William Deering: Difference between revisions
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Deering was born April 25, 1826 in [[South Paris]], [[Maine]]. In 1850, he moved to [[Plano, Illinois]] and [[Iowa]] and invested in the farmland of the area.<ref name="Britannica - Online">{{cite web |title=Deering, William.|url=http://library.eb.com/eb/article-9029732|publisher=Encyclopædia Britannica|accessdate=August 12, 2010 }}</ref> In 1856 he returned to Portland, Maine, and in the early 1860s he secured a contract producing uniform coats and pants for the Union Army. This was apparently a successful venture, and after the war Deering opened a dry goods business called [[Milliken & Company|Deering, Milliken & Company]].<ref name="moore deering">{{cite web|last=Moore|first=Sam|title=Let's Talk Rusty Iron|url=http://www.farmcollector.com/Equipment/LETS-TALK-RUSTY-IRON-Deerings-Journey.aspx|work=Farm Collector|accessdate=14 December 2012}}</ref> |
Deering was born April 25, 1826 in [[South Paris]], [[Maine]]. In 1850, he moved to [[Plano, Illinois]] and [[Iowa]] and invested in the farmland of the area.<ref name="Britannica - Online">{{cite web |title=Deering, William.|url=http://library.eb.com/eb/article-9029732|publisher=Encyclopædia Britannica|accessdate=August 12, 2010 }}</ref> In 1856 he returned to Portland, Maine, and in the early 1860s he secured a contract producing uniform coats and pants for the Union Army. This was apparently a successful venture, and after the war Deering opened a dry goods business called [[Milliken & Company|Deering, Milliken & Company]].<ref name="moore deering">{{cite web|last=Moore|first=Sam|title=Let's Talk Rusty Iron|url=http://www.farmcollector.com/Equipment/LETS-TALK-RUSTY-IRON-Deerings-Journey.aspx|work=Farm Collector|accessdate=14 December 2012}}</ref> |
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Around 1870 |
Around 1870 Deering left that business and partnered with Elijah Gammon, providing $40,000 in funding for the production of a horse-drawn grain harvester developed by brothers William and Charles Marsh. By 1872 the company showed $80,000 in profits, and in 1873 the name was changed to Gammon & Deering Co. to reflect Deering's management role. <ref name="moore deering" /> By 1879 Deering was the sole owner and the company's name had been changed to Deering Manufacturing Company.<ref name=plano>{{cite book|last=Gravlin|first=Kristy Lawrie|title=Plano (Images of America)|year=2012|publisher=Arcadia Publishing|isbn=0738594040|pages=51-52|url=http://books.google.com/books?id=UDhn6Zlbf4oC&pg=PA51&dq=William+Deering,+Deering+Harvester+Co.&hl=en&sa=X&ei=yKXLUM_fFcSVqwGg-oGACw&ved=0CDcQ6AEwATgK#v=onepage&q=William%20Deering%2C%20Deering%20Harvester%20Co.&f=false|coauthors=Anne Sears, Jeanne Valentine and Plano Community Library District|accessdate=14 December 2012}}</ref> |
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Along with the Marsh harvester, the company pioneered a harvesting [[reaper]] incorporating an automatic [[twine binder]] invented by [[John Appleby (inventor)|John Appleby]] of [[Beloit, Wisconsin]].<ref name="Harvest">{{cite news |
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| url=http://www.time.com/time/magazine/article/0,9171,755859,00.html |
| url=http://www.time.com/time/magazine/article/0,9171,755859,00.html |
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| title=Northwestern Harvest |
| title=Northwestern Harvest |
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| date=February 24, 1936 |
| date=February 24, 1936 |
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|work=TIME magazine |
|work=TIME magazine |
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| accessdate=2007-07-27}}</ref> Deering |
| accessdate=2007-07-27}}</ref> Deering Manufacturing Company produced and sold 3,000 of Appleby's twine-tie binder for the 1880 harvest, with profits above $400,000.<ref name="moore deering" /> In 1880, Deering moved the company to Chicago and established the Deering Harvester Works.<ref name=plano /> |
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Deering was also responsible for building a modern twine factory to supply farmers with sufficient length and quality of twine to work with the binders, a move followed by most competitors.<ref>{{cite news |
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| url=http://www.howellfarm.org/calendar/wheat/binder_2.htm |
| url=http://www.howellfarm.org/calendar/wheat/binder_2.htm |
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| title="Shaking Off the Shackles of Manual Toil" – The Story of the Binder |
| title="Shaking Off the Shackles of Manual Toil" – The Story of the Binder |
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| date=Autumn 2001/Winter 2002 |
