Horse drawn plows: Just a matter of preference
Someone recently asked me why some horse drawn plows throw the furrow to the left, while others (most in fact) throw them to the...
Barbed wire’s history entangled in war
Probably the first patent for a form of barbed wire was issued to Leonce Grassin-Baledans in 1860 in France during World War I.
The Whippet: More than just an old automobile
Folks often ask how I think of stuff to write about, and while I sometimes really have to scratch to come up with a subject, especially when a deadline is breathing down my neck, things I see in my travels often trigger a memory that leads to an idea for a story.
Earliest steam engines used to pump water
Learn more about the Newcomen engines, called "Fire Engines," which were used to pump water from British mines.
The Neys have it: Hay tools invented in Canton
There were two different Ney companies in Canton in the late 1800s and early 1900s, both making hay tools such as barn hay forks, carriers and track.
Scratching the surface of the little Utilitor tractor
Many years ago, Nancy and I attended a tractor show at Malabar Farm, probably put on by the Richland County Steam Threshers. Established by...
Gibson tractors were important for a while
In 1933, Harry Gibson started the Gibson Manufacturing Co. in Seattle, Washington, as a heavy machine shop.
The first real automatic transmission
A brief history of the automatic transmission.
Hand sewing grain sacks during harvest
Before there was a way to haul loose grain, it was sacked out of the threshing machine.
A thing of the past: Check row planters
Learn more about planting corn in checkrows.
