Intro. To Agriscience
Unit 1, Section B
Mrs. Martin
2012-2013
George Washington Carver
 Born: Early 1864
 Died: January 5, 1943
 Was an emancipated slave who worked at the
agricultural extension of the Tuskegee Institute in
Tuskegee, Alabama.
 Taught former slaves farming techniques for selfsufficiency.
 Widely credited in American public schools and
culture for inventing hundreds of uses for peanuts and
other plants to increase profitability of farming.
John Deere
 January 7, 1804 – May 17, 1886
 American blacksmith and manufacturer who founded
“Deere and Company (one of the largest agricultural and
construction equipment manufacturers in the World).
 Born in Rutland, VA – Son of William Deere. Raised by his
mother in Middlebury, VT after father disappeared en
route to London. Received Elementary School education in
VT.
 Served a 4 year blacksmith apprenticeship and entered into
his trade in 1825.
 1827: Married Demarius Lamb, had 4 children by 1836 with
a 5th on the way.
John Deere - Continued
 Business not doing well and Deere was having trouble
with his creditors. Filing bankruptcy, Deere sold shop
to his father-in-law and left for Illinois.
 He left his wife and children behind on the journey
with the intention that they would join back up with
him at a later time.
 Deere settled in Grand Detour, Illinois. There were no
blacksmiths in the area and Deere had no trouble
finding work.
 He discovered that cast iron plows were not working
well in tough prairie soil.
John Deere - Continued
 Deere came to the conclusion that a plow made of
highly polished steel and a correctly shaped
moldboard (the self-scouring steel plow) would better
be able to handle the soil conditions of the prairie –
ESPECIALLY sticky clay.
 1837: Deere developed and manufactured his first caststeel plow. Whether or not he was the 1st to do so is a
matter of dispute.
 1843: Deere partnered with Leonard Andrus to
produce more plows to keep up with demand.
John Deere - Continued
 1848: Deere dissolved the partnership with Andrus and
moved to the transportation hub of Moline, IL near the
Mississippi River.
 1855: Over 10,000 such plows were sold by Deere’s factory.
 From the beginning, Deere insisted on making high quality
equipment.
 Quote: “I will never put my name on a product that does
not have in it the best that is in me.”
 As business improved, Deere left the day-to-day operations
to son, Charles.
 1868: Deere incorporated his business as “Deere &
Company”.
John Deere - Continued
 Later in life, Deere focused most of his attention on civil and
political affairs.
 Served as President of the National Bank of Moline
 Director of the Moline Free Public Library
 Active member of the First Congressional Church
 Served as Mayor of Moline for 2 years.
 Died at home on May 17, 1886.
 The company’s current slogan is
 “Nothing Runs Like a Deere”
 First steel plow sometimes referred to as “The Sod Buster”
 The plow was meant to be hitched to 1 or more draft animals
with the farmer holding onto handles and guiding the plow.
Eli Whitney
December 8, 1765 – January 8, 1825
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
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
American inventor and manufacturer.
Born in Westborough, Mass.
Son of a farmer
Graduated from Yale College 1792, was elected Phi Beta
Kappa.
 January 6, 1817: Married Henrietta Edwards; they had 4
children.
 Died in New Have, CT.
 Most known for:
 making upland short cotton profitable
 inventing the cotton gin
 designing and manufacturing muskets for the government.
Henry Ford
July 30, 1863 – April 7, 1947
 Founder of the Ford Motor Company and the father of
the modern assembly line used in mass production.
 His introduction of the Model T automobile
revolutionized transportation and American industry.
 Sole owner of the Ford Motor Company; became one
of the richest and best known people in the World.
 Credited with “Fordism”: The mass production of large
numbers of inexpensive automobiles using the
assembly line, coupled with high wages for workers.
 Notably: The $5.00/day pay scale adopted in 1914.
Henry Ford - Continued
 Poorly educated but had a global vision and believed
that consumerism was the key to peace.
 One of the World’s leading pacifists in WWI, but
turned the company into a major producer of war
materials in both world wars.
 Had an intense commitment to lowering costs:
 Resulted in numerous experiments and innovations
 Franchise system that put a dealership in every city in
North America and in major cities on 6 continents.
Henry Ford - Continued
 Arch rival, General Motors jumped ahead in the 1920’s
 Offered more options to consumers

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Power
Prestige
Styling
Convenient financing plans.
 Upon death – Ford left most of his wealth to the Ford
Foundation, but arranged for his family to
permanently control the company.
Thomas Alva Edison
February 11, 1847 – October 18, 1931
 American inventor and businessman; dubbed “The Wizard
of Menlo Park” by a newspaper reporter.
 Was one of the 1st inventors to apply the principles of mass
production to the process of invention.
 Can therefore be credited with the invention of the 1st
industrial research laboratory.
 Some “inventions” were not his originally, but were
improvements to existing/earlier inventions or were
actually created by his numerous employees under his
direction.
 Considered one of the most prolific inventors in history
 Holds 1,097 U.S. patents in his name, as well as many
others in the United Kingdom, France, and Germany.
Jethro Tull
1674 – February 21, 1741
 We are not talking about the leader of the rock band
“Jethro Tulll” from Blackpool, England.
 Born in Basildon, Berkshire & died in Shalbourne
 Was an English agricultural pioneer during the Industrial
Revolution and the Agricultural Revolution.
 Educated at St. John’s College, Oxford and Gray’s Inn.
 Influenced by the early enlightenment.
 Considered to be one of the early proponents of a scientific (and
especially empirical) approach to agriculture.
 Helped transform agricultural practices by inventing or
improving numerous agricultural implements
 Most notable: Seed drill – Invented in 1701 when living in
Crowmarsh Gifford.
Jethro Tull - Continued
 Before the Seed Drill –
 Seeds were sewn simply by being cast upon the ground.

They either germinated (or failed to germinate) where they
landed.
 Seed drill created a hole of a specific depth, dropped in a
seed, and covered it over – Three (3) rows at a time.
 Resulted in an increased rate of germination and much
improved crop yield

Up to 8 time more!
Jethro Tull - Continued
 Advocated using horses instead of oxen
 Invented a horse-drawn hoe for clearing weeds
 Made changes to the design of the plough which is still
visible in modern versions.
 Interest in plowing derived from his interest in weed-
control and his belief that fertilizing was unecessary,
as plants obtained nourishment exclusively from
nutrients in the soil.
 He was aware that horse manure carried weed seeds
 Hoped to avoid using it as fertilizer by pulverizing the
soil to enhance the availability of nutrients for plants.
Jethro Tull - Continued
 Tull was wrong about beating up the soil…
 Nutrients were not “locked up” in the soil and could not
be “released” by pulverizing it.
 His inventions were sometimes controversial and were
not widely adopted for many years.
 He introduced innovations which formed part of the
foundation of productive modern agriculture.
 Tull is buried in the churchyard at St. Bartholomew’s
Cathedral in Lower Basildon, Bershire.
Andrew Meikle
1719 – November 27, 1811
 Early mechanical engineer
 Credited with inventing the threshing machine (~1786)
 Used for removing the outer husks from grains of wheat, etc…
Occasionally known as a “thrashing machine”.
 Regarded as one of the key developments of the British
Agricultural Revolution in the late 18th Century.
 Circa 1772: Invented windmill “spring sails”
 Replaced the simple canvas designs previously used with sails
made from a series of shutters that could be operated by
levers
 Allowed windmill sails to be quickly and safely controlled in
the event of a storm.