The Story of the Modern
Steam-Powered Tractor
Dr. Scott Birdseye is Vice-Treasurer of the
Royal Tractor Repair and Maintenance Society
of Belgio-Luxemburg. He was recently awarded
the Nobel Prize in Nanolinguistics.
Among the AgroFarm™ Museum’s historic collections is Daniel Bester, Inc.’s Daniel Bester steam traction engine. At the time the steam traction engine was devised, Daniel Bester, Inc. was known as Bester Technologic & Farm Implements, Ltd.
The Daniel Bester Steam Traction Co. was the first subsidiary of the company (later to become AgroFarm™ in 1967), which was spun off in 1962 to latch onto what company insiders believed was a resurgent technology, steam power.
The steam traction engine was originally used by the Kalisotta Mining Consortium to haul protesters from the nascent eco-terrorist movement off the premises of KMC mines and logging interests. KMC, now a Daniel Bester, Inc. subsidiary, placed an initial order for 20 of the machines.
The steam traction engine boasted impressive specifications for such a device. Rated at 110 horsepower, the machine masses 19 tons, stands 18’8” inches tall, has side-by-side operations stations and nodes for 16 different attachments.
Unfortunately, the erroneous assumption that steam power was on its way back sidelined the project, subsequently forcing other steam power contracts to be cancelled. In addition to the approximately 2000 orders placed for the steam traction engine (no doubt pushed by Bester Technologic & Farm Implements, Ltd. lobbyists and salesmen), plans were going forward with the U.S. Navy for a prototype CVE (escort carrier) model and steam bullet trains for the Elizabethia metroplex. Talks with NASA for contracts in steam powered space exploration were also cancelled.
The last surviving model of the “Best” was given to the historic collections in 1983, and restored by renowned farm implement specialist Moriarty Jones. Today, the Daniel Bester, Inc. steam traction engine is housed at the Daniel Bester, Inc. Historic Collections Farm Mockup in Katharinetowne, West Dakota.
A dedicated group of historic collections recruits and Daniel Bester, Inc. Community Service Crews maintain and operate the Daniel Bester, Inc. steam traction engine. The public is invited to see this magnificent machine in operation on several days during the year.
The steam tractor is scheduled to be fired up on alternate Wednesdays in June, every other Thursday in July and sunny days in August. The Daniel Bester, Inc. Historic Collections can be contacted by showing up in person at 34 Bester Expanse Katharinetowne, WD between the hours of 9 AM and 1PM on Fridays.