The Plymouth Tractor

This short-lived tractor with a familiar name was featured at the Charles Schneider auction in Lapeer, MI this past June. What a beautiful tractor!

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The Plymouth tractor is not related to the Plymouth line of cars offered by Chrysler. While the tractor company’s founders argued that they came up with the name independently, Chrysler sued for use of the name. The tractor company won the lawsuit, but they agreed to give up use of the name anyways – making the Plymouth tractor a thing of the past.

Manufactured in 1933-34, the Plymouth tractor has a 4-cylinder Hercules engine and a 4-speed transmission. It was built to be the lightweight, easy-to-operate tractor that 60-acre farms needed. The Plymouth came with steel wheels, and the optional rubber tires allowed the tractor to go up to 25 miles per hour – that’s speedy for 1933! Most buyers paid for the rubber tires, and original steel wheels are almost impossible to find.

While exact records haven’t survived until today, collectors estimate that 215 Plymouth tractors were built. Only around 70 are known to still exist. This orchard-style tractor from the Schneider collection must be one-of-a-kind, or at least nearly so!

Beginning with serial number 315 (manufactured in late 1934), this tractor was no longer known as the Plymouth – can you guess what it was renamed?

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If you guessed “Silver King,” you’re right! The tractor line would continue through 1954 under the Silver King name. The tractors retained the distinctive silver color, but switched from blue trim to red.

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