A Brief history of Tractors

link to the pioneers

Time Line ...............

Cynddylan on a tractor By R. S. Thomas

Ah, you should see Cynddylan on a tractor, Gone the old ways that yoked him to the soil; He's a new man now, part of a machine, His nerves of metal and his blood oil. The clutch curses, but the gears obey His least bidding, and low, He's away Out of the farmyard, scattering hens. Riding to work now as a great man should, He is the knight at arms breaking the fields' Mirror of silence, emptying the wood of foxes and squirrels and bright jays. The sun comes over the tall trees Kindling all the hedges, but not for him Who runs his engine on a different fuel. And all the birds are singing, bills wide in vain, As Cynddylan passes proudly up the lane. R. S. Thomas 1952

A brief history of tractor design.
A personal view.

.....Collecting and restoring old tractors has become a popular and rewarding pass-time for many old men young at heart. The popularity is due to many factors but predominant is the love of old machines and that they have not become too expensive to own, restore, and run. Many old and interesting tractors worthy of restoration can be purchased for between £500 and £3000 and these can be turned into items of historic or financial value. Most people do it for fun and are motivated by a desire to own and drive a tractor which gives them and others pleasure when displayed at vintage rallies throughout the summer months.

.......For most people all old tractors will be seen as vintage. This is not absolutely true, as like all other vehicles, tractors are classified as Veteran, Vintage, and Classic depending on their age.

Veteran....... ......Pre 19??
Vintage............19??-1960
Post Vintage...1960-1970
Classic........... 1971-1980+

.......The invention of the internal combustion engine led to early American tractors appearing in 1894/? These were crudely built, slow, and not very maneuverable. They consisted of a stationary engine on a fabricated frame and bore little resemblance to the tractor as we know it today. It was a start but staem engines were then more reliable and were to remain in regular use for another 50 years.

......Developments also took place on this side of the Atlantic but develpoment in Britain was hampered by German trademark/copyright rules; the most significant being that of Dan Albone at Biggleswade. By 1902 he had produced a tractor which he felt able to market as a going concern. He named the tractor after the river which runs through Biggleswade; the Ivel. Notable survivors are one in the Science Museum, London and the working one owned by John Moffat.

.....A multitude of companies then saw the potential and there began to appear many and varied designs. Some were soon lost as they did not work but others continued in production for many years and their names are still with us today i.e., John Deere, Massey, Ford, Case. Notable British names were Austin, Sanderson, Davis Brown,

.....A pattern soon emerged which became the standard design for all tractors. Small front wheels for easy steerage; large, iron back wheels for good traction, engine at the front and driver at the back, no cab but large mudguards to give some protection for the driver. This format still holds today and can be seen in many of our modern 4 wheel drive models. Rubber tyres, diesel engines, belt and PTO, hydraulics and lights were all refinements which crept in from the end of the First World War.

The two tractors shown below illustrate the changes in design and construction which took place between 1920 and 1940. The early model is a stationary engine on a frame while the later one is a engineers design with an integrated engine, gear box, and back axle, with rubber tyres TVO engine and improved driving position for the driver

.....Tractor size and power seemed to reach 50-60hp around 1955 and remain around that level for a number of years. Nuffield, Fordson, and Massey Ferguson all had tractors in this power range and they are now some of the most sort after tractors for preservation. Further power was only available with diff lock, strengthened transmissions, increased tyre size, 4wd and advanced diesel engines. This led to some dramatic increases in power eventually reaching 300hp on some American tractors.

Tractor size and power seemed to reach 50-60hp around 1955 and remain around that level for a number of years. Nuffield, Fordson, and Massey Ferguson all had tractors in this power range and they are now some of the most sort after tractors for preservation. Further power was only available with diff lock, strengthened transmissions, increased tyre size, 4wd and advanced diesel engines. This led to some dramatic increases in power eventually reaching 300hp on some American tractors.

Newman..............................................................President



Pattison.....................................................................Unihorse

What happens now? 2020

Tractor size and power have not progressed far over the last 20 years. Some of the large 4 wheel drives of the1990s were comparable with todays models. The most important developments have been the use of electronics to control all aspects of the tractor, continous speed change gears and GPS control of tractor movement.

GPS has now become the norm for many tractors. The system can be set for any width of implement and thus we have perfect tram lines accross most of our fields.

Foster of Lincoln

Ransomes, Simms, and Jefferies of Ipswich

Garrett of Leiston

Enclosures. Strip farming was replaced by the field system as we know it today

Jethro Tull makes the first seed drill. Did it work? We dont know

Charles Burrell begins manufacturing machinery, at Thetford

Cooch sets up business at Harleston, Northants. Manufactured a range of corn winnowing machines

1837

Irish potato famine. Many die of starvation and even more emigrate. The disease is now known to have come from Mexico. The disease lasted a number of years

Gilbert and Lawes open Rothamstead as a plant researh station. Still working today

Foster buy a corn mill in Lincoln and begin production of farm ilplements

Nikolaus Otto builds the first successful 4 stroke internal combustion engine

Kubota established in Japan

Henry Ford discovers another company already called Ford. He calls his tractors Fordson.

Benjamin Holt produces his Holt 75 Crawler . He later joins Daniel best to develop Caterpillar crawlers.

Fosters produce a tractor for war use . It was introduced as the OHMS for Crosssing trenchs.
Not a success

Austin introduce a petrol engine tractor. Diesel versions made in France. Production ceased in 1930?

Lanz Bulldog appears with large hot bulb single cylinder engine. Made in Germany it set a standard until 1950

Young Farmers Club started by United Dairies at Hemyock , Devon

Claas Lexion combine sets a world record by harvesting 575 tons of grain in 8 hours

Last updated 07-Jan-2025 11:43 AM ©