Power on the Farm: The End of Steam and the Rise of the Modern Tractor
By Dan Thompson
Steam traction engines revolutionized agriculture during the late 19th century, but the notoriously dangerous and inefficient steam power was soon to become history. Even as steam traction engines were beginning to prove their worth on the farm, inventors were investigating new technologies to replace them. As innovations produced ever better machines, tractors quickly took over the farm and evolved to become the engines of mechanized agriculture so recognizable today.
The New Fuel
When commercial oil drilling began around 1850, internal combustion engine technology took a sudden leap forward. Early designers worked on internal combustion engines running on kerosene, propane, diesel, and gasoline. In 1876, the first commercially successful gasoline engine hit the market. This was the “Otto Silent,” developed by N.A. Otto of Germany and produced in Philadelphia beginning in 1880.
Gasoline engines quickly caught the attention of tractor producers, and the Waterloo Tractor Company- which was later bought by Deere & Company- and several others began producing gasoline traction engines in the 1890’s. Most of the early attempts were commercially unviable, but by 1914 refinements in technology lead to the Waterloo Boy, the first gasoline traction engine to meet with success on the market.
As alternatives to the dangers of steam power became available, steam traction engines quickly became a thing of the past. Without the deadly drawbacks of steam engines, gasoline, diesel, and kerosene became the fuels of choice. Steam engine manufacture all ceased in the 1920s, and today tractors with either diesel or gasoline engines are the norm.
Better Technology, Better Tractors
The early part of the twentieth century was rife with technological advances in every industry, and tractor production was no exception. Engines were improved by carburetors and oil filters; the first diesel engines were developed. Power take off shafts provided alternatives to dangerous drive belts for powering farm machinery, and new hitches allowed these machines to be towed safely behind the tractor.
Tractors’ footprints were not neglected in the flurry of upgrades. Rubber tires were introduced and became an instant success. Tractors running on rubber had longer life spans thanks to the vibration dampening it provided. Tires also increased the efficiency of many drawbar operations, some of them by 50%.
