The Green Girl weekly web column by Brenda Kruse

Aug. 19, 2002

Formerly on FieldReporter.com

Are you a master of John Deere trivia?
 It’s in the cards with the Limited Collector’s Edition Game

When it’s hot and dry outside, sit indoors with a cool beverage, cool off in the AC, and play a John Deere board game built to test even the toughest trivia buff!
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A few weeks ago, we explored the John Deere Farm Game first produced in 1937 and 1938.

Now let’s look at a more-recent board game that can make you an expert on Deere & Company. John Deere produced only 5,000 copies of this limited collector’s edition game in 2000.

The JOHN DEERE TRIVIA MASTER game is for two to eight players ages eight to adult. It says it took more than two years to develop this game and that two types of questions make it well-suited for both the "beginning trivia buff" and the "avid historian."

One box of 400 cards is in the traditional Trivial Pursuit game format with five categories per card and the answers on the back. The other box of 400 cards is purely multiple-choice. It takes one of the category questions and offers four choices for the answer. Clearly, it’s easier to play with the latter box!

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"Enhance your bragging rights as you call upon your extensive knowledge of John Deere lore. Thousands of questions in various categories cover people, places, and products, with plenty of intriguing anecdotes about John Deere, the man and the company."

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All questions and answers came from material found in Deere & Company’s Archives.

Everything was researched and compiled by Ralph Hughes, a retired employee and personal expert on the Deere experience.

To win the game, a player must acquire all seven trademarks, which are stored in your trademark holder.

The 1876 one is given as a free starter and the 1968 trademark is the winning one. The 1912, 1936, 1937, 1950, and 1956 logos represent the various categories of questions.

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Categories include:

  • Facilities, People, Financial History (FPF)

  • Agricultural Equipment History 1837-1959 (AEH)

  • Construction Equipment History (CEH)

  • Commercial & Consumer Equipment (CCE)

  • Late Agricultural Equipment History 1960-present (LAH)

Let’s look at the questions on a sample category card:

  • FPF: In which town in Vermont did John Deere learn to be a blacksmith?

  • AEH: What was the advantage of the "live" powershaft on the 50 and 60 Tractors?

  • CEH: What was the approximate operating weight of the 755B Loader with ROPS?

  • CCE: How wide a path did the 10-horsepower TRS32 Walk-behind Snow Blower clear?

  • LAH: What was the capacity of the mixing tank in the 400 Grinder-Mixer?

Do you know the answers? Check below and see.

Now let’s look at a multiple-choice card:

Q: Which child did John Deere’s wife say she "carried all the way from Vermont?"

A: Anna Deere, Lewis Deere, Mary Deere, or Charles Deere?

Granted, you’d be a pretty strange duck (or deer) if you knew EVERYTHING about the Great Green! Not to mention a pretty odd person to chat with at parties! But if you want to increase your knowledge of Deere as a company and its equipment, this is an ideal way!

Personally, The Green Girl enjoys the FPF category the most! If you’ve read all the GG columns over the past few years, you’d probably be able to answer almost all the FPH category questions and amaze your family and friends!

Answers:

  • FPF: Middlebury, Vermont

  • AEH: Continuous PTO power when engine was running.

  • CEH: 36,150 pounds.

  • CCE: 32 inches.

  • LAH: 82 bushels.

  • Multiple choice: Charles Deere

If you’re up to it, take the challenge and let your friends bestow on you the coveted title of "John Deere Trivia Master."
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Text © 2002 Brenda Kruse. Photos by Brenda Kruse unless otherwise noted.