In 1937, John Deere celebrated the 100th anniversary of their founder’s steel plow. At a recent show in Portland, Indiana, I came across the biggest, best piece of memorabilia they produced for the celebration – a one-of-a-kind John Deere tractor painted gold at the factory.
The John Deere Company has plenty to be proud of. The Illinois blacksmith’s plow was a revolution, allowing farmers to quickly and efficiently cut through the sticky Midwestern soil. Before long, John Deere was a household name – he’d sold more than 10,000 plows by 1855.
Tractors followed after a few attempts – the company was insistent on not entering the tractor market until they had a quality, competitive product. At first they made their own early tractors, but in 1918 they ended their own experimentation and purchased the Waterloo Gasoline Engine Company. They manufactured the Waterloo Boy tractor for many years. It wasn’t until 1923 that they introduced a tractor under their own name – the John Deere Model D.
In 1937, the year of the centennial, America was still plunged into the Great Depression. John Deere continued to employ workers, develop new products, and advance the company – even when they were losing money. By the Centennial, the company was ready for a celebration.
The Centennial celebrations included special events and exhibits across the country. Memorabilia from this year is still a hot commodity among collectors – I’ve seen coins and fobs, cigar bands, and even a drinking glass! But the best, most show-stopping piece of memorabilia I’ve seen is this golden beauty.
This Gold Leaf John Deere D was manufactured in December of 1936 and used at celebrations throughout the centennial year. It was displayed proudly in the Kansas City branch office, where a quick-thinking Oklahoma dealer spotted it. The dealer (Frances Gooden of Kingfisher, OK) made a persuasive bid for the tractor, which was awarded to him “in recognition of an outstanding tractor sales record made by the Gooden store in 1937” (according to an article in the September 3, 1938Implement and Tractor Magazine).
A similar race for ownership took place back home in Oklahoma between two farmers who both wanted the tractor. Ben Hancock won the purchase and used it on his farm for years – he claimed that the gold paint inspired his fields to bigger yields.
The tractor’s current owner, Charles Q. English, Sr., read about this tractor in the 1938 Implement and Tractor magazine. While most of us would think ”wow, cool story!” and move on, that’s not the case for Charles! After some extensive sleuthing, he tracked down this one-of-a-kind tractor, still on a farm in Kingfisher, Oklahoma, and brought it home to restore. He even has a signed affidavit from the grandson of the dealer, George Gooden, who was pictured as a child in the 1938 magazine article and personally attested to the chain of ownership and authenticity of the machine.
Charles’ painstaking restoration peeled back a layer of green paint to reveal the original gold. He matched the color as closely as he could with modern paint – this is 1998 GM Code 63.
Well done, Charles! What a neat piece of John Deere history.
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