Antique Indianapolis, IN, John Deere Plow Co. Medallion

Antique Indianapolis, IN, John Deere Plow Co. Medallion

Now known as the all-American makers of agricultural equipment and lawn-care goods, John Deere, the company, was founded in 1836 by John Deere, the person. Deere had fled to Illinois to escape bankruptcy in Vermont, where he used his blacksmithing skills to set up a shop. The people who lived in this burgeoning prairie state shared a problem: Midwestern soil was so rich and sticky that it clogged the iron and wooden ploughs farmers typically used, forcing them to stop frequently to do maintenance. Deere took a steel saw and fashioned it into a new plough blade with a highly polished surface that slid easily through the soil. Just like that, the problem was solved, and colonial expansion into the Midwest exploded. Deere's company became the foremost manufacturer of the steel plough into the 20th century, when it expanded into the gasoline tractor business.

This antique medallion advertises John Deere Plow Co. and features a logo that was in use around the turn of the 20th century. The back advertises a company called H.E. Smith Co. in Indianapolis, which appears to have manufactured carriage parts.