The man who cultivated Atchison
It was 1910, and a 53-year-old man with a lot of U.S, patents and dreams was headed for Atchinson from Geneva, Neb. In 1912, he founded a business in Atchinson that became known across America and in many other countries.
The Bailor Plow Manufacturing Co. was organized with authorized capital of $50,000 in 1910, and the firm was in full swing here in 1912, with Silas Edward Bailor at the helm. Ingalls History of that era lists J.M. Schott as president and Chas. Linley as vice president of the company.
Silas also established the Bailor Cultivator Co. in Atchinson, and his main claim to fame was invention of both the one-row and two-row motorized cultivators. It was a boon to the horse-and-mule field cultivation of that day, and an addition to the flourishing Atchinson business community,
The plant was reportedly at 13th and Main streets, currant location of MGP Ingredients, Inc. holdings.
Silas Bailor held dozens of patents, but none of his inventions caught on like the three-wheeled cultivators.
Introduced from the Atchinson plant in 1919, the two-row cultivator was described as "a tricycle design with a four-cylinder Leroi engine." The smaller one-row was born in 1921, fitted with the same engine,
Bailor specialty wrenches were manufactured in Atchinson, and existing cultivators and wrenches are now avidly sought by collectors. Silas might be surprised at the prices his wares now commend, and how many antique and vintage farm equipment shows feature refurbished cultivators.
In 1921, the two-row cost $850, the one-row model was $675. A current antique value guide lists the Model A. two-row at $14,000, the Model W. one-row at $15,000-if they can be found. Most remaining ones are in collectors hands, have new red and green paint jobs, and are rarely for sale. In 2007, a Bailor motor cultivator was the star of the Lake Goldsmith Rally in Victoria, Australia.
Silas is listed in Biographical information as a farmer and inventor of Fillmore County, Nebraska and Atchinson. He was born on Christmas day, 1857, to Adam and Sarah Coombs Bailor of Warren County, Ohio.
The family moved to Nebraska in 1876 and took up a tree claim southeast of Geneva. Silas attended public schools in and around Geneva, and on March 13 or 14 (histories vary),
1883, was wed to Della Adams in Geneva. They farmed south of Geneva, and had three daughters and a son, one of the girls died in infancy,
Silas actually built his first cultivator in 1892 while working in a Geneva foundry prior to moving to Atchinson. The local plant also turned out Bailor-patented harrows, listers and other farm machines designed by Silas.
The two-row cultivator received the highest award at the 1904 Louisiana Purchase Exposition in St. Louis, MO. One of Silas' last patent applications was filed July 12, 1930, for a cotton harvester. The patent was granted Feb. 2, 1932, the same year he applied for a cultivator lifting gear patent. On United States Office records, the cotton harvester appears to have been granted Patent No. 1,842,190.
Silas apparently sold the Atchinson holdings in the 1920s and the unidentified buyer(s) kept his name, as ads for a plow and lister in 1930 listed the producer as Bailor Cultivator Co. of Atchinson, with " 25 years of quality and service." The ad also offered dealers seven other implements made in Atchinson.
The 1926 Atchinson directory lists Bailor Cultivator Co. at 1302 main St., Wm. C. O'Brien president, W, C. Thomas vice president-secretary. In the 1928 directory, that information varies only in that the address is 1300 Main. By 1941, the company was no longer listed.
The 1910 United States Federal Census list Silas as a resident of Atchinson. 1920 and 1930 censuses place him in Washita, Okla. A resident of Kent County, Texas found a Bailor family Bible. The Bible had the marriage record of Silas and Della along with names of Blanche and Mabel Bailor. Silas died in 1948 at age 91 in Wellington, and its unknown how the Bible got to Texas. It is known, however, that Silas Bailors life work and his inventive genuius have put Atchinson on the world map of evolution of agricultural equipment,
Article by Patty Moore, Atchinson Globe, Monday, June 28, 2010.
