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The Holt tractors were a range of continuous track haulers built by the
Between 1908 and 1913, twenty-seven of the first 100 Holt caterpillar track-type tractors were used on the Los Angeles Aqueduct project, which provided a good proving ground for these machines.
They were widely used by the British, French and American armies in the
Holt tractor models
{{DEFAULTSORT:Holt Tractor Artillery tractors Caterpillar Inc. vehicles Holt Manufacturing Company World War I vehicles of the United Kingdom
The Holt tractors were a range of continuous track haulers built by the Holt Manufacturing Company
The Holt Manufacturing Company began with the 1883 founding of Stockton Wheel Service in Stockton, California, United States. Benjamin Holt, later credited with patenting the first workable crawler ("caterpillar") tractor design, incorporated ...
from California (U.S.), which was named after Benjamin Holt.Between 1908 and 1913, twenty-seven of the first 100 Holt caterpillar track-type tractors were used on the Los Angeles Aqueduct project, which provided a good proving ground for these machines.
Military use
They were widely used by the British, French and American armies in the First World War
World War I (28 July 1914 11 November 1918), often abbreviated as WWI, was one of the deadliest global conflicts in history. Belligerents included much of Europe, the Russian Empire, the United States, and the Ottoman Empire, with fightin ...
for hauling heavy artillery including the BL 9.2-inch howitzer
The Ordnance BL 9.2-inch howitzer was a heavy siege howitzer that formed the principal counter-battery equipment of British forces in France in World War I. It equipped a substantial number of siege batteries of the Royal Garrison Artillery. It r ...
and the BL 8-inch howitzer. Around 2,000 Holt 75s along with 698 Holt 120s and 63 Holt 60s saw military use during the war. The French Schneider CA1 and Saint-Chamond and German A7V
The A7V was a heavy tank introduced by Germany in 1918 during World War I. One hundred chassis were ordered in early 1917, ten to be finished as fighting vehicles with armoured bodies, and the remainder as ''Überlandwagen'' cargo carriers. T ...
tanks were based on Holt tractors.
Specification
There were at least three models used for military purposes: the Holt 75, the Holt 120 and to a lesser extent the Holt 60. The Holt 75 was first produced in 1913. It used two tracks for steering. It had a maximum speed of and had agasoline engine
A petrol engine (gasoline engine in American English) is an internal combustion engine designed to run on petrol (gasoline). Petrol engines can often be adapted to also run on fuels such as liquefied petroleum gas and ethanol blends (such as ''E ...
. In addition to US production 442 Holt 75s were built in Britain by Ruston & Hornsby
Ruston & Hornsby was an industrial equipment manufacturer in Lincoln, England founded in 1918. The company is best known as a manufacturer of narrow and standard gauge diesel locomotives and also of steam shovels. Other products included ca ...
in Lincoln. Production of the Holt 75 was to continue post war until 1924.
The model had a tiller-type steering wheel at the front that was usually covered. It weighed about . It was developed in direct response to a request for a heavy artillery tractor. The prototype was produced in 1914 with production beginning in 1915.
The Holt 60 which saw limited use in the war was introduced in 1911.
Literature
* Holt Tractors Photo Archive: An Album of Steam and Early Gas Tractors,
References
External links
Holt tractor models
{{DEFAULTSORT:Holt Tractor Artillery tractors Caterpillar Inc. vehicles Holt Manufacturing Company World War I vehicles of the United Kingdom