McCormick Reaper

Cyrus Hall McCormick (1809 - 1884) produced this mechanical reaper in 1831 and received the patent for it in 1834. It was the first practical reaper of its kind in the United States. (A similar design was produced by Patrick Bell of Scotland around the same time period.) It slowly came into general use after the great exhibition of London in 1851.

The reaper replaced the sickle. It combined several steps that earlier harvestors had performed separately. It cut wheat stalk and laid it on the ground to be raked and bundled and carried out of the field.

Other Cyrus McCormick and McCormick Reaper sites:

• Virginia Agricultural Extension Service - McCormick Farm
  See the biography and grain harvesting links at the bottom of the page for photos of the McCormick reaper and a history of grain harvesting.

• The McCormick-International Harvester Company Collection
  A collection at the State Historical Society of Wisconsin

• McCormick, Cyrus Hall - Biography On-Line Database
  

Close This Window

Go Back