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Daisy Self-Rake Reaper, circa 1895

National Museum of American History

Object Details

inventor
McCormick, Cyrus
manufacturer
McCormick Machine Company
McCormick Machine Company
Description
The reaper replaced the hard manual labor of harvesting grain with a sickle with a drivable machine. The operator sat on a seat mounted on the left wheel axel, driving the two horses or mules that pulled the reaper. Its reciprocal cutter bar was more than five feet long with three triangular sickle blades oscillating through guard teeth. Three rotating arms with three-inch projections raked, bound, and shocked the grain.
An earlier model of the McCormick reaper, "Old Reliable," had required two men to operate. The second man sat behind the driver of the team, next to the apron, and raked the grain out as the reaper drove along. The "Daisy" eliminated the need for this second operator. The McCormick Machine Company, founded in 1847 by Cyrus McCormick, later became the International Harvester Corporation.
Location
Currently not on view
Credit Line
Gift of the New York Historical Association, Cooperstown, New York
ca 1895
patent date
PATD. U.S. / FEB. 12TH 1895 / MAR. 16TH 1897
ID Number
AG.58A05.04
accession number
213356
catalog number
58A05.04
Object Name
rake reaper
Physical Description
wood (overall material)
metal (overall material)
See more items in
Work and Industry: Agriculture
Agriculture
National Museum of American History
Record ID
nmah_214133
Metadata Usage (text)
CC0
GUID (Link to Original Record)
https://n2t.net/ark:/65665/ng49ca746a0-dd94-704b-e053-15f76fa0b4fa
rake reaper
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International media Interoperability Framework
IIIF provides researchers rich metadata and media viewing options for comparison of works across cultural heritage collections. Visit the IIIF page to learn more.
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