The Ferguson-Brown Company was a British

agricultural machinery Agricultural machinery relates to the mechanical structures and devices used in farming or other agriculture. There are many types of such equipment, from hand tools and power tools to tractors and the countless kinds of farm implements that ...

manufacturing company formed by

Harry Ferguson Henry George "Harry" Ferguson (4 November 188425 October 1960) was a British mechanic and inventor who is noted for his role in the development of the modern agricultural tractor and its three point linkage system, for being the first person ...

in partnership with David Brown. Ferguson-Brown produced the Model A Ferguson-Brown

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 commo ...

incorporating a Ferguson-designed

hydraulic Hydraulics (from Greek: Υδραυλική) is a technology and applied science using engineering, chemistry, and other sciences involving the mechanical properties and use of liquids. At a very basic level, hydraulics is the liquid counte ...

three-point linkage hitch. Of the 1,356 produced 400 of the tractors were sold in Scandinavia. The early tractors were fitted with the

Coventry Climax Coventry Climax was a British forklift truck, fire pump, racing, and other specialty engine manufacturer. History Pre WW1 The company was started in 1903 as Lee Stroyer, but two years later, following the departure of Stroyer, it was reloca ...

model E engine which was a descendant of the American Hercules engine as fitted to the prototype "Black tractor" later the engine manufacture was taken on by David Brown Ltd. who made a number of improvements such as a deeper

sump A sump is a low space that collects often undesirable liquids such as water or chemicals. A sump can also be an infiltration basin used to manage surface runoff water and recharge underground aquifers. Sump can also refer to an area in a cave ...

, some of the earlier tractors suffered from oil starvation on hillside work. It has been narrowed down by surviving examples that the engine change from the Coventry Climax to the David Brown took place around tractors serial numbers 525 to 528. Harry Ferguson surmised that the tractor hitch was the key to having a better plough and designed a simpler tractor attachment for it.

Agreement with Ford

In 1938 Ferguson made a handshake agreement with

Henry Ford Henry Ford (July 30, 1863 – April 7, 1947) was an American industrialist, business magnate, founder of the Ford Motor Company, and chief developer of the assembly line technique of mass production. By creating the first automobile that ...

to produce ''Ferguson System'' Ford-Ferguson tractors using Ferguson's own self-regulating ''three-point hitch'' system, beginning with the Ford-Ferguson 9N tractor. This tractor is recognizable by the blu
Ford emblem
on the front of the hood and the Ferguson System emblem on the grill. The three-point hitch soon became the favourite hitch attachment system among farmers in North America and around the world. This tractor model also included a rear Power Take Off (PTO) shaft that could be used to power three-point hitch mounted implements such as sickle-bar mowers. This PTO location set the standard for future tractor developments.

Agreement with Standard

In December 1945

Standard Motor Company The Standard Motor Company Limited was a motor vehicle manufacturer, founded in Coventry, England, in 1903 by Reginald Walter Maudslay. For many years, it manufactured Ferguson TE20 tractors powered by its Vanguard engine. All Standard's tract ...

Limited announced that an arrangement had been made to manufacture Ferguson's tractors. Standard's newly acquired factory at Banner Lane in Coventry would be used for the project. These tractors would be for the Eastern hemisphere, with Ferguson tractors built by Ford in America for the Western hemisphere. Production was expected to start in 1946. Following conversion of the former WW2 aircraft factory. Implements would be sourced and sold separately by Ferguson.

Split with Ford

In 1946 the

Ford Motor Company Ford Motor Company (commonly known as Ford) is an American multinational automobile manufacturer headquartered in Dearborn, Michigan, United States. It was founded by Henry Ford and incorporated on June 16, 1903. The company sells automobi ...

parted from Ferguson, following several disagreements and a protracted lawsuit followed, involving Ford's continued use of Ferguson's

patent A patent is a type of intellectual property that gives its owner the legal right to exclude others from making, using, or selling an invention for a limited period of time in exchange for publishing an enabling disclosure of the invention."A ...

s. Ford altered the hydraulic design of its postwar tractors to avoid Ferguson's hydraulic system patent, but continued to produce machines equipped with the basic Ferguson hitch arrangement. The postwar

Ford 8N Ford commonly refers to: * Ford Motor Company, an automobile manufacturer founded by Henry Ford * Ford (crossing), a shallow crossing on a river Ford may also refer to: Ford Motor Company * Henry Ford, founder of the Ford Motor Company * Ford ...

, equipped with Ferguson's three-point hitch, became the top-selling tractor of all time in North America.

