A Short History of Tractors

While tractors are ubiquitous in the 21st century, they haven’t been around for as long as you might think. In fact, the modern tractor is barely a hundred years old, created from early developments in the mid-19th century. This short history of the tractor will tell you how your most essential piece of farm equipment came into existence.

Steam Plows

For centuries, plowing was done with a metal horse-drawn or human-pushed plow, which took up a great deal of time and effort. With the development of the steam engine in the 1800s, efforts were made to create engine-powered versions of many different things, and that included plows. Unfortunately, these early steam-powered plows were liable to explode and were not as practical as they otherwise could be.

John Froelich’s Innovation

Iowa inventor and farmer John Froelich saw the potential for an engine-powered farm machine when gasoline engines were developed during the 1880s. He built a plowing machine with an engine powered by gas that he could move both forwards and backwards. He used this machine to successfully harvest some wheat.

In the meantime, a pair of Wisconsin engineering students, Charles Hart and Charles Parr, were creating a “traction engine” of their own, and the shortening of this term to “tractor” is where today’s machines get their name. The first commercially produced tractor rolled off of the Hart-Parr Gasoline Engine Company’s assembly line in 1901.

Modernization

Over the early part of the 20th century, a number of manufacturers became invested in these new tractors, and began to create their own models. John Deere began to release its own tractors during the 1920s. Indian manufacturer Mahindra followed suit about 30 years later. Nowadays, you have the luxury of choosing between thousands of different tractors made by hundreds of manufacturers, and all of them will make your work easier.

When you’re ready to check out our selection of new tractors for sale, visit one of our Alabama dealerships in Centre or Alexandria. Foothills Tractor & Equipment is proud to be your local Mahindra® dealer, serving greater Birmingham, AL.