Volume 26, No. 5 Buffalo County Historical Society September - October, 2003
Fifty Years of
International Harvester Company in Buffalo
County
by
Howard L. Mefferd
International Harvester has a long history in
Buffalo County, Nebraska.
For more than 100 years the farm machinery manufacturer has served the
needs of
Buffalo County farmers. International Harvester Company was founded in
1902
when McCormick Harvesting Machine Company and Deering Harvester
Company,
competitors in the farm implement business, merged into one company.
Agriculture in the
era prior to World War I was one based upon horse power and to a major
degree
hand labor. Farms were generally quite small and were truly family
farms that
were mostly self-sufficient economic entities. By modern standards, the
tools
used by farmers during the early twentieth century were small and
simple in
design. During World War I agriculture was transformed into larger
enterprises
and the implement industry began a major transformation. Within the
next two
decades after World War I, mechanized farm implements such as the
tractor replaced
the horse. Hand labor, while in a declining mode, was still common but
the
farmer sought the means to further avoid such hard work. As
technological
advances improved the farmer's tools, there was a demand for a means of
supplying the needed parts and repairs, and small local retailers
fulfilled
these requirements. This was the beginning of
the professional implement dealer who provided services and supplies
to the farmer. International
Harvester
was represented in Buffalo County by local dealerships such as
Fairbanks
International, the oldest International Harvester implement dealer in
the
county.
World War II and the
increased demand for farm produce placed a heavy burden upon the
Buffalo County
farmer and farm machinery dealer. This, coupled with the decline of a
farm
labor supply and the heavy demands of war production upon the
manufacturer,
caused a major problem for all suppliers of equipment, particularly for
the
International Harvester Company.
During the war, International Harvester contributed to the war
effort by
manufacturing rifles, motor trucks, and heavy industrial tools rather
than farm
machinery. When the war ended, the demand for farm equipment was very
high and
the change from war production to farm machines took time. Local
dealerships
faced problems because of the lack of available farm machinery. This
shortage
allowed competitors to enter the field and Harvester had
difficulty in
regaining its position of dominance in the industry.
These were the conditions that existed when Buffalo
County entered the second half of the twentieth century. The first
decade of
this era saw major changes in the agricultural economy in Buffalo
County.
Mechanization came into being at an accelerated pace, allowing farmers
to
increase the size of their operations, diminish the demand for hand
labor, and
place a heavier demand upon those supplying parts and services to
Buffalo
County farmers.
In the early 1950's
there were six International Harvester dealers in Buffalo County. The
towns of
Ravenna, Shelton, Gibbon, Kearney, Elm Creek, and Miller each had an
International Harvester dealership. The surrounding areas also had
Harvester
dealerships and many of these claimed portions of Buffalo County as a
part of
their trade area. These included Wood River, Kenesaw, Minden, Holdrege,
Bertrand, Overton, and Eddyville. By present standards, these
businesses were
quite small and had few employees.
A typical dealer
during the 1950's consisted of an owner manager, parts-man, two
mechanics, and a secretary or bookkeeper.
Some dealers
employed a salesman and few hired part-time or seasonal employees.
Often the
owner's wife performed the bookkeeping duties, assisted in the parts
department, and lent a hand wherever necessary. Nearly all employees
came from
a farm background and for the most part they were drawn from local
communities.
Very few had any formal training in the areas in which they worked and
were
often called upon to serve or assist those laboring in other
departments. Often
a mechanic, for example, would assist in parts service and the parts
man would
fill in for the bookkeeper. The delivery of machines was often
done by a
mechanic, a part-time worker, and occasionally, by the owner. This
arrangement
worked quite well, as the territories were small and the dealers knew
almost
all of the customers and the needs of their farming operations.
At this stage, International Harvester had a number
of contracts,
including farm equipment, motor trucks, twine, parts for both farm
equipment
and motor trucks, dairy equipment, refrigeration, and light industrial
equipment. The Industrial Division of the company was handled on a
distributor
basis and the local dealers were not participants in the heavy
equipment
program. Occasionally, a small crawler tractor would be sold by a
dealer and
acquired from a distributor. Most of the small dealers had a farm
equipment
contract, some had motor trucks upon a modest scale, and refrigerator
contracts
were quite common.
The company was
represented by a blockman
who traveled an area comprising some ten plus dealers. He was
responsible for
making certain the dealer had adequate and proper machines to serve the
dealer's territory and assisted in the sale, training, and overall
management
demands of a dealership. These men were often quite older and
experienced in
their tasks and were basic keys to the success of his dealer group. The
blockman reported to the management of the District Office and was
directly
responsible to the District Manager. There were also teachers who
traveled the
area to assist in the service responsibilities and direct the warranty
efforts
of the company as well as help the mechanics to keep abreast of the
changes in
the equipment from a mechanics view.
The 1950's witnessed a major change in the equipment used by the
Buffalo County farmer. The family farms were declining in number and
changing
in character. The demand for larger machines came at an accelerating
rate, and
along with the increase in size came an even greater increase in
complexity.
Crops were changing and labor intensive crops such as sugar beets and
potatoes
had all but vanished from the scene. Irrigation became a major player
in the
productivity of the area and the resulting increase in crop yield
demanded more
advanced machines with different methods and larger capacities.
