David Bradley Tractors
David Bradley Died in 1899, but His Legacy is Alive and Well in Every State in the Union
November/December 2001
Terry E. Strasser
A David Bradley Tri-Trac. Although this is not the company's
best known offering, it's an interesting design. Built from
1954-1957, it was powered by a 6 HP Wisconsin and featured speed
changer, reverse, and a ball lock clutch. This tractor was forced
on David Bradley by parent company Sears & Roebuck, who wanted
to compete with the likes of IHC and their Cub. The story goes that
a David Bradley engineer who worked on the model refused to be
pictured with the tractor for publicity purposes as he believed the
tractor unsafe.
RELATED CONTENT
Born Nov. 8, 1811, on the family farm near Groton, N.Y., David
Bradley would grow up to become a leader in the American
agricultural revolution. In 1832 he and his brother Christopher
Columbus Bradley moved to Syracuse, N.Y., where they trained and
worked in a foundry. In 1835 David moved to Chicago, Ill., where he
shortly thereafter invented the steel moldboard plow, The Garden
City Clipper, which was made in 200 different versions for over 100
years.
A vast number of agricultural implements and tools were made
through the 19th and 20th centuries, and in 1895 the David Bradley
Manufacturing Works relocated its manufacturing facility to North
Kankakee, Ill., later renamed Bradley, Ill. Although purchased by
Sears Roebuck & Co. in 1912, the company continued as a
homogeneous entity until its sale to George Roper & Co. in
1966. The company continued to be a major force in agriculture by
virtue of design, manufacture and collaboration with other leading
companies of the era.
It was just after World War II that Bradley unveiled what was
destined to become their most famous line of products, the David
Bradley two-wheel walking garden tractor and its line of
implements.
Over its 20-year life, 1946-1966, the David Bradley walk-behind
was made in many different models, ranging from 1 HP hooded
versions to 6 HP unhooded versions. Such options as reverse range,
speed changer, brake, and on some models a locking differential,
were offered. Over 40 different implements were offered to do every
agricultural and lawn care job imaginable. Through the emerging
interest in the hobby of collecting, restoring and showing antique
farm equipment, David Bradley has experienced a rebirth.