Editing McCormick reaper (section)

==Invention of the reaper==

Cyrus McCormick and his company insisted he be credited as the single inventor of the [[Reaper#Mechanical reapers in the U.S.|mechanical reaper]].   He was, however, one of several blacksmiths who produced working models in the 1830s. His efforts built on more than two decades of tinkering by his father [[Robert McCormick (Virginia inventor)|Robert McCormick Jr.]], with the aid of Jo Anderson, an enslaved African-American man held by the family.<ref>{{cite news |title=Jo Anderson |url=http://www.richmond.com/special-section/black-history/article_277b0072-700a-11e2-bb3d-001a4bcf6878.html |access-date=22 April 2015 |newspaper=[[Richmond Times-Dispatch]] |date=5 February 2013}}</ref> Cyrus successfully developed a modern company, with manufacturing, international marketing, and a sales force to sell his reapers and  other farm tools.

[[File:Cyrus McCormick's reaper.jpg|thumb|[[Cyrus McCormick|McCormick's]] reaper. For a 25 minute sound film that gives his version of the reaper story see [https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=zuqACE1AG_A online at YouTube] ]]
{{Further|Reaper#Mechanical reaping}}

The ''McCormick Reaper'' was designed by [[Robert Hall McCormick|Robert McCormick]] in [[Cyrus McCormick Farm|Walnut Grove]], Virginia. However, Robert became frustrated when he was unable to perfect his idea. His son Cyrus worked to complete the project.  The son obtained the patent for "The McCormick Reaper"  in 1834.<ref>{{US patent|X8277}} ''Improvement in Machines for Reaping Small Grain'': Cyrus H. McCormick, June 21, 1834</ref><ref name="Forbes27">{{cite book|first=Gross|last=Daniel|date=August 1997|title=Forbes Greatest Business Stories of All Time|edition=First|publisher=John Wiley & Sons |location=New York |page=[https://archive.org/details/isbn_0471196533/page/27 27]|isbn=978-0-471-19653-2|url=https://archive.org/details/isbn_0471196533/page/27}}</ref> 

The McCormick reaper of 1834 had several key elements:<ref>Percy Wells Bidwell, and John Falconer, '' History of Agriculture in the Northern United States, 1620-1860'' (1925) pp 286-290.</ref><ref>{{cite journal |title= Agricultural Machinery in the 1800s |journal= [[Scientific American]] |volume= 75 |issue= 4 |pages= 74–76 |date=July 25, 1896 |doi= 10.1038/scientificamerican07251896-74 }}</ref>
* a main wheel frame
* projected to the side a platform containing a cutter bar having fingers through which reciprocated a knife driven by a crank
* upon the outer end of the platform was a divider projecting ahead of the platform to separate the grain to be cut from that to be left standing
* a reel was positioned above the platform to hold the grain against the reciprocating knife to throw it back upon the platform
* the machine was drawn by a team walking at the side of the grain.
* The parts were all custom made by blacksmiths, and were not identical.

Many 19th century inventors claimed innovation in mechanical reapers. The various designs competed with each other, and were the subject of multiple lawsuits.<ref name="McCormick_1931">{{McCormick1931}}</ref>  McCormick's chief rival was [[Obed Hussey]] who patented a reaper in 1833, the ''Hussey Reaper''.<ref name="cheap">{{cite book |editor=Follet L. Greeno | year=1912 | title=Obed Hussey: Who, of All Inventors, Made Bread Cheap |url= http://www.gutenberg.org/ebooks/19547 }}</ref> Made in Baltimore, Maryland, Hussey's design was a major improvement in reaping efficiency. The new reaper only required two horses working in a non-strenuous manner, a man to work the machine, and another man to drive. In addition, the Hussey Reaper left an even and clean surface after its use.<ref>{{cite journal |last=Colman|first=Gould P. |title= Innovation and Diffusion in Agriculture |journal=Agricultural History |volume=42 |date=July 1968|pages=173–188}}</ref>

Cyrus McCormick claimed that his reaper was actually invented in 1831, giving him the best claim to the general design of  a working reaper. Over the next few decades the Hussey and McCormick reapers competed with each other in the marketplace, despite being quite similar. By the 1850s, the original patents of both Hussey and McCormick had expired and many other manufacturers put similar machines on the market.<ref>Craig Canine, ''Dream Reaper: The Story of an Old-Fashioned Inventor in the High-Tech, High-Stakes World of Modern Agriculture.'' (1995) pp.29–45.</ref>

In 1861, the [[United States Patent and Trademark Office]] issued a ruling on the invention of the polarizing reaper design. It was determined that the profits made from reapers were in large part due to Obed Hussey. It was ruled that the heirs of Obed Hussey would be monetarily compensated for his hard work and innovation by those who had made money from the reaper. It was also ruled that McCormick's reaper patent would be renewed for another seven years.<ref name="cheap"/>