| date=Autumn 2001/Winter 2002 |
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| publisher=The Furrow (The Friends of Howell Living History Farm) |
| publisher=The Furrow (The Friends of Howell Living History Farm) |
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| accessdate=2007-07-27}}</ref> He conducted several experiments and determined that the ideal binder twine would be made of manila, spun to 700 feet per pound.<ref name="twist and twine">{{cite book|last=International Harvester Company|title=Twist and Twine: The story of cordage|year=1969|publisher=Parents' Magazine Press|isbn=0819303143|pages=5-6|url=http://books.google.com/books?id=-N_hwZ05rtEC&printsec=frontcover&dq=William+Deering,+Deering+Harvester+Co.&hl=en&sa=X&ei=b6bLUN3lOsuvqwGvxYGQBQ&ved=0CEsQ6AEwBTgo#v=onepage&q=William%20Deering%2C%20Deering%20Harvester%20Co.&f=false}}</ref> |
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| accessdate=2007-07-27}}</ref> |
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The Deering company and the reorganized Plano Harvester Company, which had moved to [[Pullman, Illinois|Pullman]], competed aggressively with each other and the [[McCormick Harvesting Machine Company]], but in 1902, under his son's direction, all three companies merged to form the [[International Harvester Company]].<ref>{{cite web |
The Deering company and the reorganized Plano Harvester Company, which had moved to [[Pullman, Illinois|Pullman]], competed aggressively with each other and the [[McCormick Harvesting Machine Company]], but in 1902, under his son's direction, all three companies merged to form the [[International Harvester Company]].<ref>{{cite web |
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| accessdate=2007-07-27}}</ref> |
| accessdate=2007-07-27}}</ref> |
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William Deering financially supported several institutions of Chicago, the [[Northwestern University]], the [[Garrett-Evangelical Theological Seminary]], and the [[Wesley Hospital]] among them. He gave Northwestern over $1 million over the years,<ref name="Harvest"/> and served on the university's board for 38 years, including 10 years (1895–1905) as president of the board; he declined an offer to rename the school ''Deering University''.<ref name="Charting">{{cite news |
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| url=http://www.northwestern.edu/magazine/northwestern/spring2001/charting_long_feature.htm |
| url=http://www.northwestern.edu/magazine/northwestern/spring2001/charting_long_feature.htm |
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| title=Charting the Way |
| title=Charting the Way |
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| year = 1914 |
| year = 1914 |
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| url = http://www.archive.org/stream/williamdeeringbo00chic/williamdeeringbo00chic_djvu.txt |
| url = http://www.archive.org/stream/williamdeeringbo00chic/williamdeeringbo00chic_djvu.txt |
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| accessdate = March 17, 2011}}</ref> He was the father of [[Charles Deering]] (1852–1927) and [[James Deering]] (1859–1925). The [[Deering Library]] at Northwestern is named for the family. An 1899 portrait by [[Anders Zorn]] |
| accessdate = March 17, 2011}}</ref> He was the father of [[Charles Deering]] (1852–1927) and [[James Deering]] (1859–1925). The [[Deering Library]] at Northwestern is named for the family. An 1899 portrait of him by [[Anders Zorn]] hangs in the library.<ref>{{cite web |title= Art in the Eloise W. Martin Reading Room |work= Northwestern University Library web site |url= http://www.library.northwestern.edu/libraries-collections/evanston-campus/art-collection/art-the-reading-room |accessdate= December 27, 2010 }}</ref> |
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==Trivia== |
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William Deering scouted territory in Southeast Missouri for timber in the late 1890, purchasing 60,000 acres of land in Pemiscot and Dunklin Counties. The town [[Deering, Missouri|Deering]] is named after him. |
William Deering scouted territory in Southeast Missouri for timber in the late 1890, purchasing 60,000 acres of land in Pemiscot and Dunklin Counties. The town [[Deering, Missouri|Deering]] is named after him. |
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Revision as of 22:58, 14 December 2012
William Deering | |
|---|---|
 William Deering in 1899 | |
| Born | April 25, 1826 South Paris, Maine, USA |
| Died | December 9, 1913 (aged 87) Coconut Grove, Florida, USA |
William Deering (1826–1913) was an American businessman and philanthropist. He inherited a woolen mill in Maine, but made his fortune in later life with the Deering Harvester Company.
