The Evolution of the Farm Tractor

The first few gasoline tractors in the parade of vintage farm machinery at the Sycamore Threshing Bee, 13 August 2009. I was too far from the reviewing stand to catch the announcements of the machines and their owners.

The first two to roll past combined a gasoline engine with a traction engine chassis. That Fordson must have been radical in its day, it's followed by a Case and a Farmall that shows the classic farm tractor profile that still graces highway signs.

There are several different design ideas in the placement of the guide wheels: the idea is to be able to drive through a field without crushing the plants. There's a good reason a lot of farm-to-market roads weren't paved -- imagine the effect of those steel lugs on a smooth surface.