The Green Girl: The making of Moline

John Deere pioneers the prairie plow--part II
Part two: The making of Moline and the battle for branding

With his decision to relocate his budding plow business here in 1847, John Deere can certainly take credit for putting Moline, Illinois, on the map

In fact, his famed invention would earn Moline the nickname of "Plow City," which it celebrated proudly in its centennial year of 1948.

With farmers in the Midwest, John Deere’s designs quickly became known as "Moline plows." However, a challenging hometown competitor sought to take advantage of that fact by confusing customers with a similar name and product —İanother Moline Plow.

It started in 1866 with a catalog from Candee, Swan & Company that practically mirrored Deere’s own, duplicating the product line almost model for model. Even prices and model numbers were identical! And perhaps, worst of all, Candee & Swan copied the Deere trademark logo almost to the letter.

It didn’t take long for this confusion to cause concerns with farmers and dealers in the field.

Deere alleged that Candee & Swan dealers were deceptively marketing the products using Deere’s solid reputation. Deere considered the Candee & Swan plows an "inferior imitation" and did his best to spread the word about the counterfeit company in advertising. However, this did not seem to be enough, as Deere took Candee, Swan & Co. to court in 1867. It was a landmark case in trademarks for the fact that it set the precedent whether or not a company could claim "ownership" of a town’s name after advertising it heavily.

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It’s doubtful anyone would say that John Deere was raised with a silver spoon in his mouth, but these beautiful silver spoons call Moline "The Plow City" and sport the celebrated plow he designed in 1837. The ornate inscriptions make this trio an attractive addition to any John Deere collection. While it can’t be confirmed that Deere & Company actually produced any such items, some collectors could care less — they’d be proud to own one of these commemorative spoons.

To add insult to injury, one of John Deere’s former employees had been fired and went to work for Candee & Swan. Andrew Friberg became a pawn in the fierce fight between the two companies.

Oddly enough, Candee, Swan & Company was experiencing severe financial difficulties at this time. In mid-1868, the company was bought out and renamed "The Moline Plow Company." Because of the similar names of the two companies, even mail was delivered erroneously between them both!

The case concluded in November 1869 with a sweeping victory for Deere & Company. The defendants were "forever restrained and enjoined" from calling themselves "The Moline Plow Co." and were not to infringe on the trademark, model names, or product line of Deere.

Unfortunately, the case was appealed to the Illinois State Supreme Court in 1871 and the initial decision reversed, causing Deere a temporary setback and giving The Moline Plow Company a big boost on its way to becoming a major manufacturer.

This acclaimed enemy would drag Deere down again during a prolonged bid process in 1889 from a British syndicate who wanted to buy Deere & Company, Deere & Mansur, and the Moline Plow Company. Eventually, the deal fell through, but not before Charles Deere himself ended up owning shares of his competitor’s stock. Later, Deere would compete with his rivals in plow (Flying Dutchman) and tractor (Moline Universal) manufacturing as well.

Employees also switched sides, leading to multiple clashes in court over design patents, branch battles, slanderous attacks, and such. As it turns out, Deere seriously considered buying the Moline Plow Company’s tractor plant in 1924, but it was sold to the International Harvester Company instead. The Moline Plow Co. was then renamed the Moline Implement Company, which eventually consolidated into the Minneapolis-Moline business.

Next week, The Green Girl takes a break from the Related Companies series to hype her upcoming book, John Deere Collectibles. Plus, The Green Girl will be returning from Italy with a full report of any Deere sightings abroad!

Plow story

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John Deere dealers ran ads to warn customers of "counterfeit" Moline plows from Candee, Swan & Company. The ad says that the competitor does not have "sufficient confidence in their own plow to offer them upon their own merits." From John Deere’s Company by Wayne Broehl.

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These pins represent mostly plow companies (except for the large Velie car button in the center…see the 11/6/00 column). At the far left is a stick pin of the Flying Dutchman spokesman for The Moline Plow Company. The small red shield stick pin is from the Rock Island Plow Company, another Quad City manufacturer. Both of these Deere competitors also built a tractor for a brief period in the early 1900s. The silver button in the lower center is for John Deere plows. The far right stick pin is from Hummer. Photo © Copyright 2000 Denny Eilers

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This glass paperweight compliments of the Syracuse Chilled Plow Company can probably be dated between 1879 and 1911 — when the company was first founded and when it was acquired by John Deere. A matching paperweight from the John Deere Plow Company of Kansas City featuring "implements, wagons & buggies" is also known to exist. The trademark featured in this other piece is identical to one used in 1893. Photo © Copyright 2000 Denny Eilers

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An 1897 catalog, colorful trading cards, postcard and watch fobs hail from the Syracuse Chilled Plow Company of Syracuse, New York, which was established in 1879. The company joined the Deere organization in the early 1900s, adding a popular chilled-plow design to the John Deere product line.

The Syracuse Chilled Plow company

Not all plow companies were competitive with John Deere. The Syracuse Chilled Plow Works factory of New York state manufactured plows that perfectly complemented John Deere’s design for the Midwest. The chilled plows first made by Thomas Wiard in 1867 worked well in the light, gravelly soils of the East.

The thriving business became the Syracuse Chilled Plow Company in 1879. First year sales of the highest-grade chilled plows reached 7,000 units. The Hoover line of potato equipment was also built here. In 1911, the Syracuse Chilled Plow Company was added to the John Deere family.