Cyrus McCormick

APUSH 62206

1524 Words
 Cyrus McCormick: a Successful Entrepreneur

After the invention of his mechanical reaper in 1831, Cyrus Hall McCormick managed to excel in all parts

of the agricultural industry: invention, production, advertising, marketing, and most importantly, quality . (Bellis,

n.d.). He is most famous for revolutionizing the way that farmers harvested their crops . McCormick’s ideas for the

manufacturing process were later used by struggling businessmen to find their way to success . Cyrus McCormick

represents an age of technology and invention that America went through prior to the Civil War . This age

modernized America to how we know it today.

Born February 15, 1809, Cyrus Hall McCormick, a farmer from Virginia, had been passionate about

inventing even at a young age. At an age of 15, McCormick designed and created a cradle that harvested grain

(Shenandoah Valley AREC, 2001). His father too enjoyed spending time in his farm’s blacksmith shop inventing

projects of his own. In 1815, the elder McCormick started working on a horse drawn reaper, although he

discontinued his work on it in 1831 out of frustration for not being able to perfect it. At the beginning of that year’s

harvest, Cyrus McCormick resumed work on the reaper . Working long hours in the shop with Jo Anderson, a slave

friend, as an assistant, Cyrus was able to perfect the reaper before the end of the 1831 harvest . His reaper was finally

patented in 1834. In 1843 he only sold 29 reapers, but by 1850 he sold about 5,000 of them each year. McCormick

and his two brothers, Leander and William, moved to Chicago in 1847 to form the McCormick Harvesting Machine

Company (Grady, 2009). In 1858, he accomplished his lifelong dream of having one million dollars when his

company’s assets surpassed that number (Stevens, 2001). He was also married to Nettie Fowler. The following year,

he created a partnership called C.H. McCormick & Bros with his brothers. The company was successful because

William took care of the finances and Leander managed the manufacturing. After the Chicago factory was destroyed

in 1871 by the Chicago Fire, he built a new one that would be able to handle production for and international

market. By the 80’s, McCormick’s company was selling in places like New Zealand and Russia (Grady, 2009).

Later in his life, he made very smart investments in mining and railroads, which added to his already large fortune
(Inventors Hall of Fame, 2007). Cyrus Hall McCormick passed away on May 13, 1884 in Chicago. His son, Cyrus

Jr., took control of the company after his death (Grady, 2009).

To be successful in selling his reaper, Cyrus McCormick’s reaper had to have a better design than other

reapers. In fact, McCormick’s reaper was so popular that people started copying his ideas so that they too could

share in on the wealth. It is said that copying is the greatest form of flattering. In 1843, one of these men who was

also making a reaper, challenged McCormick to see whose reaper was better. This was done by seeing who could

cut the most wheat. The day the contest was being held, it rained. The imposter’s machine did not cut because it

jammed, but McCormick was prepared for wet weather; he designed his reaper to cut even when it rained . Also, he

released new and improved models of his reaper each year that fixed problems in the previous year’s model (PBS

Innovators, 2006).

Cyrus McCormick was devoted to work. That is why he was so successful in producing his reapers . It is

said that his last words before he died were “work, work, work” (PBS Innovators, 2006). In 1857, McCormick’s

factory produced 23,000 reapers. This was partly because he used fabrication methods that were far ahead of his

time. These methods were later used by other successful businessmen like Henry Ford (Bellis, n.d.).

Another reason for his success in selling so many reapers was because of his advertising and how

he treated his customers. McCormick once said, “Trying to do business without advertising is like winking at a

pretty girl through a pair of green goggles; You may know what you are doing, but no one else does” (PBS

Innovators, 2006). He believed that the quality of the product being sold was irrelevant if it was not advertised .

McCormick was also concerned about making sure that his customers were satisfied with their reaper . He included

money back guarantees incase the customer was not satisfied (PBS Innovators, 2006). McCormick made pay later

deals with farmers who could not afford the reaper. He did this because he knew that if the farmer had a reaper then

they would be able to pay off the debt that they owed to McCormick’s company with the money that they made
because of the reaper. He told the farmers, “It is better that I should wait for the money, than that you should wait

for the machine that you need” (PBS Innovators, 2006).

The effects of using a mechanical reaper versus harvesting a field by hand and scythe were very visible.

Using the hand and scythe method, a farmer could harvest about one or two acres a day, but with McCormick’s

mechanical reaper, harvesting 12 acres a day was made possible (Stevens, 2001). McCormick won the Gold Medal

at London’s Crystal Palace Exhibition for his reaper in 1851 (Shenandoah Valley AREC, 2001). This award was the

highest award of the time, and he received international attention by receiving this award.

Cyrus McCormick’s invention of the mechanical reaper revolutionized the world. He encouraged farmers

to try new ideas. Their willingness to try these ideas made the American agricultural industry the most efficient and

successful in the world. According to William H. Seward, McCormick’s reaper is credited with “moving the line of

civilization westward thirty miles each year,” (“Cyrus McCormick”, 2009, para . 4). McCormick’s company used an

advertisement with a painting of families traveling west. The slogan for this ad stated: “Westward the course of

empire takes its way with the McCormick reapers in the van,” (“Cyrus McCormick”, 2009, para . 4). Since

McCormack’s factory was located in Chicago, there was a need for railroads that led to and from the city. This both

made the “windy city” become one of the largest of the nation and opened up the west through the construction of

new railways. The reaper made it possible for farmers to double their crop size . It also led to other farm equipment

advances (Grady, 2009). McCormick’s invention allowed more wheat and crops to be produced with less people

harvesting. America’s economy changed drastically as a result of this invention. In 1831, 90 percent of the nation’s

population participated in some form of farming to meet the needs of the nation. Nowadays, less than 2 percent of

our population is involved in farming (Shenandoah Valley AREC, 2001). This meant that the citizens could focus on

other industries and sciences to help our nation mature into being self reliant . His invention brought about an

industrial revolution and inspired other people in his era to create things that would boost the nation’s economy and

improve its society. It is not a just a coincidence that people like Charles Goodyear, Samuel Morse, Robert Fulton,

and Isaac Singer all contributed their inventions in the years following the introduction of the mechanical reaper .
 Works Cited

Bellis, M. (n.d.). Cyrus McCormick - The Reaper. In About.com: Inventors. Retrieved December 2, 2009, from
http://inventors.about.com/library/inventors/blmccormick.htm.

Cyrus McCormick. (2009, November). In Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia. Retrieved December 2, 2009, from
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Cyrus_McCormick

Grady, L. C. (2009). Cyrus McCormick - International Harvester Company. In Wisconsin Historical Society.
Retrieved December 2, 2009, from http://www.wisconsinhistory.org/libraryarchives/ihc/cyrus.asp.

National Inventors Hall of Fame Foundation, Inc. (2007). Cyrus Hall McCormick. In Invent Now Hall of Fame.
Retrieved December 2, 2009, from http://www.invent.org/Hall_Of_Fame/101.html.

PBS Innovators. (2006). Who Made America? Innovators: Cyrus McCormick. In PBS They Made America.
Retrieved December 2, 2009, from
http://www.pbs.org/wgbh/theymadeamerica/whomade/mccormick_lo.html.

Shenandoah Valley AREC. (2001). Biography of Cyrus McCormick. In Shenandoah Valley Agricultural Research
& Extension Center. Retrieved December 2, 2009, from
http://www.vaes.vt.edu/steeles/mccormick/bio.html.

Stevens, P. (2001). Cyrus McCormick. In Garden of Praise. Retrieved December 2, 2009, from
http://gardenofpraise.com/ibdcyrus.htm.