronto. The ONE i960 DIRECTORY of American J. I. Case Plow Co. sold the rights to manufacturers of farm machinery use of the name *'Case" and "J. I. listed 13 manufacturers of crawler Case" to the J. I. Case Threshing tractors and 35 builders of wheel-type Machine Co. of Racine. Thus an end tractors. Nine full-line companies came to years of confusion caused to made a large percentage of the these two concerns that had the same machines. We give a few details about name but were not connected with each of them. each other. The International Harvester Co., The Massey-Harris Co., an amalga- Chicago, the largest manufacturer of mation in 1891 of the Massey and agricultural machinery in the United Harris companies, Canadian manufac- States in i960, was incorporated turers of agricultural machinery and originally in 1902 and began produc- tractors, extended its holdings in this ing tractors in 1906. Several large country through the purchase of the THE DEVELOPMENT OF THE TRACTOR 43 J. I. Case Plow Co. at Racine in 1928. manufacture of threshing machines The J. I. Case Plow Co., incorporated and tractors. The principal products in 1919, was a consolidation of the of the other two companies included J. I. Case Plow Works Co. and the tillage implements, which, combined Wallis Tractor Co., both of Racine. with the tractor and threshing ma- The plow company, established in chine companies, gave another full- 1876, engaged primarily in the manu- line agricultural implement company. facture of plows and tillage equipment. The Allis-Chalmcrs Manufacturing The Wallis Tractor Co. was organized Co. was incorporated in 1913. Its ex- in 1912 to manufacture farm tractors. pansion through the acquisition of Harry Ferguson, Inc., merged with eight manufacturing concerns widened the Massey-Harris Co. in 1953, ^^^ ^^^ its scope to embrace a diversified line resulting company became Massey- of power machinery. It began to man- Harris-Ferguson, Inc. "Harris" was ufacture farm tractors shortly after the dropped from the name in 1958, and beginning of the First World War. In the firm became Massey-Ferguson, 1928 it took over the Monarch Tractor Inc., with United States headquarters Co. (incorporated in 1918) and has in Racine. since manufactured tracklaying trac- The Oliver Farm Equipment Co., tors under the name Allis-Chalmers. incorporated in 1929, acquired the The Advance-Rumely Co., makers of business and property of six manufac- threshing machines and farm tractors, turers to become a full-line agricultur- was acquired in 1931. al implernent company. Chief among The Caterpillar Tractor Co., Peoria, these were the Oliver Chilled Plow 111., was formed by a merger of the Works of South Bend, Ind., the Nich- C. L. Best Tractor Co. of San Leandro, ols and Shepard Co. of Battle Creek, Calif., and* the Holt Manufacturing Mich., the Hart-Parr Co. of Charles Co., which had plants at Stockton and City, Iowa, and the American Seeding Peoria. The latter firm was the origi- Machine Co. of Springfield, Ohio. nator and holder of the Caterpillar When this consolidation was effected, trademark. The Best Co. was organized efiforts were concentrated on the well- in 1910 and the Holt Co. in 1892, a known Hart-Parr tractor, and the successor to earlier Holt firms dating Nichols and Shepard factory was con- from 1869. Benjamin Holt built the verted into one building harvesting first practical crawler tractor in 1904 and threshing machines. The tractors at Stockton. The Holt Manufacturing were produced under the name of Co. purchased the interests of Daniel Oliver Hart-Parr. The Cleveland Trac- Best in 1908, and the latter retired tor Co., which had been making a from business. C. L. Best, a son of tracklaying tractor under the name of Daniel Best, formed his company in "Cletrac," in 1944 combined with the 191 o and in 1913 started producing Oliver Farm Equipment Co. to form tracklayers in his father's old plant at the Oliver Corp., and all of the equip- San Leandro. Stifi" competition ensued ment and tractors are produced under between the two interests until the the name of Oliver. merger. In 1928 the Caterpillar Trac- Formation of the Minneapolis-Mo- tor Co. acquired the Russell Grader line Power Implement Co., incorpo- Manufacturing Co. of Minneapolis, rated in 1929, was the result of a merger a manufacturer of roadbuilding ma- of the Minneapolis Steel and Machin- chines for more than 20 years. The ery Co., the Minneapolis Threshing products of the Caterpillar Tractor Co., the Moline Implement Co. The Co. then included tracklaying tractors, Minneapolis Steel and Machinery Co., combined harvesters, stationary en- organized in 1902, had been building gines, and a varied line of roadbuilding Twin City tractors since 1908, and at equipment. the time of merger was engaged in the The Ford Motor Co., Tractor 44 YEARBOOK OF AGRICULTURE 1960 and Implement Division, Birmingham, tractors—those to which cultivators, Mich., was one of the major producers planters, and other field equipment of wheel-type farm tractors in i960. can be attached readily. These models The Ford Motor Go. produced its first are designated in various ways by the tractor for the trade in 1917 under the manufacturers with such names as name Fordson. The name Ford could General Purpose, Farmall, and Uni- not then be used because it had al- versal. All-purpose tractors usually ready been given to a tractor manu- have three wheels, the front wheels of factured by a group that included a the others are adjustable as to tread. young man by the name of Ford. The Other models are available that have production of Fordson tractors in- higher crop clearance than usual and creased rapidly to a yearly peak in are sometimes listed under such desig- 1925. Thereafter production declined, nations as Hi-Grop. and the production of Fordsons in the United States ceased in 1928. SMALL FOUR-WHEEL tractors of the The Ford Motor Go. again started riding type usually