One important event to measure tractors performance was soon to become an institution: the Nebraska Tractor Test. A Nebraska farmer and politician Wilmot F. Crozier, had purchased a tractor only to discover that it was a lemon. He replaced it with a Rumely OilPull tractor, built by the Advance-Rumely Thresher Company of LaPorte, Indiana. To his surprise, he found it surpassed the manufacturers stated specifications. He wondered if there was a way to uniformly test the performance of all tractors so that consumers would be able to evaluate the results. A bill was introduced and was quickly passed in the Nebraska legislature in 1919 to require all tractor manufacturers who wanted to sell machines in the state of Nebraska to submit them to a standardized test. A test lab was set up at the Agricultural College of the University of Nebraska in Lincoln. Tractor builders began submitting machines for testing the following year, 1920. The first machine to undergo rigorous evaluation was the Waterloo Boy Model N, marketed and distributed by the John Deere Company. The next six machines to be tested were all submitted by J.I. Case Threshing Machine Company. Through the years, the laboratory in Lincoln has received and evaluated many of the historical tractors. The Cleveland Tractor Company, the Little 12-20 Model W was put through its paces in July 1920. The beautifully styled Oliver Hart-Parr Rowcrop 70 got its examination and a passing grade in 1936. The Case 500 diesel with power steering gave it the old college try in October 1953. Testing continues there to this day, and over the years the Nebraska Tractor Tests have faithfully recorded engineering milestones in agricultural development.

Courtesy of Vaughn MacDonald