The Deering mower on display at the site is
a relatively recent (early 1920s possibly) piece of equipment.
Though used for display at the site because of its good condition
it is unlikely that the piece was actually used on the farm
by the Boyd family. The sense is that the piece was acquired
in the early 1970s during a restructuring of the historical
site.
In particular take a close look at the cutter
bar for this mower, measuring not much more that 2 feet, a
definite production problem in a hay field. Our thought is
that the mower had been adapted for road work, with the team
comfortably working on the road but the cutter able to clip
the margin of the road, much as you see today. This would
have been more important in this area for control of the poplar
and cottonwood trees than as a means to keep the grass in
check. A poplar sprout can push up 18 to 24 inches in its
first spring and if you are not careful becomes a tree you
have to remove with an axe within three to four years.
Though a bit
hard to read in this picture you can make out the word Giant
which was the model type of this mower.
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