How Was The American Tractor Developed And What Exactly Did This Invention Do For USA Agriculture?

The innovation of the farm tractor helped farmers in the United States to become one of the world's top agricultural producers. Millions of people were fed because the tractor facilitated farmers to farm many acres of land.

At the beginning of the 20th Century the United States farmers were raising primarily wheat, corn and cotton on the land and raising livestock that allowed them to supply dairy products. There had been two primary options for farm power, steam boilers and also draft animals. The steam boilers were used on threshing machines while the draft animals were used in the fields to pull plows, harrows, mowers, reapers as well as other types of farm machinery. In 1910 around 24 million horses and mules were living on American farms. Also, these animals were being used for transporting people, crops and goods. Unfortunately, these animals ate great quantities of food, feeding on around 20 percent of what the farmer grew.

In 1902 the very first gas powered traction engines known as tractors were sold. These machines weighed around 25,000 pounds and had enormous steel wheels or tracks. These were extremely expensive and most often farmers couldn't pay for them. Companies did reduce the size of tractors to 2,000 to 6,000 pounds and the costs to less than $1,000. These machines were used to pull machinery such as plows, harrows, cultivators, etc.

Henry Ford produced a small affordable tractor just before World War I known as the Fordson. It sold well especially during the war when there was a shortage of horses. But, as farm prices collapsed in 1920, Ford lowered the price of the tractor from $625 to $395. Two businesses competed for the farm marketplace throughout most of the 1920's, Ford and International Harvester. Later, Ford had to use the tractor assembly lines for the Model-A and the company left behind the tractor business completely in 1928.

In 1925 International Harvester had brought out a general purpose tractor known as the Farmall. As this piece of equipment was small, it worked well for plowing, cultivating and cutting. Similar tractors were now being made by quite a few manufacturers. Three modifications were made to the tractors that increased their performance, the power lift which permitted an implement to become lifted during field turns, rubber tires which did less damage to the fields and diesel engines that allowed low priced diesel fuel. The peak manufacturing of tractors was in 1951 when 564,000 tractors ended up being produced in the United States.

Tractors nowadays have grown to be monsters in the fields with enclosed cabs having heating and air conditioning as well as television and stereos. Unfortunately, the manufacturing of compact tractors has been relocated offshore.

It is anticipated the significance of the diesel tractors for farming will stay high in the US as world farm commodity prices continue to increase.

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