are of less than one the mass production of tractors in 12-inch plow capacity. Many have 1939. Henry Ford made a working appeared on the market since the war, agreement with Harry Ferguson of Ire- and are popular with part-time farmers land, whereby Ford tractors were and others who have occasional need made which used the Ferguson system for a small tractor. Most of them have of a combined linkage and hydraulic a single-cylinder, air-cooled engine. control. The oral agreement between Power is usually transmitted from Mr. Ford and Mr. Ferguson was ter- the engine to the drive wheels by minated late in 1946. Thereafter Ford combinations of belt, chain, and gears, continued to manufacture tractors, although some have gear and worm making use of the three-point suspen- transmission. Many attachments are sion and hydraulic system. Harry available—plows, rotary tillers, har- Ferguson, Inc., also continued to man- rows, seeders, cultivators, sprayers, ufacture tractors w^ith a three-point sickle bars, rotary mowers, and snow- suspension and hydraulic system, mak- plows. ing use of engines from another manu- A variety of garden tractors and facturer. motor tillers also are available. They are of the walking type. They usually NEVER BEFORE has such a wide selec- have one or two wheels, but motor tion of sizes and types of tractors been tillers may have no wheels that touch available to the American farmer as in the ground. i960. Many farmers use garden tractors Among the wheel tractors are sizes for odd jobs for which larger tractors that pull a 12-inch plow and sizes that are too cumbersome and uneconomi- can pull eight 16-inch plows. Speeds of cal. Commercial vegetable growers only I mile an hour are available for also use garden tractors, but most are special jobs. bought by suburban homeowners. Most of the wheel tractors made in Nearly 40 thousand garden trac- this country use gasoline or distillate tors of the walking type were shipped as fuel, but each major manufacturer by American manufacturers in 1958. makes at least one model with a diesel Nearly 3 thousand had 2 horsepower engine and at least one model that or less, and more than 37 thousand had burns liquid petroleum. Nearly all of more than 2 horsepower. Of the 174 the track-type tractors use diesel en- thousand motor tillers shipped by the gines, but one manufacturer, the manufacturers in 1958, more than 152 Oliver Gorp., makes three models in thousand had more than 2 horsepower. the smaller sizes that burn gasoline. All of these garden tractors have Every major line includes all-purpose a single-cylinder, air-cooled engine, USING WHEELS TO MOVE FARM LOADS 45 which usually is started by a rope. Another possibility is a tractor with Most of those with an engine of up to hydraulic drive, which would be driven 2 or 3 horsepower do not have a clutch by two hydraulic motors, one in each for releasing the engine; instead, the drive wheel. The National Institute of engine is released from the drive wheels Agricultural Engineering in England by loosening the belt, either by means has developed an experimental model of an idler pulley or by tilting the en- of such a tractor. gine. Many attachments are available Perhaps the self-propelled chassis, for garden tractors—rotary tiller, har- with its own power unit, will become row, cultivator, seeder, mower, hay- more competitive with the conven- rake, cart, grader, fertilizer spreader, tional tractors of today. and snowplow. Electric tractors are mentioned some- Ordinarily it would be advisable to times. Storage batteries for power have select a make that is available locally. not been satisfactory, nor has electric- Then one could see and maybe operate ity from powerlines through cables. Fu- the machine before purchasing it. A ture development of an electric tractor I- to 2-horsepower engine will be large will probably depend on efficient trans- enough for light work, such as culti- mission of current without wires or the vation, but for plowing with a con- development of an efficient long-life ventional plow and extensive land battery much superior to those now preparation, a tractor with an engine available. of at least 3 to 4 horsepower will be Tractors of the future will be easier required. to use. More of them will have power steering, scientifically designed seating, As TO THE FUTURE, we expcct more and an automatic pilot to guide the widespread adoption of many of the tractor along the crop or other row to improvements now limited to partic- be followed. ular models. The trend in automobiles leads us to expect the development of fuels and engines that will use higher octane gasoline. There may'be radical changes in en- Using Wheels To gine design. Ford, for example, began work in 1954 on a free-piston engine that uses heated gases to drive a tur- Move Farm Loads bine and does not require many of the parts of a conventional engine. It shows Jordan H. Levin promise of fuel economy, and it is adaptable to a wide range of fuels. Nuclear power is an intriguing pos- sibility. A small unit suitable for power- WHEELS WE TEND to take for granted, ing tractors may be in the offing using as we do some other things that are the principles in use in large installa- common, useful, and old. tions. With nuclear power, it may be The story of wheels, though, is necessary to refuel only once a year. almost the story of civilization and Also possible is a reversible tractor, surely the story of agriculture. on which the seat and controls can be The importance of wheels is that a easily and quickly reversed. Reversing man can use them to multiply the a tractor and the attached equipment work of his arms, legs, back, and even would save turning at the row ends and his brain. give a more unrestricted view for culti- Wheels move materials, animals, and vation. The operator would have cer- people slowly or fast and up and down tain implements in full view. from where they are to where they