Route 4, Huntington, Indiana 46750
In 1915, no one would have thought that the tractor would ever
replace the horse 100%, except in the large grain section in the
west. During World War I years the tractor industry had made great
strides, as I noted in the last chapter. Horses were higher. Fuels
had been greatly improved. Labor was scarce and high priced, and
was not dependable. The day of the big steam threshing rigs was
numbered. Small separators became the rage. By 1920 it was
estimated there were over 250,000 tractors in operation in the U.
S. and Canada. Why do people buy every new invention that comes
out? Any person with any age can remember parents, neighbors, and
friends who bought the first automobile, tractor, sewing machine,
washing machine, etc., etc., that came out. There has always been a
sort of restlessness, a curiosity, or a hankering to try that which
is new, whether or not it was a success or failure. They wanted
something to better their standards of living, or in other words to
be ahead of the neighbors. I recall in 1909 my father bought a
gasoline gas outfit that produced gas out of plain gasoline for
lighting our home. It served its purpose well for over ten years,
or until Delco electric light plants came into use. He wanted
something better both times.
Now in case some one never knew, or has forgotten it, we had a
depression in 1921. At the beginning of 1921 there were about 186
companies making tractors. By 1929 the number had dropped to 47.
Why? During the World War I years many of the small companies who
might have been making cars changed to tractors, because the
government would allot them steel to make tractors, but not for
cars. So during this little depression, they found the going too
hard in the tractor field and returned to making cars. However the
most of them simply folded up, or changed to making something else.
After a few years of hard times, things got to going better for
those who survived, until the depression of the early thirties
weeded out the men from the boys. Tractor prices had taken a
serious drop after or during 1921. For instance Fordsons had
dropped to $675. The Moline that had sold for $1325 dropped to
$675. Another good make had dropped $700 under its 1920 price.
A 35-70 Nichols & Shephard belonging to Norman Pross of
Luverne, North Dakota and a 15-30 Plowman owned by Elmer Larson,
Moorhead, Minnesota.
In 1919 the Agric. Eng. Depart, of Ohio State Univ. held plowing
contests at Columbus, Middleton, Akron, and Fostoria. They were
held in the summer and fall in hard dry ground. To give you an idea
as to what tractors were being made and to what tractors plowed at
the showings, I have made a list of the following tractors: Cletrac
12-20, J. T. 16-30, Avery 12-25, Case 15-27, Case 10-18, Moline
Universal 9-18, Ford-son, Illinois 18-36, Wellington 10-20, Huber
12-25, Parrett 12-25, Reliable 10-20, Waterloo Boy 12-25, Wallis
15-27, Titan 10-20, Aultman Taylor 15-30, International 8-16,
Monarch 18-30, E B 12-20, Shelby 9-18, Hart Parr ’30’,
Heider 9-18, Heider 12-20, Bates Steel Mule 15-22, Frick 15-28,
Whitney 9-18, and La Crosse 12-24.
Probably the biggest thing that happened was the establishing of
the Nebraska tests. A farmer in Nebraska had bought a Ford tractor
(not Henry Ford) made in Minneapolis. It was a failure and was
replaced by another which was no better. So he bought a used
tractor of another make, and it was no better. Discouraged by these
failures he purchased a new tractor of a popular make and that one
gave him years of good service. As could be expected he was real
put out, and being a state Senator, he wrote a bill providing that
any tractor sold in the state of Nebraska had to pass a state test.
The bill passed without any trouble. The Agric. Engineering
department of State Univ. at Lincoln was given the task of setting
up a testing lab. which is in existence to this very day. Due to a
hard winter they did not get into operation until the spring of
1920. The first tractor to make the test was a Waterloo Boy 12-25.
Needless to say this was a measure that was badly needed, and
through the years it has functioned as it should. They must have
kept politics out of it??
I would like to add here that I have seen two of those Ford
tractors–Jim Rathhart of Foreman, North Dakota and Prairie Village
of Madison, South Dakota each have one.
Due to some large operations in row crops such as corn, sorghum,
cotton etc. motor cultivators began to appear in 1917. They were of
two types. The first type was the small tractor that has two large
drive wheels in front, one or two in the rear that could be taken
off and the rear end of the frame fastened to a standard two-row
horsedrawn cultivator. Those of this type were Moline Universal,
Indiana, Allis Chalmers, Parrett, Boring, Allen Water Balast and
Detroit Line Drive. The other type was a regular motor cultivator,
usually built around a two-row cultivator with one or two small
wheels in front to guide by. Chief among these were the Avery
one-row 4 cyl. or two-row 6 cyl. E B, Bailor and International
Harvester. Several small 5-10 tractors like the Avery and Taylor
could be used to pull a cultivator, but it took two to operate such
a rig.
Tractors that came out from 1917 to 1920 which are still well
remembered were: International 8-16, Hart Parr ’30’,
International 15-30, formerly the 12-25 Titan, Indiana, Case 15-27,
later to become the 18-32, Wallis K 15-27, had formally been the
three-wheeled Model J, La Crosse 12-24, Frick 12-25, Samson M Model
M, Minn. 22-44, Case 22-40 later in 1924 it was rerated 25-45. Oil
Pull 12-20, 16-30, and 20-40. This last tractor became extremely
popular. I can account for at least 48 and I know that’s about
one half that still exists yet today.