From the time farmers scratched in the dirt they have searched for an easier way to get the job done. Today, mechanical surrogates supplement the hard work, sweat and calluses that are the basic building blocks of modern farming.

A milestone has been reached in this competition with Mother Nature to feed a hungry world. The tractor itself has become a centenarian and the birthday party has been going on for almost an entire year.

John Torpy has more in our Cover Story.

Shortly after the turn of the twentieth century, the introduction of the tractor to agriculture was a landmark innovation that helped farmers make a giant leap forward in reducing workload.

A century has passed since mechanical farming began reshaping the landscape. To mark this anniversary, the nation’s attic decided to honor one of the first widely used tractors.

Peter Liebhold, Curator, National Museum of American History: ”For the American Enterprise exhibition here at the national museum of American History, we have an entrance icon which we change every every year. And this year we decided to make it a year the tractor. Because the tractor is so important as a business story. Not just a farming story for the business story to the nation.”

In the spring of 1918, the John Deere Company, looking to expand into a newly growing tractor market, bought the Waterloo Gasoline and Engine Company in Waterloo, Iowa, The introduction of the Waterloo Boy tractor was seen as the pivotal switch in farming, from animal power to mechanical power.

Peter Liebhold, Curator, National Museum of American History: “There had been tractors earlier but 1918 is when they really start to take off. And by taking off it changes the way that ag is done. it's an industrial revolution. Instead of having horses and mules to provide power, machine start to provide power. This is a fundamental change to rural America.”

Although the early machines seemed to be more work than farming with a team of horses, every new model plowed the way for farmers to do more with less.

Tractors named Avery and Advance were in the field before 1918, but they were large, cumbersome beasts that required a steep learning curve for operation. The advantage of a tractor working all day still set those farmers apart from their colleagues who remained committed to a culture of working animals.

Peter Liebhold, Curator, National Museum of American History:”Those big tractors in fact didn't work well for farmers. They were too big. They were too complicated and frankly they were too heavy, crushing the fields. But the lightweight tractors were simpler to operate. Much cheaper to build and turned out to be a different technological asmith and really began to be successful.”

Randy Riley, Creston, Iowa: ”Previously to this tractor coming along people were farming with horses and mules. And you were severely limit on how much you get done every day because the mules or horses got tired./These tractors came along. They made them fairly cheap where farmers could afford to buy them and they, this tractor would replace maybe a team of horses.”

The Waterloo Boy tractor was not a power house, having about the same horsepower as today’s standard riding lawn mower. It also lacked the comforts seen in later models.

Peter Liebhold, Curator, National Museum of American History:”It's clearly not as massive as a modern day tractor, the, the steel cleated steel wheels or are different and fantastic decals on it the seat hanging off the back. All these things make it look a lot different than a modern day tractor.”

The “N” was the first tractor model to carry the John Deere name, and the simplicity of the machine fit with the popular tractors selling at the time.

Peter Liebhold, Curator, National Museum of American History: ”Early on there were vast numbers of Manufacturers. Very little in sales. But in 1916 there were nearly a hundred different manufacturers of tractors. By 1918 Tractor sales, really start to begin to build and by 1920 the number of Manufacturers drops considerably. Really just a couple dozen and sales are up to a quarter million tractors a year.”

The celebrations surrounding the 100th anniversary of the tractor stretched from the nation’s capitol to the nation’s corn belt, where the Waterloo Boy, and almost every model produced afterwards, was the highlight of Creston, Iowa’s Fourth of July parade. Organized by a local John Deere implement dealer, JD fans from around the countryside brought their tractors to paint the town green.

Gerry Latham, Creston, Iowa,”We've got 75 tractors all here to celebrate the hundredth anniversary of the John Deere tractors/NAT SOUND BREAK/You get all those pop pop tractors in the back and it's just got a nice little beat to it.”

Even Iowa’s State Fair got into the act parking a Waterloo Boy tractor sculpted out of butter next to the event’s iconic Butter Cow.

As the year of the tractor comes to a close, farmers are left to reminisce about the importance of what has grown from humble beginnings.

For Market to Market, I’m John Torpy Producer Contact torpy@iptv.org