Road Trip, Part Deux

 So back to the Moline adventure and the visit to John Deere World Headquarters.  At the building entrance there is an exhibit of farm and construction equipment, and this cool "through the years" display case, er...I mean...exhibit (they don't like to use the word Case).

This caught my attention: An 1885 announcement of a farming demonstration where a man is pulling a plow.  Not sure if he lost a bet or lived in an area that never realized that horses could be ridden and pull plows.  He seems dressed for the occasion, although I would have loosened my tie. A little bit anyway. 

Here is a replica of the original John Deere plow, which started it all.  In the sandy, dry and rocky soils of the East, wooden and iron plows worked the soil very well.  But in the heavy moist soils of the Midwest, plows would collect soil such that they could not be pulled very far, by horse or harnessed man, before you had to stop and clean it off.  But John Deere got a piece of steel from a sawblade and shaped it into this curved design, and polished it smooth. Now it was able to glide through the soil without any buildup.  Thus it became the Self Scouring Plow.  Seems simple, but it was a novel idea in 1837.

We also had an opportunity to tour the Harvester Works, where they build combines.  It was a big place.

Here is how they form the metal into the combine body.

Here are the robot painters applying the shiny last coat of green paint.  Oh...no pictures allowed in the plant.  Sorry.

Back in downtown Moline is the John Deere Pavillion where they show company history, tractors old and new and lot's of other items of interest.

Watch out Galynn.  This combine is about to harvest you.  And I can't afford to be docked for foreign matter.  Even though you are from Oklahoma.

Displays of the old....

...and of things yet to come.  Like this automatic lawn mower.  Now you're talking!

That was a day well spent and thanks to the John Deere folks for the nice visits and tours.  I'm still on the lookout for the auto-mower.