Customers began
demanding enhanced parts and service from the dealer as farm equipment
became
more complex. They were also starting to demand skills that were beyond
the
capacity of the farmer who formerly had performed many of these
functions
himself. The only way a dealer could continue his operations was to
gain a
larger percentage of a declining customer base.
All of the advances in agriculture production
reflected upon the
International Harvester dealers. The traditional structure
would no longer suffice to serve the needs of the
advances made on the farms. The company pressured the dealers to
upgrade their
facilities and their service to the customer. Nearly all implement
dealers
attempted to upgrade their operation but the close proximity of a
competing
International Harvester Dealership and the reduction in the overall
customer
base had a major impact on the volume of sales and enhanced parts and
service
competition. This resulted in decreased profits, which made the
attempted
upgrade of their business beyond the capacity of the dealer to attain
his goal.
In addition to the problems of a declining number of
farmers, several of
the Harvester dealers were no longer young men and they were fast
approaching
retirement and the end of their careers. During this era, very few of
the
operations in the small towns and highly competitive markets were able
to sell
their business and they were forced to close. This was the beginning of
the end
for the pre-war era type of operation. The Harvester Company had little
to
offer the smaller dealer. The agricultural picture in the area was
undergoing a
truly major transition. Farming was transforming into a strict business
enterprise and less of a way of life.
The crops, methods of farming, and increase in the
size of the average farm were the underlying factors in the transition
of the
position of the Harvester Company and their dealers. Irrigated land and
more
modern farming methods such as enhanced use of fertilizer, chemicals,
and technical
assistance in crop production put heavy demands on the company to
manufacture
and service larger, more efficient, and complicated machines. Corn and
soybeans
were supplanting the traditional crops. Tillage was also in transition
and the
moldboard plow was for all practical purposes no longer used. The use
of the
wheeled disk and the field cultivator had become the tools of choice in
tillage. Cultivators were becoming larger and more sophisticated and
the
application of fertilizers were following the same trend.
Harvesting machinery underwent major changes as the
corn picker was
passed by due to technological advances. The mounted two-row picker
that was
the mainstay of the corn harvest was replaced by a combine and corn
head. This
unit picked and shelled the crop in one operation, a major advance over
the
individual units of corn picker and corn sheller The combine caused a
major
change in the dealer's operation for the combine was an expensive and
complicated unit that demanded an upgrade in the level of parts and
service. In
addition to harvesting the corn crop, this machine with a platform also
was
used to harvest soybeans and small grains.
The advent of the
combine caused some major changes in the dealer's management. These
were
expensive machines and along with the great increase in farm tractor
size and
costs necessitated that the dealer make his business a more capital
intensive
operation. The management of used goods inventory, especially in used
tractors
and combines, forced the dealer-owner to attain a high level of skill
in the
acquisition and management of large amounts of capital. Small
operations
lacking good management skills and capital sources could not compete.
The
business became ever more
capital intensive and demanding in management expertise. The farmer was
becoming more and more of an excellent manager, and the dealer had to
offer a
high level of service to retain him as a customer. In many instances,
the
farmer managed an operation as large as the dealer, and to compete the
entire
operation had to be modern and efficient.
The six dealerships that operated fifty years ago
were forced from the
business by the great changes in agriculture more than any other
factor. Few,
if any, were forced out of business due to financial problems or
mismanagement
on the owner's part. There was just not an adequate customer base to
support
the number of dealer operations in this era of the modern farm
operation.
Corporate relations in regard to the dealer
organization have undergone
great changes in recent years. These were necessitated by mergers in
the
industry, increased costs of production, and efforts to reduce costs in
all
areas. There had traditionally been a degree of benevolence toward the
dealer
from the manufacturer, but for all practical purposes, this has ceased
to
exist. In order to counter this trend, the retailer has been forced to
assume
more and more of the tasks. There are very few travelers left in the
implement
industry, which has eliminated an important source of advice and
direction to
the retailers.
Fairbanks International, the sole surviving
dealership in Buffalo
County, is modern in all detail and is an example of the trend within
the
industry following World War II. It started with an owner-manager and
some four
employees. The sons of the owner, Loren, Dave, and Jim grew up in the
business
and today the three brothers own and operate five dealerships and
employ some
150 people. They now represent multiple lines of equipment and serve an
area
that includes a major portion of the Platte Valley and the surrounding
areas. The transformation of Fairbanks
International is similar to other farm machinery businesses in
Nebraska. There
are almost no sole proprietorships remaining in business. Most farm
machinery
businesses, like Fairbanks, handle multiple lines and sell other
products.
These modern businesses have also become full-scale service centers and
each
serves a wide area of larger and more modern farms.
International
Harvester Company underwent a major restructuring in the last two
decades after
World War II. They had some 130 motor truck branches, ninety district
offices,
and over 200 stores in the early 1950's as well as over 120,000
employees. In
those fifty years, they underwent several mergers and ceased to exist
as an independent
manufacturer of farm equipment. The restructured company remains a
major player
in the implement industry and as a supplier to the Buffalo County
farmer.
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