Clarence Herbert Smith (10 August 1855 in Alma,

Victoria Victoria most commonly refers to: * Victoria (Australia), a state of the Commonwealth of Australia * Victoria, British Columbia, provincial capital of British Columbia, Canada * Victoria (mythology), Roman goddess of Victory * Victoria, Seychelle ...

— 25 July 1901 in

Ardrossan Ardrossan (; ) is a town on the North Ayrshire coast in southwestern Scotland. The town has a population of 10,670 and forms part of a conurbation with Saltcoats and Stevenston known as the ' Three Towns'. Ardrossan is located on the east shore ...

South Australia South Australia (commonly abbreviated as SA) is a state in the southern central part of Australia. It covers some of the most arid parts of the country. With a total land area of , it is the fourth-largest of Australia's states and territories ...

) was an Australian

agriculturalist An agriculturist, agriculturalist, agrologist, or agronomist (abbreviated as agr.), is a professional in the science, practice, and management of agriculture and agribusiness. It is a regulated profession in Canada, India, the Philippines, the ...

engineer Engineers, as practitioners of engineering, are professionals who invent, design, analyze, build and test machines, complex systems, structures, gadgets and materials to fulfill functional objectives and requirements while considering the limit ...

blacksmith A blacksmith is a metalsmith who creates objects primarily from wrought iron or steel, but sometimes from other metals, by forging the metal, using tools to hammer, bend, and cut (cf. tinsmith). Blacksmiths produce objects such as gates, gr ...

and inventor. He was a farmer at Kalkabury, north of Arthurton, South Australia, from around 1875. Under the direction of his brother, Richard Bowyer Smith, C.H. Smith created the first

stump-jump plough The stump-jump plough, also known as stump-jumping plough, is a kind of plough invented in South Australia in the late 19th century by Richard Bowyer Smith and Clarence Herbert Smith to solve the particular problem of preparing mallee lands fo ...

, entitled the ''Vixen'', in 1876. The South Australian government had offered a reward of £200 to anyone who could develop an effective mechanical stump puller due to frustration with lack of productivity efficiency on its

farm A farm (also called an agricultural holding) is an area of land that is devoted primarily to agricultural processes with the primary objective of producing food and other crops; it is the basic facility in food production. The name is used ...

s with current equipment. The plough consisted of any number of hinged shares: when the blade encountered an underground obstacle, it would rise out of the ground. Attached weights forced the blade back into the ground after the root was passed, allowing as much of the ground to be furrowed as possible. Although a little unorthodox, it proved remarkably effective, and was dubbed the "stump-jump" plough. Stump-jump plough

C.H. Smith worked on improving the plough, and demonstrated the improved model at the Moonta Agricultural Show with much success. Both the single and triple plough model were awarded first prize. R.B. Smith took out a patent in 1877 for the design, he allowed it to lapse. C.H. Smith established a factory in

during 1880, and started producing ploughs. R.B. Smith was later credited as the inventor of the design by the

Parliament of South Australia The Parliament of South Australia is the bicameral legislature of the Australian state of South Australia. It consists of the 47-seat House of Assembly ( lower house) and the 22-seat Legislative Council (upper house). General elections are ...

in 1882, however C.H. continued manufacturing them because his brother had allowed the patent to lapse. R.B. Smith relocated to

Western Australia Western Australia (commonly abbreviated as WA) is a state of Australia occupying the western percent of the land area of Australia excluding external territories. It is bounded by the Indian Ocean to the north and west, the Southern Ocean to th ...

two years later. C. H. Smith married Emma Sarah Beck in 1879. Upon his death in 1901, C.H. Smith's business was transferred to his two sons, C. Glen Smith and Alma O. Smith, who married Eva Alderman, also of Ardrossan, on 27 August 1907. The company, Clarence H. Smith Ltd, ceased operations in 1934, during the Great Depression.

References

* * * * * * * {{DEFAULTSORT:Smith, Clarence Herbert 1865 births 1901 deaths 19th-century Australian inventors 19th-century Australian engineers