Charles Walter Hart (July 6, 1872 — March 14, 1937) was an American mechanical engineer, inventor, and businessman. Together with

Charles Henry Parr Charles Henry Parr (March 18, 1868 – June 10, 1941) was an American mechanical engineer, inventor, and pioneer in the development of the gasoline powered agricultural tractor and cofounder of Hart-Parr Company. Early life and education Parr was ...

, he founded a company that produced a commercially successful line of gasoline-powered tractors. After being forced out of his company in 1917, he went on to work on further development of the tractor and later, started an oil refinery.

Biography

He was born in Charles City, Floyd County,

Iowa Iowa () is a state in the Midwestern region of the United States, bordered by the Mississippi River to the east and the Missouri River and Big Sioux River to the west. It is bordered by six states: Wisconsin to the northeast, Illinois to the ...

in 1872. His company,

Hart-Parr Gasoline Engine Company The Oliver Farm Equipment Company was an American farm equipment manufacturer from the 20th century. It was formed as a result of a 1929 merger of four companies: the American Seeding Machine Company of Richmond, Indiana; Oliver Chilled Plow ...

, known as the "founders of the tractor industry", coined the word

tractor A tractor is an engineering vehicle specifically designed to deliver a high tractive effort (or torque) at slow speeds, for the purposes of hauling a trailer or machinery such as that used in agriculture, mining or construction. Most common ...

. First enrolling at the Iowa State College of Agriculture and Mechanical Arts at the age of 20, he transferred to the University of Wisconsin (now

University of Wisconsin–Madison A university () is an educational institution, institution of higher education, higher (or Tertiary education, tertiary) education and research which awards academic degrees in several Discipline (academia), academic disciplines. Universities ty ...

). It was here that he met Charles H. Parr, and the two young men quickly became friends. Together they worked on their university thesis, which consisted of building three working internal combustion engines. One of these engines is still on display at the school today. Despite owning three farms near Charles City, Iowa, Hart's father considered his son's experiments "folly". In April 1897, J.H. Bowman joined Hart and Parr on a three-member board of directors after his $3,000 investment in Hart-Parr. In October 1897, ''Wisconsin Engineer'' featured Hart and Parr as they discussed their final draft of the thesis on the internal combustion engine. In 1898, Hart married Jessie Case on February 14. In 1916, Hart wrote an article in ''Farm Implement News'', advocating for the 60-horsepower, 8-bottom plow tractor, versus the smaller 2-plow tractors. By 1917, however, Hart left Hart-Parr after a disagreement with Charles City bankers. He then moved to Montana and created the Hart Refinery in Hedgesville. This company supplied gas and petroleum products to the ten filling stations owned by Hart. He expanded his refinery business in

Missoula, Montana Missoula ( ; fla, label=Salish language, Séliš, Nłʔay, lit=Place of the Small Bull Trout, script=Latn; kut, Tuhuⱡnana, script=Latn) is a city in the U.S. state of Montana; it is the county seat of Missoula County, Montana, Missoula Cou ...

and remained in the oil refinery business until his death in 1937. Parr gave the eulogy at his funeral. Hart is buried in Riverside Cemetery, Charles City, Iowa.Morrell, Herbert T. ''Oliver Farm Tractors''. Osceola, WI: Motorbooks, 1997, pp. 13-14. In 1929, Hart-Parr was one of the four companies that merged to form

Oliver Farm Equipment Company The Oliver Farm Equipment Company was an American farm equipment manufacturer from the 20th century. It was formed as a result of a 1929 merger of four companies: the American Seeding Machine Company of Richmond, Indiana; Oliver Chilled Plow ...

. His home from 1914 through 1918, the

Charles Walter Hart House The Charles Walter Hart House is a historic building located in Charles City, Iowa, United States. It was listed on the National Register of Historic Places in 1980. The hollow clay tile structure completed in 1914 is faced with rockfaced gran ...

, is on the US National Register of Historic Places.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Hart, Charles Walter 1872 births 1937 deaths University of Wisconsin–Madison alumni People from Charles City, Iowa