John Deere
John Deere was an influential American inventor and industrialist born in 1804 in Rutland, Vermont. He began his career as a blacksmith apprentice and later opened his own shop, eventually relocating to Grand Detour, Illinois, in search of better opportunities. Recognizing the challenges faced by local farmers with traditional plows, Deere innovated by creating a steel plow that effectively worked the tough Midwestern soil. His company rapidly grew, producing thousands of plows annually, and in 1868 it was incorporated as John Deere & Company. Deere's legacy is marked by his contributions to agricultural technology and the establishment of a successful industrial empire. He not only improved farming practices but also set marketing and production standards that would influence future generations. John Deere passed away in 1886, leaving behind a name synonymous with quality agricultural equipment and innovation.
John Deere
- Born: February 7, 1804
- Birthplace: Rutland, Vermont
- Died: May 17, 1886
- Place of death: Moline, Illinois
American entrepreneur, industrialist, and merchant
Deere employed blacksmith skills, product insight, and marketing instinct to create an international business. He designed a steel plow that was the founding product for his company, the basis for one of the oldest existing businesses in the United States, and the source of his wealth.
Sources of wealth: Patents; manufacturing; sale of products
Bequeathal of wealth: Children
Early Life
John Deere was born in 1804 in Rutland, Vermont, the youngest of five children of William Rinold Deere and Sarah (née Yates) Deere. A year after John’s birth, William, a tailor, moved the family to Middlebury, Vermont. In 1808, William embarked on a trip to England but did not return. Since the family’s income was modest, Deere received a basic education at the local school, and at the age of seventeen he was apprenticed as a blacksmith to Captain Benjamin Lawrence. In exchange for four years of service to Lawrence beginning in 1821, Deere earned his room and board, clothing, a modest income, and the essential skills necessary to be a good craftsman. Afterward, Deere honed his skills as a journeyman, working for several other blacksmiths, before opening his own shop.
First Ventures
Deere continuously sharpened his skills and soon earned a reputation as a fine craftsman. After marrying Demarius Lamb in 1827 and starting a family, Deere borrowed funds to buy land and build his own smithy. On two separate occasions fire destroyed the shop, leaving Deere in debt at a time when Vermont was suffering from an economic depression. Because of bleak local circumstances, Deere chose to venture west to seek his fortune. In 1836, he temporarily left his family behind and followed several other Vermont natives to Grand Detour, Illinois. In this new community, Deere quickly found high demand for his blacksmith skills. Within two days of his arrival, Deere’s forge was in operation.
Mature Wealth
Soon after arriving in Illinois, Deere learned that wooden and iron plows stuck in the rich midwestern soil, making the task of cultivation a difficult one for farmers. Deere experimented, at first using an old abandoned sawmill blade, and he concluded that highly polished steel and a newly shaped moldboard would improve tilling. In 1838, in partnership with Major Leonard Andrus, Deere built and sold three steel plows. Over the next few years, Deere’s business continued to grow; by 1846 his company was manufacturing one thousand plows annually.
As the need for raw materials and improved transportation services increased, Deere decided to relocate his business seventy-five miles southwest, along the Mississippi River in Moline, Illinois. Leaving his old partner behind, he took on new associates Robert N. Tate and John M. Gould. This affiliation allowed Deere to concentrate on sales and marketing. The association lasted until 1852. In the following year, Deere’s son Charles entered the company as its bookkeeper.
By 1857, Deere’s company was producing ten thousand plows annually but was also suffering from cash flow problems. The firm was in jeopardy during the Panic of 1857, but reorganization gave Charles management control. With John as the president and Charles overseeing daily operations, the company avoided bankruptcy. In 1863, John’s son-in-law Stephen H. Velie joined the company, and Deere helped organize the First National Bank of Moline. Demarius Deere died in 1865, and John married her sister Lucinda in 1867.
After operating for thirty-one years as a partnership or single proprietorship, the business in 1868 incorporated under the name John Deere & Company. Deere became the second mayor of Moline in 1873. Thirteen years later, Deere died in Moline at the age of eighty-two.
Legacy
While John Deere was not the first person to manufacture plows from steel, his determination, perceptiveness, energy, and ingenuity resulted in a product that made his name synonymous with the steel plow industry. He designed and sold a workable plow for homesteaders who were transforming American prairie lands into productive farmlands. By designing reliable agricultural equipment, modernizing production, and using innovative marketing, Deere established an industrial empire.
Bibliography
Broehl, Wayne G., Jr. John Deere’s Company: A History of Deere & Company and Its Times. New York: Doubleday, 1984.
Dahlstrom, Neil, and Jeremy Dahlstrom. The John Deere Story: A Biography of Plowmakers John and Charles Deere. DeKalb: Northern Illinois University Press, 2005.
Magee, David. The John Deere Way: Performance That Endures. Hoboken, N.J.: Wiley, 2005.