While Henry Ford鈥檚 more than 15 million Model T cars built from 1908 to 1927 put much of the world on wheels, Henry Ford鈥檚 tractors also had a major impact on farming.
Early tractors were heavy, often steam-powered 鈥渞oad locomotives鈥� that required a skilled operator. They were too big and awkward for most farm work, and were typically used for tasks such as hauling grain separators from farm to farm and powering them for threshings.
Gasoline engines changed that. According to Robert Pripps鈥� book Vintage Ford Tractors, Charles Hart and Charles Parr built the first production gasoline-powered 鈥渢ractor鈥� (a name they coined) in 1902 in Charles City, Iowa.
Gasoline tractors were smaller, lighter, more manoeuvrable and easier to operate that the road locomotives. The Hart-Parr started a tractor revolution, and others such as International Harvester, Massey-Harris, John Deere and Ford followed.
Ford began experimenting with four-cylinder car-engine tractors in 1906, but the Model T鈥檚 explosive success delayed their development. The Fordson tractor was finally announced in 1917, and dominated the tractor market until the arrival of International Harvester鈥檚 1924 rowcrop Farmall.
When the First World War endangered grain shipments to Britain between 1914 and 1918, the British government was desperate for tractors to increase production. Fordsons shipped to England became so popular that when they were becoming obsolete in North America in the late 1920s, production was moved to Cork, Ireland, then Dagenham, Essex, England, where they were made until 1938.
Through Fordson exports, Ford鈥檚 chief executive Charles Sorensen met young Harry Ferguson, a mercurial Irish farm-implement salesman and inventor. In his book My Forty Years With Ford, Sorensen wrote: 鈥淗ad I been able to foresee the consequence of that meeting, I would have avoided聽it.鈥�
In 1938, Ferguson demonstrated his David Brown-built, Fordson-inspired Ferguson tractor to Henry Ford. It featured Ferguson鈥檚 three-point hydraulic hitch, which effectively made the tractor and implement one unit.
When an aging Ford was unsuccessful in buying the patent, he made a handshake 鈥済entleman鈥檚 agreement鈥� with Ferguson, much to Ford management鈥檚 dismay. It specified that Ford would manufacture tractors with Ferguson鈥檚 hitch, and Ferguson would market them and design the implements, although Ford鈥檚 engineers ultimately ended up designing them after Ferguson鈥檚 proved unsuitable for North America.
Ford鈥檚 managers thought Ferguson had outfoxed Ford, an opinion vindicated by history. According to Ford N-Series design engineer Harold Brock: 鈥淥ver the years, Ford lost approximately $9 million producing tractors for Ferguson to distribute, while Ferguson made about the same amount. Ferguson鈥檚 investment was a few typewriters and a distribution headquarters in the middle of Ford鈥檚 Rouge plant.鈥�
The Ford-Ferguson N-Series began with the 1939 9N (9 for 1939). Its side-valve, four-cylinder engine used many Ford V-8 components. The same 77.8 x 95.2 mm bore and stroke gave 1.8-litre displacement, half the V-8鈥檚. It developed 28 flywheel horsepower at 2,000 rpm, and a 1940 University of Nebraska test recorded a respectable 16.3 drawbar horsepower and 23.6 belt horsepower.
The real story, however, was Ferguson鈥檚 three-point hitch. Two arms pulling below the axle and one pushing above made the 9N perform like a larger tractor. When plowing, some of the mounted plow鈥檚 weight was transferred to the tractor鈥檚 rear wheels, giving improved traction.
Ferguson鈥檚 second ingenious feature was automatic draft control. When a predetermined drawing force was reached, the upper arm compressed a draft-load-sensing spring under the seat. This signalled the hydraulic system to adjust plow depth to compensate for soil resistance or tractor attitude. Automatic draft control matched the average draft with the tractor鈥檚 power and tractive ability. The three-point hitch and draft control were major tractor advances.
The 9N鈥檚 tracks could be changed for different crop row spacing by adjusting the length of the three-piece front beam axle and reversing the rear dished wheels. Downward extending kingpins added ground clearance. A starter, rubber tires and power take-off were standard.
The Ford-Ferguson 9N was made until 1942, then replaced by the more basic 2N during the Second World War. The 1947 8N superseded the 2N, proving so popular that Ford tractor sales reached a 20-year high. It was replaced by Ford鈥檚 1953 NAA 50th anniversary Golden Jubilee model.
After Ford鈥檚 new management cancelled the handshake agreement in 1947, Ferguson launched a competitive tractor similar to Ford鈥檚. Built by England鈥檚 Standard Motor Co., its engines included the 2.1-litre overhead-valve four used in Vanguard, Triumph and Morgan cars.
Ferguson sued Ford for $341 million US for, among other things, breaking the agreement and patent infringement. Ford president Henry Ford II settled out of court for $9.25 million in 1952.
Although Ford built many tractors before and after the N-Series, that sturdy little machine was named Tractor of the Century. Many are still in use 70 years later.
