Discover the Top 9 Fascinating Fun Facts About John Deere You Never Knew!

1. Smooth Operator Plow

If John Deere's plow were to have a theme song, it would certainly be "Smooth Operator": Back in 1837, good ol' John took a shine to an old saw blade, polished it up, and used it to create the first commercially successful steel plow that could slice through stubborn Great Plains soil without any clogging fuss.
Source => study.com

2. Blacksmith Shop Revolution

In a plot twist worthy of a Hollywood blockbuster, John Deere transformed a humble blacksmith shop into the birthplace of an agricultural revolution: The tiny 1,378 square feet workshop in Grand Detour, Illinois, housed the creation of his game-changing self-scouring steel plow, crafted from a Scottish steel saw blade, which ultimately annihilated its cast iron and wooden rivals, and helped cultivate the "Wild West" with over 10,000 plows sold by 1855.
Source => equipmentradar.com

Did you know Eli Whitney's cotton gin invention actually boosted the demand for enslaved labor and expanded the slave trade? Uncover the unexpected truth behind this historical twist!

=> Fun Facts about Eli-Whitney

3. Eureka Moment in Farming

Watch out, Sherlock: John Deere had his own eureka moment when he figured out how to build a better plow! Instead of busting your little piggy bank trying to crack the code on auto-lacing sneakers, it turns out John Deere had a front-row seat to the classic scene of "Farmers vs. Mud," taking cues from the problematic relationship between cast iron plows and the muddy soil they struggled to navigate: His infamous steel plow was born, turning the farming industry on its head and continuing to serve as a key feature in today's John Deere equipment. Talk about a mud-slinging success!
Source => thirteen.org

4. Fierce Fashion Statement

They say imitation is the sincerest form of flattery, but John Deere isn't playing games when it comes to their green and yellow fashion statement: The agricultural giant frequently files lawsuits against copycats and even won a legal battle against FIMCO, a pesticide sprayer manufacturer, protecting their trademarked color scheme and putting an end to FIMCO's green and yellow dreams.
Source => chicagobusinesslitigationlawyerblog.com

5. The Poppin' Johnny

When John Deere wasn't too busy searching for his lost contact lens in furrowed fields or introducing popular dance moves like the "Poppin' Johnny": They acquired the Waterloo Gasoline Traction Engine Company in 1918, resulting in the creation and success of the highly efficient and affordable Waterloo Boy tractor, whose sales by 1921 soared to 5,045.
Source => historyofblackhawkcounty.uni.edu

6. Plow-throb of Midwest Farmland

You know the saying, "If you build a better mousetrap, the world will beat a path to your door?" Well, John Deere did exactly that, but with a self-scouring steel plow – and by golly, it made him quite the plow-throb of the Midwest farmland: Back when Deere built his first self-scouring steel plow, hundreds of people flocked to witness its triumphant test run at Lewis Crandall's farm near Grand Detour, Illinois, soon catapulting the ingenious blacksmith into the entrepreneurial Hall of Fame.
Source => deere.com

7. Logo Leapfrog

In an epic game of deer-ly beloved logo leapfrog, John Deere hopped over the log of time and ended up in the streamlined lands of the curvilinear rectangle: The iconic green and yellow deer logo underwent several transformations since its creation in 1876, and its most recent makeover in 2000 simplified the bounding deer within a green curvilinear rectangle, while retaining its yellow hue and "Moline, ILL" lettering – tallying up to more than four logo changes in the company's history.
Source => 1000logos.net

8. Tractor Museum Adventure

Why did the tractor cross the road? To get to the John Deere Tractor & Engine Museum in Waterloo, Iowa, of course: This marvelous mecca of mechanized agriculture offers free admission for visitors to discover interactive exhibits, enjoy a cinematic retelling of the company's storied past, and even test out some good ol' fashioned tractor seating. Just don't forget to buckle up and enjoy the ride through history!
Source => tripadvisor.com

9. War Contributions & Victory Gardens

Even though John Deere might seem like your tractor-lovin' grandpa on a sprawling hay farm, this all-American brand once dabbled in tanks, fighter planes, and good ol' fashioned victory gardens: During WWII, John Deere produced ammunition, aircraft parts, and military tank transmissions, designed specialized tractors for the military, built M-8 armored supply trailers, and even plowed 1,000 gardens for employees to grow food for the war effort.
Source => farmprogress.com