It was 1910, and a 53-year-old man with a lot of U.S, patents and dreams was headed for Atchinson from Geneva, Neb. In 1912, he founded a business in Atchinson that became known across America and in many other countries.
The Bailor Plow Manufacturing Co. was organized with authorized capital of $50,000 in 1910, and the firm was in full swing here in 1912, with Silas Edward Bailor at the helm. Ingalls History of that era lists J.M. Schott as president and Chas. Linley as vice president of the company.
Silas also established the Bailor Cultivator Co. in Atchinson, and his main claim to fame was invention of both the one-row and two-row motorized cultivators. It was a boon to the horse-and-mule field cultivation of that day, and an addition to the flourishing Atchinson business community,
The plant was reportedly at 13th and Main streets, currant location of MGP Ingredients, Inc. holdings.
Silas Bailor held dozens of patents, but none of his inventions caught on like the three-wheeled cultivators.
Introduced from the Atchinson plant in 1919, the two-row cultivator was described as "a tricycle design with a four-cylinder Leroi engine." The smaller one-row was born in 1921, fitted with the same engine,
Bailor specialty wrenches were manufactured in Atchinson, and existing cultivators and wrenches are now avidly sought by collectors. Silas might be surprised at the prices his wares now commend, and how many antique and vintage farm equipment shows feature refurbished cultivators.
In 1921, the two-row cost $850, the one-row model was $675. A current antique value guide lists the Model A. two-row at $14,000, the Model W. one-row at $15,000-if they can be found. Most remaining ones are in collectors hands, have new red and green paint jobs, and are rarely for sale. In 2007, a Bailor motor cultivator was the star of the Lake Goldsmith Rally in Victoria, Australia.
Silas is listed in Biographical information as a farmer and inventor of Fillmore County, Nebraska and Atchinson. He was born on Christmas day, 1857, to Adam and Sarah Coombs Bailor of Warren County, Ohio.
The family moved to Nebraska in 1876 and took up a tree claim southeast of Geneva. Silas attended public schools in and around Geneva, and on March 13 or 14 (histories vary),
1883, was wed to Della Adams in Geneva. They farmed south of Geneva, and had three daughters and a son, one of the girls died in infancy,
Silas actually built his first cultivator in 1892 while working in a Geneva foundry prior to moving to Atchinson. The local plant also turned out Bailor-patented harrows, listers and other farm machines designed by Silas.
The two-row cultivator received the highest award at the 1904 Louisiana Purchase Exposition in St. Louis, MO. One of Silas' last patent applications was filed July 12, 1930, for a cotton harvester. The patent was granted Feb. 2, 1932, the same year he applied for a cultivator lifting gear patent. On United States Office records, the cotton harvester appears to have been granted Patent No. 1,842,190.
Silas apparently sold the Atchinson holdings in the 1920s and the unidentified buyer(s) kept his name, as ads for a plow and lister in 1930 listed the producer as Bailor Cultivator Co. of Atchinson, with " 25 years of quality and service." The ad also offered dealers seven other implements made in Atchinson.
The 1926 Atchinson directory lists Bailor Cultivator Co. at 1302 main St., Wm. C. O'Brien president, W, C. Thomas vice president-secretary. In the 1928 directory, that information varies only in that the address is 1300 Main. By 1941, the company was no longer listed.
The 1910 United States Federal Census list Silas as a resident of Atchinson. 1920 and 1930 censuses place him in Washita, Okla. A resident of Kent County, Texas found a Bailor family Bible. The Bible had the marriage record of Silas and Della along with names of Blanche and Mabel Bailor. Silas died in 1948 at age 91 in Wellington, and its unknown how the Bible got to Texas. It is known, however, that Silas Bailors life work and his inventive genuius have put Atchinson on the world map of evolution of agricultural equipment,
Article by Patty Moore, Atchinson Globe, Monday, June 28, 2010.
