Inventor and, as much, salesman of the mechanical reaper. McCormick demonstrated his machine in 1831, built on his father's attempts and a farm mechanic's labor, fought priority disputes with Obed Hussey all his life, and won the market with field trials, installment credit and guarantees. The McCormick Harvesting Machine Company he built became the core of International Harvester. This description is adapted from Wikipedia contributors under CC BY-SA 4.0; changes were made. https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/4.0/
Facts
Defining ContributionThe mechanical reaper and its commercialization 1 Connections
Developed
Why this is disputed. McCormick's claim is the famous one; Obed Hussey patented first (1833) and the priority dispute ran for decades. Recorded as debated, not smoothed.
Source Reaper (Wikipedia)
Works In
Source Cyrus McCormick (Wikipedia)
In the Other Atlases
Sources
1. Cyrus McCormick (Wikipedia)
Wikimedia FoundationLead sectionQuote, Lead section
McCormick always claimed credit as the single inventor of the mechanical reaper.
Dissenting Readings (1 dissenting reading)
Developed: Mechanical Reaper
When McCormick tried to renew his patent in 1848, the U.S. Patent Office noted that a similar machine had already been patented by Obed Hussey a few months earlier; McCormick later lost a court challenge to Hussey's patent.
A dissenting reading, from Obed HusseyCyrus McCormick (Wikipedia), Wikimedia Foundation
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