John Deere
Early years: John Deere was born in Rutland, Vermont, on February 7, 1804. His father left for England and disappeared in 1808, so Deere was raised by his mother. He was educated in a public school, and began his career as a blacksmith’s apprentice at age 17.He started his own blacksmithing shop, and for 12 years he worked in various towns around Vermont.

The man and his plow: As a blacksmith, Deere found himself making the same repairs to plows again and again, and realized that the wood and cast-iron plow used in eastern United States was not durable enough to break through the thick, heavy soils of prairie land. Showing his new design to the local farmers, he was able to sell three by 1838. He had produced 10 by the following year, and 40 more by 1840. Increasing demand in 1843 led Deere to partner with Leonardo Andrus to produce more plows, and by 1846, production had rose dramatically. That year alone, Deere and Andrus had produced nearly 1,000 plows The following year, Deere decided that Grand Detour, Illinois, was lacking as a source of commerce, so he sole his side in the blacksmithing shop to Andrus and moved to Moline, Illinois, located on the Mississippi River. There he was able to offer the advantages of water power and cheap transportation. Deere soon began importing British steel, which successfully sped up manufacturing--his company made 1,600 plows in 1850, and began producing other tools to go along with the line of plows.