The man who cultivated Atchison
It was 1910, and a 53-year-old man with a lot of U.S, patents and dreams was headed for Atchinson from Geneva, Neb. In 1912, he founded a business in Atchinson that became known across America and in many other countries.
The Bailor Plow Manufacturing Co. was organized with authorized capital of $50,000 in 1910, and the firm was in full swing here in 1912, with Silas Edward Bailor at the helm. Ingalls History of that era lists J.M. Schott as president and Chas. Linley as vice president of the company.
Silas also established the Bailor Cultivator Co. in Atchinson, and his main claim to fame was invention of both the one-row and two-row motorized cultivators. It was a boon to the horse-and-mule field cultivation of that day, and an addition to the flourishing Atchinson business community,
The plant was reportedly at 13th and Main streets, currant location of MGP Ingredients, Inc. holdings.
Silas Bailor held dozens of patents, but none of his inventions caught on like the three-wheeled cultivators.
Introduced from the Atchinson plant in 1919, the two-row cultivator was described as "a tricycle design with a four-cylinder Leroi engine." The smaller one-row was born in 1921, fitted with the same engine,
Bailor specialty wrenches were manufactured in Atchinson, and existing cultivators and wrenches are now avidly sought by collectors. Silas might be surprised at the prices his wares now commend, and how many antique and vintage farm equipment shows feature refurbished cultivators.
In 1921, the two-row cost $850, the one-row model was $675. A current antique value guide lists the Model A. two-row at $14,000, the Model W. one-row at $15,000-if they can be found. Most remaining ones are in collectors hands, have new red and green paint jobs, and are rarely for sale. In 2007, a Bailor motor cultivator was the star of the Lake Goldsmith Rally in Victoria, Australia.
Silas is listed in Biographical information as a farmer and inventor of Fillmore County, Nebraska and Atchinson. He was born on Christmas day, 1857, to Adam and Sarah Coombs Bailor of Warren County, Ohio.
The family moved to Nebraska in 1876 and took up a tree claim southeast of Geneva. Silas attended public schools in and around Geneva, and on March 13 or 14 (histories vary),
1883, was wed to Della Adams in Geneva. They farmed south of Geneva, and had three daughters and a son, one of the girls died in infancy,
Silas actually built his first cultivator in 1892 while working in a Geneva foundry prior to moving to Atchinson. The local plant also turned out Bailor-patented harrows, listers and other farm machines designed by Silas.
The two-row cultivator received the highest award at the 1904 Louisiana Purchase Exposition in St. Louis, MO. One of Silas' last patent applications was filed July 12, 1930, for a cotton harvester. The patent was granted Feb. 2, 1932, the same year he applied for a cultivator lifting gear patent. On United States Office records, the cotton harvester appears to have been granted Patent No. 1,842,190.
Silas apparently sold the Atchinson holdings in the 1920s and the unidentified buyer(s) kept his name, as ads for a plow and lister in 1930 listed the producer as Bailor Cultivator Co. of Atchinson, with " 25 years of quality and service." The ad also offered dealers seven other implements made in Atchinson.
The 1926 Atchinson directory lists Bailor Cultivator Co. at 1302 main St., Wm. C. O'Brien president, W, C. Thomas vice president-secretary. In the 1928 directory, that information varies only in that the address is 1300 Main. By 1941, the company was no longer listed.
The 1910 United States Federal Census list Silas as a resident of Atchinson. 1920 and 1930 censuses place him in Washita, Okla. A resident of Kent County, Texas found a Bailor family Bible. The Bible had the marriage record of Silas and Della along with names of Blanche and Mabel Bailor. Silas died in 1948 at age 91 in Wellington, and its unknown how the Bible got to Texas. It is known, however, that Silas Bailors life work and his inventive genuius have put Atchinson on the world map of evolution of agricultural equipment,
Article by Patty Moore, Atchinson Globe, Monday, June 28, 2010.
