Find farming history books you'll love

John Deere Yesterday and Today

<b>Celebrate the history of a beloved American brand that has become familiar to generations of farm families.</b> <ul> <li>Follow this iconic agricultural company from the early 1800s, when John Deere himself devised a plow blade in his blacksmith shop, through the automation of the two-cylinder tractor nearly 100 years later, and into the 21st century of advanced technology and the future of farming equipment.</li> <li>Stunning color photographs and illustrations, many of which feature John Deere memorabilia, such as a commemorative Barbie doll, down through the years.</li> <li>Hardcover, 192 pages</li> </ul>

John Deere Tractors

<p>Since the early 1920s, John Deere tractors have been cultivating, plowing, and seeding fields across America--and across the globe. American agricultural and mechanical know-how at its finest, these tractors have more than lived up to the company motto "Nothing Runs Like a Deere," in the process becoming the most beloved machines among farmers.<br> <br> A celebration of this icon of American farming, this book features brilliantly detailed photographs of all the most popular and powerful John Deere tractors, along with a wealth of information about these marvels of machinery. The book contains everything a loyal fan of John Deere could hope to find, from curious tidbits to historical facts and horsepower statistics, from Nebraska test results to implement information reaching from the early 1920s up to the present.<br> <i><br> John Deere Tractors</i> includes samples of the company's early advertising and brochures, historical photos of these great tractors at work, and a sampling of the newest technologies being used on these machines.</p>

John Deere A History of the Tractor

These Limited Edition Leatherbound are signed by the author and hand numbered. A rare collectible for the true enthusiast!No tractor has achieved a more iconic status than John Deere. It's simple, two-cylinder tractors proved just the reliable, dependable tool the early 20th century American farmer needed to take the great leap from farming with animals to mechanized farming. Although a late comer to the motorized farming industry, today John Deere's two-cylinder tractors are the most sought after collector tractors in the world. Always a conservative company, John Deere stuck with its two-cylinder tractors into the middle part of the century, long after every other manufacturer had moved on to four- and six-cylinder tractors. Yet these simple, noble machines continued to serve their market. When John Deere entered the multi-cylinder fray, it did so with the most advanced, groundbreaking machines ever built - the New Generation tractors. These tractors set the trends for all subsequent tractor development through the latter half of the 20th century.

The Horse and Tractor Wars Letters and Lessons from an Old Horseman

Confined to a nursing home in Iowa in 1960, a time-worn horseman seeks to educate his grandson about the great transformation in American agriculture when horse power gave way to tractor power (1910-1950). Walt Decker spent nearly four decades as the chief national defender for the continued use of draft horses on the farm, especially Percherons. His grandson Jethro is a student in agricultural engineering at Iowa State University and does not understand the significance of the shift from equine power to tractor power. Grandfather Decker seeks to teach him with seven historical lessons that tell the story of this remarkable transformation as well details about the tractor wars that erupted after Henry Ford introduced his famous Fordson tractor in 1918. The historical lessons are nested in a series of letters from grandfather to grandson in which Walt Decker seeks to bridge the chasm of mistrust that exists between Jethro and himself. This is a work of history and historical fiction. It is enhanced by dozens of illustrations and archival images, along with a bibliography of suggested readings. Walt Decker has been loosely modeled after Wayne Dinsmore (1879-1966), longtime secretary of the Percheron Association of America and then the Horse and Mule Association of America.

International Harvester Tractors

In this comprehensive and readable book, tractor expert Jonathan Whitlam tells the story of the development of International Harvester from its North American roots in the 1900s. The book covers developments from the early combustion-engine machines to the merger with Case in 1985 and ownership by Fiat in 1999. The story of International Harvester is inextricably tied up with developments in farming. While the giant tractors such as the Titans and Moguls could take on large-scale agriculture, smaller tractors were developed for more modest farms. The development of the famous all-purpose Farmall tractor in 1920 not only set a new benchmark in tractor design, it also completed the revolution in mechanisation of agriculture in the United States. From 1949 some International Harvester tractors were built in Britain and the book goes on to reveal the importance of European developments, including German designs in the 1980s and 1990s after the amalgamation with Case. Accompanied by a rich selection of colour photographs, this fascinating book is a complete account of both the UK and European as well as American IH tractors.

A Lean Supply Chain at John Deere

To watch the demo online, click here.</p>--><p>This video DVD is about the successful partnership between John Deere in Horicon, Wisconsin and one of its suppliers - the R&B Machining and Grinding Company located in Racine, Wisconsin. It provides an opportunity to take a look inside John Deere's supply chain - find out what changes were required to "learn their supply chain." <br><p>Run time: 21 minutes</p>Free Video Demo<br><i>A Lean Supply Chain at John Deere DVD</i> <b>To view<br>click on your connection speed!</b> <b>This video requires Windows Media Player and a sound card</b> <b>(28.8K, 56K dial-up)</b> 0.56 minutes, 0.70 mb <b>(ISDN, DSL, Cable, T1)</b> 0.56 minutes, 1.29 mb Click to install

The John Deere Century

In <i>The</i> <i>John Deere Century,</i> acclaimed author and photographer Randy Leffingwell uses his unique brand of storytelling to chronicle the company and the tractors that have carried the distinctive green and yellow livery for the past century.<br><br> Iconic John Deere tractors ranging from the spartan Waterloo Boy to the Model AOS, and from German and Argentine models to the acclaimed New Generation tractors are featured in this celebration of industrial tractor design. Loaded with photographs, both modern and vintage, and excellently written info, this book will have John Deere fans salivating.

Vintage International Harvester Tractors

John Deere Tractor Legacy

Not only is "The John Deere Tractor Legacy" published under license of Deere & Company, it is edited by the world's most respected and best known John Deere historian and expert--Don Macmillan--so readers know they can rely on its information. This comprehensive history of the man, his company, and his legacy includes a biography of John Deere, plus excerpts from the writings of Deere engineers and historians, such as Wayne Broehl, Harold Brock, and Orrin Miller. Images are from the Deere archives, as well as from noted tractor photographer Ralph W. Sanders. Readers will find never-before-published material in "The John Deere Tractor Legacy," including compelling accounts of the development of the Waterloo Boy, the Johnny Popper, and the New Generation tractors. Readers will also discover the importance of the work that Deere did for the U.S. Army in World War II and how it helped the company to become the number-one tractor manufacturer in the world. Coverage of plows, implements, combines, cars, snowmobiles, lawn and garden tractors, and bicycles is also included.

Great American Farm Tractors Big Green, John Deere GP Tractors

While many American entrepreneurs tried their hand at tractor making, three companies stepped to the forefront.