Ferguson TE20

After the split with Ford, Ferguson took the opportunity to have the

of the UK produce a new design, the Model TE20. The model name came from Tractor, England but is affectionately known as the ''Little Grey Fergie''. There were several variants of the TE20; the first tractors were designated TE20 Using an imported Continental Z120 engine. In 1948 the TEA20 was introduced with a Standard brand

petrol Gasoline (; ) or petrol (; ) (see ) is a transparent, petroleum-derived flammable liquid that is used primarily as a fuel in most spark-ignited internal combustion engines (also known as petrol engines). It consists mostly of organic c ...

engine, following the introduction of the TED20 which ran on TVO ( tractor vapourising oil, similar to paraffin). Later a

diesel Diesel may refer to: * Diesel engine, an internal combustion engine where ignition is caused by compression * Diesel fuel, a liquid fuel used in diesel engines * Diesel locomotive, a railway locomotive in which the prime mover is a diesel engi ...

model was introduced, the TEF20. There were other variants with narrow tracks for working in

vineyard A vineyard (; also ) is a plantation of grape-bearing vines, grown mainly for winemaking, but also raisins, table grapes and non-alcoholic grape juice. The science, practice and study of vineyard production is known as viticulture. Vineyard ...

s and

orchard An orchard is an intentional plantation of trees or shrubs that is maintained for food production. Orchards comprise fruit- or nut-producing trees which are generally grown for commercial production. Orchards are also sometimes a feature of ...

s, such as the TEB20 and TEC20. Over 500,000 Little Grey Fergies were built between 1946 and 1956, and many survive today. So successful was the TE20 that Ford nicknamed it the "Grey Menace" as sales of the tractor spread across the world. Some were used on an expedition to the South Pole in 1958 by Sir

Edmund Hillary Sir Edmund Percival Hillary (20 July 1919 – 11 January 2008) was a New Zealand mountaineer, explorer, and philanthropist. On 29 May 1953, Hillary and Sherpa mountaineer Tenzing Norgay became the first climbers confirmed to have reache ...

, a testament to the durability of the machine. Ford ultimately settled the legal proceedings with a multimillion-dollar sum that allowed Ferguson to further expand his own manufacturing interests."Settlement in Suit Against Ford Company £3M. Award to Fergusons", ''The Times'', Thursday 10 April 1952; p. 6; Issue 52283 There is a monument in Wentworth on the junction of the Darling and

Murray River The Murray River (in South Australia: River Murray) (Ngarrindjeri: ''Millewa'', Yorta Yorta: ''Tongala'') is a river in Southeastern Australia. It is Australia's longest river at extent. Its tributaries include five of the next six longest ...

s in commemorating the time in 1956 when both rivers flooded and a fleet of Little Grey Fergies was used to build defensive banks to save the town.

Ferguson Park

Ferguson built a plant in Detroit where the TO20, TO30, and F40 were assembled. He named it Ferguson Park, perhaps because the 8Ns were then being assembled at Highland Park. Massey Ferguson stopped production at this plant in 1984. Part of the plant is currently in use by an auto parts manufacturer.

Three-point linkage

The principal feature of the Ferguson System was the three-point linkage. This allowed trailed implements to be supported on a hydraulic system. Two drag links attached under the rear axle with a single compression link connected to the upper rear

transmission Transmission may refer to: Medicine, science and technology * Power transmission ** Electric power transmission ** Propulsion transmission, technology allowing controlled application of power *** Automatic transmission *** Manual transmission ** ...

case automatically regulating the hydraulic suspension's height. This allowed lighter implement to be used, with no attached wheels or separate manual controls. By assisting the tractor to maintain traction from a combined drag and rotary force to the axle, which kept the rear driving wheels on the ground, the front steering wheels had improved contact with the ground. Consequently, the "rearing and bucking" of overloaded tractors was reduced, making tractors much safer for the operator. *Ferguson design implements File:Tef L quer.jpg, Banana loader File:Ferguson TEF mit Banana Loader und Muck Fork.jpg, Banana Loader with Muck Fork attachment File:Ferguson post hole auger - 3342.jpg, Posthole borer File:Agritechnica 2011-by-RaBoe-21.jpg, Plough File:Ferguson potato spinner - Bath 2009.jpg, Potato spinner File:Ferguson tractor with milk churns on trailer - geograph.org.uk - 1572406.jpg, Lifting trailer

Other innovations

Ferguson's designs, for tractors, were the first with single-wheel brakes that allowed the driver to turn sharply by braking the inside wheel. The TE20 was one of the first tractors to have a four-speed

gearbox Propulsion transmission is the mode of transmitting and controlling propulsion power of a machine. The term ''transmission'' properly refers to the whole drivetrain, including clutch, gearbox, prop shaft (for rear-wheel drive vehicles), diff ...

, with integrated differential, and a hydraulic system.

Merger with Massey-Harris

In 1953 Ferguson and

Massey-Harris Massey Ferguson Limited is an American agricultural machinery manufacturer. The company was established in 1953 through the merger of farm equipment makers Massey-Harris of Canada and the Ferguson Company of the United Kingdom. It was based in ...

merged, and the combined company Massey-Harris-Ferguson (later shortened to

Massey Ferguson Massey Ferguson Limited is an American agricultural machinery manufacturer. The company was established in 1953 through the merger of farm equipment makers Massey-Harris of Canada and the Ferguson Company of the United Kingdom. It was based in ...

) became the manufacturer of the tractors and other designs. By then, many manufacturers had developed their own three-point linkages, and the linkage had become standardised worldwide. File:Massey Harris 744D tractor (RLH).JPG,

744D tractor

References

External links

History of Ferguson System

Ferguson Family Museum

Massey Ferguson Tractor Web Site
{{Massey Ferguson 1934 establishments in England 1953 disestablishments in England 1953 mergers and acquisitions British companies disestablished in 1953 British companies established in 1934 History of science and technology in the United Kingdom Manufacturing companies disestablished in 1953 Manufacturing companies established in 1934 Massey Ferguson Tractor manufacturers of the United Kingdom