It was 1910, and a 53-year-old man with a lot of U.S, patents and dreams was headed for Atchinson from Geneva, Neb. In 1912, he founded a business in Atchinson that became known across America and in many other countries.
The Bailor Plow Manufacturing Co. was organized with authorized capital of $50,000 in 1910, and the firm was in full swing here in 1912, with Silas Edward Bailor at the helm. Ingalls History of that era lists J.M. Schott as president and Chas. Linley as vice president of the company.
Silas also established the Bailor Cultivator Co. in Atchinson, and his main claim to fame was invention of both the one-row and two-row motorized cultivators. It was a boon to the horse-and-mule field cultivation of that day, and an addition to the flourishing Atchinson business community,
The plant was reportedly at 13th and Main streets, currant location of MGP Ingredients, Inc. holdings.
Silas Bailor held dozens of patents, but none of his inventions caught on like the three-wheeled cultivators.
Introduced from the Atchinson plant in 1919, the two-row cultivator was described as "a tricycle design with a four-cylinder Leroi engine." The smaller one-row was born in 1921, fitted with the same engine,
Bailor specialty wrenches were manufactured in Atchinson, and existing cultivators and wrenches are now avidly sought by collectors. Silas might be surprised at the prices his wares now commend, and how many antique and vintage farm equipment shows feature refurbished cultivators.
In 1921, the two-row cost $850, the one-row model was $675. A current antique value guide lists the Model A. two-row at $14,000, the Model W. one-row at $15,000-if they can be found. Most remaining ones are in collectors hands, have new red and green paint jobs, and are rarely for sale. In 2007, a Bailor motor cultivator was the star of the Lake Goldsmith Rally in Victoria, Australia.
Silas is listed in Biographical information as a farmer and inventor of Fillmore County, Nebraska and Atchinson. He was born on Christmas day, 1857, to Adam and Sarah Coombs Bailor of Warren County, Ohio.
The family moved to Nebraska in 1876 and took up a tree claim southeast of Geneva. Silas attended public schools in and around Geneva, and on March 13 or 14 (histories vary),
1883, was wed to Della Adams in Geneva. They farmed south of Geneva, and had three daughters and a son, one of the girls died in infancy,
Silas actually built his first cultivator in 1892 while working in a Geneva foundry prior to moving to Atchinson. The local plant also turned out Bailor-patented harrows, listers and other farm machines designed by Silas.
The two-row cultivator received the highest award at the 1904 Louisiana Purchase Exposition in St. Louis, MO. One of Silas' last patent applications was filed July 12, 1930, for a cotton harvester. The patent was granted Feb. 2, 1932, the same year he applied for a cultivator lifting gear patent. On United States Office records, the cotton harvester appears to have been granted Patent No. 1,842,190.
Silas apparently sold the Atchinson holdings in the 1920s and the unidentified buyer(s) kept his name, as ads for a plow and lister in 1930 listed the producer as Bailor Cultivator Co. of Atchinson, with " 25 years of quality and service." The ad also offered dealers seven other implements made in Atchinson.
The 1926 Atchinson directory lists Bailor Cultivator Co. at 1302 main St., Wm. C. O'Brien president, W, C. Thomas vice president-secretary. In the 1928 directory, that information varies only in that the address is 1300 Main. By 1941, the company was no longer listed.
The 1910 United States Federal Census list Silas as a resident of Atchinson. 1920 and 1930 censuses place him in Washita, Okla. A resident of Kent County, Texas found a Bailor family Bible. The Bible had the marriage record of Silas and Della along with names of Blanche and Mabel Bailor. Silas died in 1948 at age 91 in Wellington, and its unknown how the Bible got to Texas. It is known, however, that Silas Bailors life work and his inventive genuius have put Atchinson on the world map of evolution of agricultural equipment,
Article by Patty Moore, Atchinson Globe, Monday, June 28, 2010.
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