Three-wheel tractor with a single front wheel is not so unusual, but the Tri-Trac by David Bradley had a single drive wheel in the rear with a wide front axle. The tractor was built from 1953 to 1957 and about 4,000 were produced. Let’s start this discussion by taking a brief look at the David Bradley Mfg. Co.
David Bradley was born in Groton, New York, in 1811. After working for his brother in Syracuse, New York, he moved to the Midwest in his early 20s. He was involved with the first foundry built in Chicago, bought a plow company and, by forming a partnership with Conrad Furst in 1854, established Furst & Bradley Co. to manufacture farm implements.
During that time, Bradley also developed a chilled cast iron plow reported to scour in the heavy, sticky Midwestern soils. This prompts an interesting question (but one with no clear answer): Was this plow developed before John Deere invented his steel plow in 1837?
Bradley and his sons bought out Furst’s share of the partnership in 1884 and renamed the business David Bradley Mfg. Co. The business was moved to North Kankakee, Illinois, in 1895. City leaders later changed the community’s name to Bradley in honor of the man (who died in 1899) and the company.