Life
Deering was born April 25, 1826 in South Paris, Maine. In 1850, he moved to Plano, Illinois and Iowa and invested in the farmland of the area.[1] In 1856 he returned to Portland, Maine, and in the early 1860s he secured a contract producing uniform coats and pants for the Union Army. This was apparently a successful venture, and after the war Deering opened a dry goods business called Deering, Milliken & Company.[2]
Around 1870 Deering left that business and partnered with Elijah Gammon, providing $40,000 in funding for the production of a horse-drawn grain harvester developed by brothers William and Charles Marsh. By 1872 the company showed $80,000 in profits, and in 1873 the name was changed to Gammon & Deering Co. to reflect Deering's management role. [2] By 1879 Deering was the sole owner and the company's name had been changed to Deering Manufacturing Company.[3]
Along with the Marsh harvester, the company pioneered a harvesting reaper incorporating an automatic twine binder invented by John Appleby of Beloit, Wisconsin.[4] Deering Manufacturing Company produced and sold 3,000 of Appleby's twine-tie binder for the 1880 harvest, with profits above $400,000.[2] In 1880, Deering moved the company to Chicago and established the Deering Harvester Works.[3]
Deering was also responsible for building a modern twine factory to supply farmers with sufficient length and quality of twine to work with the binders, a move followed by most competitors.[5] He conducted several experiments and determined that the ideal binder twine would be made of manila, spun to 700 feet per pound.[6]
The Deering company and the reorganized Plano Harvester Company, which had moved to Pullman, competed aggressively with each other and the McCormick Harvesting Machine Company, but in 1902, under his son's direction, all three companies merged to form the International Harvester Company.[7]
William Deering financially supported several institutions of Chicago, the Northwestern University, the Garrett-Evangelical Theological Seminary, and the Wesley Hospital among them. He gave Northwestern over $1 million over the years,[4] and served on the university's board for 38 years, including 10 years (1895–1905) as president of the board; he declined an offer to rename the school Deering University.[8]
After Deering retired in 1901 he spent a large part of each year at his winter home in Coconut Grove, Florida. He died on December 9, 1913 in Coconut Grove with his two sons in attendance.[9] He was the father of Charles Deering (1852–1927) and James Deering (1859–1925). The Deering Library at Northwestern is named for the family. An 1899 portrait of him by Anders Zorn hangs in the library.[10]
Trivia
William Deering scouted territory in Southeast Missouri for timber in the late 1890, purchasing 60,000 acres of land in Pemiscot and Dunklin Counties. The town Deering is named after him.
References
- ^ "Deering, William". Encyclopædia Britannica. Retrieved August 12, 2010.
- ^ a b c Moore, Sam. "Let's Talk Rusty Iron". Farm Collector. Retrieved December 14, 2012.
- ^ a b Gravlin, Kristy Lawrie (2012). Plano (Images of America). Arcadia Publishing. pp. 51–52. ISBN 0738594040. Retrieved December 14, 2012.
{{cite book}}: Unknown parameter|coauthors=ignored (|author=suggested) (help) - ^ a b "Northwestern Harvest". TIME magazine. February 24, 1936. Retrieved July 27, 2007.
- ^ ""Shaking Off the Shackles of Manual Toil" – The Story of the Binder". The Furrow (The Friends of Howell Living History Farm). Autumn 2001/Winter 2002. Retrieved 2007-07-27.
{{cite news}}: Check date values in:|date=(help) - ^ International Harvester Company (1969). Twist and Twine: The story of cordage. Parents' Magazine Press. pp. 5–6. ISBN 0819303143.
- ^ "Agricultural Machine Industry". Encyclopedia of Chicago. Chicago Historical Society. Retrieved July 27, 2007.
- ^ Kent Cubbage (Spring 2001). "Charting the Way". Northwestern Magazine. Retrieved July 27, 2007.
- ^ "William Deering, born in Maine, 1826, died in Florida 1913". eBook from the library of the University of Illinois. 1914. Retrieved March 17, 2011.
- ^ "Art in the Eloise W. Martin Reading Room". Northwestern University Library web site. Retrieved December 27, 2010.
External links
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