John Deere milestone celebrated in Swift Current

A 100 year anniversary celebration of John Deere’s start as a tractor production company was recently observed at Pattison Agriculture in Swift Current.

A barbecue and milestone celebration was hosted on June 27 to recognize 100 years of the first John Deere Waterloo Boy Tractor. Back in 1918, John Deere got into the tractor business with the purchase of the Waterloo Tractor Works. The Waterloo Boy was the first tractor built by John Deere.

Arthur Ward, Pattison Ag President, said it was a worthwhile milestone to celebrate with their customers and the entire community.

“It’s exciting we can celebrate the first 100 years. It will be interesting to see what the next 100 years looks like,” Ward said.

Pattison Agriculture had a series of John Deere vintage tractors on display at the dealership, including one with steel wheels from the mid 1920s.

“And then you go out and look at the 620 horse power, four track machines - and they did the same job in the field. They used the same machines to cultivate and to seed and to do other work. The technology and the size, it’s incredible how its changed.”

Ward added the celebration also allowed them to salute their customers for their continued support.

“We consider ourselves to be tool providers. We support those that help feed the world. As farm sizes have grown, and the demand for food has increased, that has paved the way for more technology and smarter machines like we have today.”

“We certainly want to thank our customers for the business that we do and let them know that we’re here to support them and we want to say thank you.”