Machinery Pete interviews Neil Dahlstrom, Manager of Archives and History for John Deere about his new book, “Tractor Wars – John Deere, Henry Ford, International Harvester and the Birth of American Agriculture.” Dahlstrom shares fascinating stories from the period 100+ years ago on the race for dominance and relevance in the burgeoning new American market for farm tractors. Pete also provides a recap of a November 6, 2021 farm retirement he filmed for his TV show in Keymar, MD….according to Pete “The Hottest Auction I’ve Seen in my 32 Years.”

• [:35] - Machinery Pete teases this episode’s interview
• [2:10] - McGrew Auction recap
• [7:46] - Interview with Neil Dahlstrom begins
• [10:17] - Early life, growing up near Deere archive building
• [13:04] - About the new book
• [15:03] - History of Ford, International Harvester and Deere Tractors
• [26:18] - Advent of the small tractor
• [36:58] - Tractor market in 1925 
• [49:08] - Relating computer advancements to tractors and “what if?s”
• [53:12] - Where to buy the book
• [54:08] - Final words from Machinery Pete

Machinery Pete was founded in 1989 and has grown from its humble beginnings to a full-fledged marketplace for farming equipment. Greg Peterson, founder and host, has also released Machinery Pete content across platforms including YouTube with his long-running Machinery Pete TV show.

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