Occupational Portrait of John Deere

John Deere (1804-1886)

quarter-plate daguerreotype, circa 1855

John Deere (1804-1886) was an American blacksmith and manufacturer who founded Deere & Company— the largest agricultural and construction equipment manufacturers in the world. Born in Rutland, Vermont, Deere moved to Illinois and invented the first commercially successful steel plow in 1837. "He was of impressive stature, though only about six feet tall, but with massive shoulders and arms which readily indicated the physical prowess that was his. His well defined facial features indicated correctly his strength of mind and decision. A heavy head of hair crowned a rather high forehead and treated with the common abandon of his day added materially to the impression of physical strength." "His unusual strength made him a tireless worker, and his application to his work surrounded him with a degree of reserve, though his more intimate friends found him a very human and highly congenial associate and friend. He could relax when occasion demanded, but usually the driving force of wanting to get something done motivated his work, and this tireless industry prevailed to the end of his days." - from an article in Implement & Tractor magazine, January 9, 1937.

While the most recognizable images of John Deere are as an older stately gentleman as seen above, the lithograph of a younger John Deere seems to be based upon a single daguerreotype, whereabouts unknown.