Abandoned Treasure: McCormick-Deering TracTracTor

As I didn’t know exactly where to look for the serial number, it took me a few minutes to find it, stamped on an engine block boss. Using my pocketknife to scrape away the surface rust, I uncovered “TT 573,” likely a preproduction number or an early TracTracTor serial number. McCormick-Deering 10-20 Track Layers (later named the TracTracTor Model 20) were built beginning in 1928. Production estimates based on monthly serial number data suggest that no more than 486 10-20 TracTracTors were built between Oct. 1, 1928 and May 1, 1930. Using the same measure, no more than 954 Model 20 TracTracTors were built between Aug. 15, 1930 and June 1, 1931.

Where is this rare crawler? We’re keeping that a secret. By agreement with my friends, I will not disclose its exact location. They want the crawler to remain where it is, unmolested. Besides, the crawler is inside the Mojave National Preserve, a National Park Service management area since 1994, and as such the crawler is a federally protected historical artifact. Further, it is situated in a remote and rough mountain canyon, so a recovery attempt would be difficult, expensive and unlikely to win the National Park Service’s approval. FC 

Francis G. Blake is a retired geologist living in California. He is interested in antique vehicles of any kind, and exploration of the Mojave Desert. He has written for Army Motors, Old Cars, Armor and Road Rider. Email him at jblake33@roadrunner.com.