This odd-looking tractor is a Lion tractor, manufactured by the Lion Tractor Company, Minneapolis. The Lion, first marketed in 1914, was a tricycle wheel arrangement with two large front wheels and one small rear wheel. All its weight was directly over the drive wheel. The driver sat high up on a seat above the rear wheel. The Lion sold for $566 and later for $795.
D. M. Hartsough was a designer working for the Bull Tractor Company. He designed a machine named the Little Bull, a tricycle wheel design with a large single drive wheel that ran in the furrow. The tractor was light, only 1 ½ tons. It was designed as a low-priced efficient machine. However, it had problems and Hartsough was hired to do a redesign. Instead of turning the design over to Bull Tractor Company, Hartsough sold the design to Lion Tractor Company. Lion proceeded to manufacture Hartsough’s redesigned tractor and subsequently sued for patent infringements by Bull Tractor Company. The court fined Lion $350. In 1916, Lion won all rights to the patent and the previous two years of manufacturing runs. Though Lion won the legal battle, the tractor did not catch on and the company disappeared in 1918.
In this photograph, painted on the handles is “Paul’s Garden Tractor.” The little boy provides scale for the wheel size. (1993:016:0002)